5 Lessons Learned that will make YOUR 2021 AWESOME

Phew, 2020 is finally over. In fact, by the time this article gets published, 2020 will be over for a week. I don’t know about you, but it took me that long to process 2020.  It was full of crazy chaotic change.  Maybe that is what we should call 2020, the year of crazy chaotic change (CCC for short), or we could just call it the year of Joggers. Hmm, I will let you decide.

 I’m really proud of you, of us!!!  We survived the most chaotic time, at least in my lifetime.  It wasn’t easy, but for many of us, it had surprising highlights like spending more time with our family. 

 As a working mom, who loves what they do, it is always challenging to balance work and home.  This year, I spent more time with my family and found out I love them even more than I thought and that we like popcorn, maybe a bit too much.

 🪴 Also, many of us picked up a new hobby or two. Did you know that some houseplants cost 325% more at the end of 2020 than at the beginning of the year?  I admit, I bought a few houseplants too, and I’m proud to say 33% survived my tender care. ;)

 Many of us also thrived.  Leaders supported their employees, organizations developed innovative ways to keep sales up, and a few CRAZY people (like me) started their own business.

 1)    Resilience.

In 2020, we all learned more about resilience than we ever wanted to. We learned that resilience is often more important than motivation, ambition, or even intelligence.

 Our resilience enabled us to survive and DO HARD things.

 ✅ Not leave the house for months at a time

✅ Work remotely for the first time…ever

✅ we made sweatpants…I mean joggers, into the newest fashion trend.  (Is three pairs too many? Asking for a friend)

 No one would have ever predicted this time last year that would all be wearing masks or organizations that previously swore off remote working would suddenly embrace it. 

 2)    Working Remotely – Like a Boss

 We learned that many of us can work remotely and be more effective than ever before. Before 2020 many organizations, even tech organizations resisted the concept of working remotely. I repeatedly heard, “We communicate so much better in person” or “I just can’t talk to people when they are remote” I even had an organizational leader state, “People that want to work remote, just want to be lazy.”

  Thank goodness; we proved all of those assumptions as incorrect.

 Now, in 2021 we can work from anywhere as long as we have a good internet connection and reliable electricity. Also, organizations get to expand who they hire since location is no longer a restriction. We can also learn to work remotely with less stress and even more success. I mean, who doesn’t want to attend meetings in their joggers?!

 3)    Relationships Changed

Our relationship changed, many for the better. We had pods like dolphins and became closer to our new tribe. We didn’t get to see some of our close friends as much, but we learned that SO WHAT if someone isn’t able to share the same oxygen as you.  You get to have a Zoom party!!! Costumes encouraged!

 You also made new strong friendships.  We spent time with different people than before, our neighbors, co-workers, or parents from your kids’ school. 

 I became so close to my neighbors, and I even spent the holidays with a few of them! That probably wouldn’t have happened before 2020.

💪 Best of all, those friendships and connections we made this year are not going away, and they will help us throughout the years to come.

4)    Importance of Mental health

The entire world recognized and felt the enormous importance of mental health and the importance of knowing how to cope with mental challenges.  Many organizations that previously ignored mental health challenges started mental wellness programs in 2020, which will only help us throughout 2021.

We also learned the importance of having a thing, an activity that brings us joy and serenity, like baking, puzzles, Netflix marathons, new pets, and Legos.  (I just realized that I did ALL of those things this year!)

This year, we could sit with ourselves, which is not always easy, but we made it.

In 2021, when the stress of Covid is over, we can work even more on our mental health and knowing ourselves to become even more resilient.

 5) Organization Supporting Employees

 Organizations realized the power (and NEED) of a positive organizational culture supporting employee mental health.

 The businesses that supported their employees’ mental health succeeded last year. They were the organizations that pivoted and thrived despite the Chaotic Crazy Changing (CCC) year. I am so proud of them and their willingness to embrace change!  

Change can be exhausting, but it can also bring out the best in us.

A few examples of organizations that thrived in 2020:

⚡A local restaurant, Black Rooster, created the concept of 🍸 Margarita grams and all the proceeds went to their employees.  Also, their margarita grams were excellent!!

 ⚡The Chocolate Genius, a Chocolatier, pivoted their in-person event business into an exciting and positive virtual event business.

 ⚡ We can forget Zoom. Zoom did want most companies cannot do, they were able to scale from 10 million users to over 300 million in a few short months, and their stock went up by 780%.  Zoom did tons of updates and worked continually to keep all of us remote workers connected. 

 These organizations are resilient and could pivot because of positive organizational culture and leadership that supports and empowers their employees. 

 The power of an empathetic organizational culture is something that will help all organizations in 2021.