not just another end-of-the-year blog
The new year...the new decade...is right here. I'm welcoming it with renewed energy and strength and sharing some insights I've gained.
There’s no shortage of blogs, memes, and social media posts discussing the end of this year. And honestly, I didn’t even put two and two together until maybe a month ago that we’re also approaching the end of the decade.
I’m a thinking person, so this got my wheels turning and remembering the big events in my life over the past 10 years.
So much has changed since December 2009. My life was totally different—I was single, no kids, working a corporate 9-5, and doing photography (mostly weddings and couples) in my spare time.
I also drove a car where I could literally see the ground under my feet. I can laugh about that now.
What’s changed for you?
Do you have a totally different career? A few children? Have you moved? Have you experienced loss? Made new friends? Tried new things?
I can say yes to all of those things, and more.
2019 was a huge year for me. There was some high highs and some low lows. I think most of us could agree on that.
I grew and stretched myself personally and professionally. Although it was scary at the time, I’m a better person for it. (You can read about one of my experiences in my Canada series, part one and part two.
I made mistakes, and did and said things I shouldn’t have. I beat myself up a little for them, too. I asked for forgiveness.
I failed plenty of times.
Just yesterday, I heard a Rachel Hollis quote that stopped me in my tracks and has been playing on repeat in my mind ever since.
She said, “Failure is the price of admission to your greatness.”
We cannot win without losing first (and maybe even many times over).
This got me thinking, again, about the moments when I failed this past year. BUT, I decided not to dwell on them for a minute longer, because they were the jumping off point to my successes. They were the necessary falls for me to get back up and push forward.
I want you to close your eyes and remember a time over the past 12 months, or even the past 10 years, where you failed.
Remember how it felt and what you said to yourself.
Remember what people said to you about it.
Now, recall how you also had successes—things you’re proud of. Do you think those successes would have been as sweet without the junk you had to overcome first?
Seriously, stop reading for a minute and try this. I’ll wait.
If you had trouble with this, I encourage you to keep thinking and force yourself to remember how you rose from the ashes, even if it seems small or insignificant to you.
I’m writing this just days before we ring in 2020. The past few months of 2019 have been especially trying on me and I’ve had some really low moments, even just as recently as the holidays.
But I’m not stopping. I’m not tucking my tail between my legs and hiding from my future.
2020 is full of possibilities, opportunities, and choices.
The choice to see the good even amidst less-than-ideal circumstances.
The choice to be kind to myself and take care of myself.
The choice to be bold and take risks.
The choice to feel the fear, but do it anyway.
The choice to walk into this new year and decade as a strong, powerful, and confident woman.
Because that’s who I am. And that’s who you are, too.
