2021 - Good Advice
The start of a new year is a time to reflect, especially after the nightmare of 2020.
What can we do better?
How can we focus?
What is important?
Are we who we want to be?
I have been focused on reading other people's thoughts and ideas about raising the positive in 2021 and would like to share them with you.
Simon Sinek had a great post titled "An Optimist View Going into 2021," on Jan 1 about his concept of the "Infinite Mindset," or the idea of thinking of things as a continuum rather than finite.
A couple of nuggets that I felt were important to consider as we move into the new year:
"I look at social media and see people expressing how glad they are that 2020 is over. Except it's not. Not in the sense of the Infinite Game. Yes, we are passing a calendar marker in an infinite race after a particularly grueling leg, but the race is not over."
"To think of 2020 as "bad" and "over" ignores the fact that the impact of things that began or grew in 2020 live on, and we will be still dealing with them in 2021. I find it healthier not to think of 2020 as a bad year, but rather that it had more behind days than we would like. And I look forward to 2021 having many more ahead days."
This concept is something that I will work on in the coming year. The idea is that there are no stops and starts but an infinite race that we must focus on finishing to the best of our abilities.
Another post by Sinem Günel on Nov 18, 2020, titled "29 Ridiculously Tiny Habits That Can Completely Change Your Life," has some great advice overall. Still, several points were incredibly impactful for me to consider in 2021.
The following are my favorite, but the entire article is excellent and worth the time.
"If it takes less than five minutes, do it immediately."
This idea is one of my favorites, and it's constructive. If you can knock it out, knock it out and get it off your plate—one less thing to worry about.
"Eliminate as many decisions as possible."
Everyone used to wonder why Steve Jobs wore jeans and a turtleneck every day, and it's because it removed one extra decision. And it was probably comfortable. I used to do the same when I wore a suit to work every day, which simplified everything.
"Remember Names."
Doesn't it feel good when people remember your name? Imagine how good they feel when you remember theirs. I need to work on this one.
"Celebrate Wins."
Even the little ones. Just do it.
"Contact One Loved One a Day."
This concept should be more straightforward than it is, but it's hard. I try to make sure to call someone when I have the impulse, or they cross my mind. It's like in Star Wars when the characters feel it, I do too sometimes and try to act on it. But I need to do better because we are not here forever.
Those are just a few of the great inspirational nuggets I wanted to share. There are so many more, though, that are just as good, so I encourage you to explore your own.
"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." – Dr. Seuss