Sidebar: 2020 Vision, lessons for the new year

It’s still early enough in 2020 to share the vision and plan for the new year, right? Just asking because the new cycle moves fast & we’re basically on the brink of god knows what but trying to not live in terror, you know the vibezzz. #hidethepainharold

2019 was such a year of growth for me and I want to share some lessons I learned (some the hard way!) and hopes for the new year.

One. Have the courage to change. Easier said than done! But 2019 was when I realized that if I wanted to grow in my career I needed to seek new challenges. It would have been so easy, simple, and still satisfying to stay where I was professionally. But I also had a gnawing feeling of dissatisfaction that I kept ignoring. I kept wanting/searching/asking for different responsibilities but they weren’t coming my way. Ultimately, at the beginning of 2019, I kept hoping that if I just focused on other aspects  of the job, I would feel professionally fulfilled. But when it’s time to move on, it’s hard to feel fulfilled and by early in the year I realized that it was time to go and the only thing holding me back was coming to terms with being ok with trying something new, challenging, and different rather than being somewhat satisfied in the easy and comfortable. I hope to carry that ability of discernment and willingness to change going forward.

Two. Treat your body right. I mean it shouldn’t have taken me this long to realize but I’m stubborn? lol But really, when I started my new job I was not prepared for the erratic hours and lack of time to eat appropriately. It hit me hard pretty early and I struggled with it for a while. On top of the random aches and pains that come with getting older (womp womp), it’s really clear to me that it’s kind of a now or never timeframe to work on bettering my health (in addition to being diagnosed with asthma, like wtf!), definitely has made me decide to take my health more seriously–both in terms of nourishment and gaining more strength. I want to appreciate my health now and take better care of myself in better ways.

Three. I don’t know everything–and that’s ok. As you can see the theme for this year was mostly the impact of a professional shift. And I mean, can you blame me? I left a place I worked at for a decade so this was a major change. And where I used to be, I kind of knew everything. I don’t mean that in a smarmy way, but rather there weren’t many things left for me to master. Then I started at a new place where there was a steep learning curve. It’s HARD to start over again. To have to learn new processes, to be the one that knows the least in every meeting, to play catch up and still deliver results in a fast-paced environment–the ego definitely takes a hit. I quickly had to come to terms that I didn’t know everything and be open to swallowing my pride to do a better job. Sometimes we’re so hesitant in asking because it will show that we don’t know, but it’s ok to not know.

I’m really excited for 2020–gloom and doom aside! I’m excited about this new professional opportunity (I’m especially aware of how fortunate I am to get to work for a women of color in a major leadership role and can’t think of how incredibly powerful and informative this journey will be). Beyond work–because I do things other than my job lol, I’m excited about some personal goals for this year (sharing soon) and like always, I’m so excited for the growth of this community. I plan to finally get to los angeles in the spring and can’t wait to meet a few of you readers 🙂