This is IT people!
“I know that I can’t - and won’t - go back to the way I was living before because…”
This was a year for the books, an understatement if ever… We pivoted, we iterated and pivoted some more! We tried to remain “flexible” as one never knew what tomorrow would bring! It was a year of unimaginable loss and hardship and yet…
With all of that and right alongside of it I was going through a personal pivot, iteration, transformation… This “pause”, for many of us, changed our perspectives. Personally I recognized I was STUCK and I didn’t like the place in which I found myself. Rather than ignore it and distract myself I started trying to get closer to it - what was it trying to tell me, what could I do to “feel better”? Lots more self-reflection, reading, journaling… And then out of the blue...
Five months ago I released the 64 project. I had been on yet another 365-day journey around the sun: it was the morning of my 64th birthday. I always consider my birthday a bit of an opportunity for “renewal” as I do the beginning of a new year. Other than my birthday, and maybe even more so, January 1st is my favorite day of the year. I absolutely LOVE this “fresh start” feeling when you are at the top of the year and you can see all the way down to the end to a place you just were yesterday! This year, on January 1st, I declared 2021 will be ‘“bigger and badder”.
Although some variation of this statement is always expressed at the start of a new year I do believe that THIS year will really be exactly that! I use “badder” in an urban sense of the word meaning better but in a more superlative sense. :) Yes - this thing called COVID is not over yet and we will be mask-wearing humans for a number of days to come. Just because the population is beginning to get vaccinated, there’s still some length of a road ahead.
But eventually...This too shall pass. And when it does “return to normal,” as many are fond of saying, is that what we really want? I don’t. Sure - there are many things that I’ve missed and to which I look forward to returning. But there was a lot of “stuff” that no longer served me well and that I hope not to revive.
Although I’m certainly not seeing as many people as I did pre the virus arriving at our doorstep, there are casual conversations I have had on a walk here or there or over a distanced cup of tea or glass of wine, and via Zoom. My takeaway from those cumulative conversations is that most people don’t want life to return to the way it was pre-pandemic. Many of us were operating on automatic pilot and running on the proverbial hamster wheel, doing what was expected of us - all the shoulds - and not checking in with ourselves to determine if we really wanted to do all of itl Turns out many of us didn’t - and don’t - and want to find that happy medium where we’ll still connect with others in a meaningful way but are not obligated to some of the other things we thought we were. I’m fond of saying “This is IT people!” By this I mean - recognize that the close of every day is another we’re not getting back and one day and then the next and then the next is what makes up a week, a month, a year, a decade and, ultimately - a LIFE! Phew! Although a trite sentiment, it doesn’t seem to matter how many times we hear it, as often we don’t really take it in and DO something about it!
Last year was transformational in more ways than one, but mostly it’s made clear the way in which I want to live my life. Rather it shook me until I came to the realization that I really needed to take some time for soul searching to figure out WHAT it is that I REALLY want to do and how I really want to live my life. I’m still exploring and will continue to do so. I created Her Next Act as a way of continuing the conversation and inspiring other women who are at this stage and want to create a more fulfilling life: it has already helped me create my own.
I’m committed to at least trying to make this year better than the last one - admittedly that bar wasn’t too high, but nonetheless… I’m just warming up! I know that I can’t - and won’t - go back to the way I was living before because… This it IT people! So…are you with me?
Please join me in our private fb community to continue the conversation and take steps towards creating your Next Act! I’d love to connect!
If you’re interested in working with a coach to support, encourage and guide you to discover or enhance your Next Act, I’d love to work with you! Please see my coaching tab to learn more.