Last week I kicked off the series, 20 things learned in 2020.
If you missed the first three parts you can read them here, here, and here.
I was talking to Kim yesterday about this series, and honestly, it was as much for me as it was for you.
I always find it helpful to reflect and journal, and writing this piece did just that.
Reflect on the year, realize it was crazy, but there was also a lot of good.
I had a client come up to me in the gym yesterday and he mentioned how much he resonated with it, so I’m glad it helped at least one person.
Let’s dig into the final five lessons.
16. 10% Of Life Is What Happens To You
There is a saying that goes around that goes something like this…
Life and our happiness is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.
And in fact, in the book Happiness Equation they back it up with research.
Positive psychology research has actually proven that life’s happiness is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it.
This means one thing…
We can’t control the 10%, but we can control 90%.
We can’t control certain life events happening, but we can control our attitude and behaviors towards them.
I still think back to the passing of my mom…
I used her death as fuel to urgently start building a community, building a legacy, and making decisions and taking risks knowing that life is too short.
We can't control a lot of what happened in 2020, but we can control our attitude towards it.
17. Servant Leadership is still the better model
Traditional leadership is focused on the person.
What do I need to do to succeed?
Servant leadership is the flip of that?
How can I serve others?
Servant leadership mindset is the serving of others first.
Leaders eat last.
I think you saw that so much this year.
Healthcare workers.
Teachers.
Essential workers.
It wasn’t about what they wanted, it wasn’t about their personal initiatives, it was about serving others.
I try to practice servant leadership in our community, and 2020 reinforced that it is the “new” leadership model, and traditional “power” leadership is old hat.
18. Change is good, just not too much
We were sitting around a table, discussing the next quarter’s objectives.
Coach Chris chirps up and says…
“Change, just not too much.”
And that’s the balance (if there is such a thing).
There are six human needs, and two of them are certainty and variety.
We all crave both.
If change never existed, we would get bored, we would get stale, and life just wouldn’t be that exciting.
However, if every day is different, and there is no certainty in life we fill our anxiety and stress tanks.
Change is good.
It creates excitement, it finds better ways of doing things, it challenges people.
But too much change is…too much.
I think 2020 was a good test of our tolerance of change.
You had to change, you had to adapt, you have to, dear I say it…PIVOT.
But, we saw what too much of that can create.
Like anything, there will always be a balance.
I’m looking forward to continuing to find that balance in 2021.
19. You have to have support
Life is a team sport.
Now, who is on your team is up to you, but 2020 proved that life is a team sport.
A common theme across all personal development is your support network.
Who are the people in your life that will be there when times are tough and give you an (air) high-five when things are good?
We all need it.
It could be family, friends, a co-worker, or a mentor, but 2020 reinforced that you cannot go through life alone, it’s too lonely.
20. We can handle anything
Persistence.
Resilience.
Pushing through.
1% Better.
We can get through anything, we can handle anything that comes our way.
It could be a pandemic, it could be racism, it could be political/government decisions out of your control, or it could be something super personal like losing a family member.
Think of all of those moments that you said to yourself…
“I don’t know how I’m going to get through this.”
Yet, here you are.
Will it be easy?
No.
But you (we) can and you (we) will get through it.
I truly hope you enjoyed reading this series as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Here’s to a healthy and happy 2021!
1% Better.
Dedicated To Your Success,
Doug Spurling