Happy New Year 2021! Just like flowers bloom and wither, life is full of ebbs and flows. It’s not linear, or static, and it certainly doesn’t always go the way we want it to! The celebration of a new year is often a time we reflect, to think about what we learned the year before, what we want to bring with us into the new year, and what we want to leave behind.

Growth comes from discomfort

There is hope that 2021 will be different, ‘better’. Less Covid restrictions and lockdowns, and more freedom and energy! But in reality, sometimes we need those hard years to push us well and truly outside our comfort zone. Growth happens when we are tested, and there is often less motivation to grow when we are comfortable.

Looking back

When I look back at my most challenging years; for example, the year my mum passed, the years I was horrendously ill, or the year of heartbreak after a relationship breakup, they were the years that by far and away I grew the most mentally, spiritually and emotionally. Without having gone through those experiences and more, I would not be doing what I do now.

After making peace with those experiences, I am now eternally grateful for the struggles I went through. I am far stronger, more peaceful, more confident, and more understanding and tolerant than I was before.

Doing vs Being

When visualising the year ahead, rather than thinking about all the things I want to do and achieve, I think about who the person is that I want to become. The attributes and qualities that I want to embody. When we get to the end of 2021, I want to be proud of myself for another year of growth, contribution, love, joy and focused attention on the things that fill me up, regardless of what the year brings, covid or otherwise.