As the year 2020 is almost over, I am sure that we are excited to see what 2021 has for us all. Imagining what many of us have been through, there is a good reason to assume that we want to get into the new year, and we hope it is better than this one. Around this time of the year, we are liable to see different articles that try to outline how we should prepare for the next year and so on. That is almost what this week’s blog is about. I came across a post on Instagram and it got my attention. I figured I would share it with you all. The post is titled “5 things you MUST do before this year ends:”. As I state each one, I will add my input, where I have one.
From this one, we can pretty much guess where this is going. Obviously, they don’t mean we should literally do nothing. We still need to prepare for next year so that we do not go into it “blindly” or running around like a headless chicken. I believe what this advise means is that we are not under obligation to force ourselves into finding “something” to do just so that we can check an activity off an imaginary list. If all we can do is try to stay safe and nothing else, that is fine enough. We will soon learn that my suggestion of not forcing ourselves into activities will be a recurring theme in this blog.
There is no need to explain how draining and/painful 2020 has been to anyone. There are some people here who have felt it personally. For those who did not, I’m sure that various news outlets throughout the year showed us that millions of people suffered from one thing or another this year. I think we should take some to reflect and try to heal from the hardships of 2020. It is ok to start next year by taking baby steps in whatever we do, since “…one cannot fly into flying.”
As a follow-up to the previous advises, it is perfectly fine to rest and take baby steps. Do not stress yourself because someone is guilt-tripping you for not overworking yourself under the guise of trying to be over-productive.
If you are able to find time to breathe a little, take it because 2020 has been quite the year. Even though many people worked from home, they barely had any down time. So, the moment you get one, use it well.
Personally, I used to sleep late during the year, even though I had to get up early to work. My sleeping pattern was off, and I was sleep-deprived for most of the year. However, since I took my vacation towards the end of the year, I have been eating well and sleeping a lot. A friend questioned why I slept almost every afternoon and I responded that I did it because I was finally able to. It felt good.
Again, this will complement the previous advise. Please note that “you sleep when you die” is not a smart motto to live by. You literally might die because you put off relaxing when you should.
This one is self-explanatory as well. It is important to take time to retreat and refuel.
Conclusion
The words of advise above are obviously not just for 2020, but for the next year as well. We want to make it into 2021 and we want the year to be good to us. Evaluate how 2020 was for you and I bet you will know that you deserve to take care of yourself a bit better (if you did not do much of that in the past). We don’t have the manuscript of how 2021 will play out, so there are a lot of things that we can’t control. However, the few that we can control, let us do them diligently – “the few” meaning planning responsibly and not pressuring ourselves because of what others are doing or saying.
If all you can do is stay safe and healthy while you prepare for 2021, that is good enough too.
Happy New Year in advance!
RANTS FROM THE PRIVILEGED SEAT 