Things To Love About 2020!

Are you thinking to yourself, - how can she say that? 2020 has been a terrible year!

Of course it has. That’s all you ever read about or hear about. All you ever see is how terrible 2020 has been! I’m not discounting or downplaying that some very tragic things have happened over the past few months and the majority of the country (and world) has had to deal with some very difficult challenges, and even death. I would never discount that.

BUT….2020 doesn’t have to be your worst year ever. There are things you can do to turn your year around and finish it strong. And dare I say….maybe even make it a GREAT year!?

When the quarantine first started, I think it was pretty scary for everyone. For me, the busiest six weeks of the year for my business were cut off in an instant. A lot of what I had worked for the past 2-3 months fell apart in 2-3 days. I felt the fear and doubt trying to creep in and take over my thoughts, so I had to have a talk with myself.

I woke up at 6:00am the next morning and went to my favorite reading spot in my house. I reminded myself that it was time for me to get my mind right and to control my thoughts. I could not allow other people and events to emotionally control me. I reminded myself that my happiness is determined by what thoughts I choose to focus on, and only I am in control of that.

I knew that it was going to be crucial over the next few months to become the master of my thoughts and emotions.

I was determined to stay stronger than ever. While everything around me was getting weaker, I was only going to focus on things that made me stronger. I woke up every day at 6:00 am, even though I had no meetings and nowhere to go. I spent an hour strengthening my mind and 2 hours strengthening my body. Every morning I wrote down all of the things I am thankful for.

You see, your brain can’t think two thoughts at once. If you’re thinking about all of the things you are grateful for, you cannot think about all of the things you are fearful of. Fear and faith cannot exist at the same time.

So, what is good about 2020?

One thing a crisis can do is make us afraid and weak and make us curl into a ball, throw in the towel and become a victim of the circumstances. Another thing a crisis can do is remind us of who we are and how strong we can be. It can remind us of how resilient we are in the face of adversity.

It’s not the good, easy times that show who you are. It’s the setbacks. It’s getting back up and looking adversity in the eyes and then kicking it’s butt that shows you what you are made of.

Think about it…..if you’re reading this then you have had a 100% success rate of everything that has ever happened to you in life! You made it through every single thing you thought was going to break you. And now, you are going to make it through 2020.

In that reading room on that dark morning in the beginning of the quarantine, I made a promise to myself that I was going to make something great happen in 2020. There’s no way that I can control what was going on around me. I can’t control the virus, the stock market, the real estate market, the world’s reaction, and I knew I couldn’t control the toilet paper situation!

What I could control were my actions and my reactions. I asked myself what I could do so that when I looked back at the end of the year on Dec. 31, 2020, I could feel like I had created some sort of success in my life, no matter what else happened around me.

I knew that if everything else around me crumbled, if I could get to my goal weight once and for all, I would consider that to be a big success. It’s something that I’ve wanted to do for several years, but I always put too many other things in front of that goal. I made a promise to myself that I’d lose 25 lbs. So far, I’m down 20 and I have no doubt that I’ll get there by the end of year.

We still have 2 1/2 months until the end of 2020. There’s still time to make something great happen!! Or at least start. Maybe 2020 is the year you started training for your half marathon, or started writing that book, or learn a new language, or enroll in school. Maybe you can’t finish, but STARTING something you’ve always wanted to do is the first step.

I believe the FIRST thing you must do is stop saying how terrible 2020 has been. You're going to get more "terrible" if you're constantly thinking "terrible!'

Do just ONE thing to make 2020 a year you can look back on knowing that all the challenges and adversity lead you to something greater, something you’ve always wanted. Let it be the year that reminded you of how strong you are, and though you got knocked down, you got right back up. This is the year that you allowed you to prove to yourself that you are more courageous than you are afraid. This is the year that you showed that you are the victor, not the victim. This year made you tougher, stronger and wiser. This year gave us a lot of opportunities to learn and to grow.

RIGHT NOW is the PERFECT time to begin to make any change you want. You just need to make the decision to do it and do not allow yourself to waver from your goal. RIGHT NOW is the PERFECT time to start something that will not only change your 2020, but perhaps the rest of your life!!

Now go make it happen! ;).

You got this!!! (Btw, I LOVE hearing about other people's success, so please share with me!)

PS - below are some quotes and thoughts that I wrote out every day to reinforce what I needed to keep at the forefront of my thoughts. I think most of them are from books I’ve read but some are also my own. I’ve got thousands of these, but here are a few of my favorites:

You become what you think about all day. You are what you say you are.

Your thoughts become your actions. Your actions become habits. Habits become your character. Your character becomes your destiny. Control your thoughts!!!

Every arrow that misses the bullseye is the result of 100 misses. You must miss to hit the bullseye.

It is discipline that offers you the power to keep commitments to yourself.

The only failure is not having the courage to try.

Pain is the precursor to growth.

The only path I take is the one that gets me closer to my goals. I avoid all other roads because all other roads lead to failure.

Every decision you make today either takes you closer to your goals or further from your goals. Make good decisions!