2019 Year in Review: Perseverance

I totally believe that life is a process. That each day, week, and month reveals what you honor, are committed to, and are learning. So, I don’t necessarily need an event to launch what I believe is an unfolding; an everyday journey.

Yet I love New Years. I love the symbolic fresh start because in our adult years, we rarely get an opportunity to have a clean slate. Gone are the days of leaving junior high for high school, high school for college, and college for the real world. Unless we leave jobs or move, there is less opportunity for starting all over.

Since we not only learn through experience, but learn through reflecting on our experience, each New Year’s is also the time I capture what my past year has been like, wins, losses, and how I can leverage that knowledge for a better year ahead.

What Went Well

Home Is Made

This was our first full year in Sonoma. No moving, no uncertainty, no mad collection of boxes and purging.

With Sonoma’s vineyards, farms, animals, Northern Pacific coast, and abundant beauty of different flowers and trees, I find myself continuously awestruck. I walk my dog between giant redwoods and gangly wild turkeys running off gobbling their irritation. Friends and family have come to visit and we’ve made some lovely new friends.

Work Got Crazy

The reality of the time needed to become financially stable in my own business really hit home. As of January 2019, it had been 13 months since I launched my leadership coaching business; and I was strug-gl-ing. So much so, that I started looking for jobs. Both ‘real jobs’ and side jobs. I wasn’t sure what I wanted so I went for both (rather, I was starting to get scared sh$tless as to whether my biz was going to work…temptation and doubt crept in). Good news is, once I was offered a 6 figure ‘real job’, it made me realize how much I didn’t want it. The compromises were far too great.

Instead, I took a $13 an hour job at a gourmet chocolate shop and a $15 an hour job as a tasting room associate in a winery. Yup. Having two part time jobs to stabilize my income was incredibly more appealing than not having my own business.

Overall, I 4x my leadership development income. With most of that coming through the second half of the year and an even higher percentage the last quarter. I feel like I’ve cracked the code, it’s no longer a matter of will my business succeed, now it’s at a steady pace of growth.

As far as side jobs, I’m down to one: the winery on weekends; partially, because I really enjoy the social outlet, the perks, and mixing it up a bit.

This has been a big lesson in commitment. I proved to myself that I will do whatever it takes. I’m pretty proud of that. Getting here involved a roller coaster of emotions and going out of my comfort zone which I hadn’t done in a long, long time. But, I learned the most valuable of lessons: If it’s important enough, you will put in the time and energy, no matter how daunting, because you don’t feel it as much. There is absolutely a difference between passion and stress.

“So often we pretend to make a decision,
when what we’ve really done is sign up to do something until it becomes uncomfortable.”

– Jen Sincero

What Didn’t Go So Well

I spent a lot of time ‘being visible’ on social media and didn’t enjoy much of it. Regardless, I felt that: ‘it’s where everyone is’, ‘I must share content’, ‘I must add value’ or whatever…so I should be doing it too.

This was the logic I embraced at first.

But when you are not fully enjoying something, let that be your cue! Listen to yourself, trust your gut. It’s more important, authentic, and effective, to engage in what’s fun for you. For me, that’s the slower, more intimate, one-on-one conversations and interactions to build trust, and then work together if it’s right. Much more enjoyable than trying to stand out two-dimensionally in a very crowded news feed.

This realization has been incredibly freeing. And really, I just needed to put time into coaching more, with less focus on content building. Now, I truly enjoy my visits to social media land.

Bottom line:
Ignore what everyone’s telling you of what you should be doing if it doesn’t suit you. You hear it all day: eat kale, climb the ladder, pay your dues, build content and post it six times a day, stay at your sucky job, travel later, the advice goes on and on. The sooner you find out what works for you, the better you’ll feel and the more success you’ll have.

***

My health has been stronger than ever. I work out at least five days a week, meditate around the same, and eating like a champ. Yet, for the first time ever I have been informed it’s not enough. Right before Christmas, I was diagnosed with Grave’s disease: hyperthyroidism. Not a death sentence, but definitely something I need to take action on.

I’m incredibly grateful for my health and I’m looking forward to helping my body heal this condition through exercise, diet, and other holistic approaches. While I wish it wasn’t something I was dealing with, I’m grateful for this chance to embrace natural healing for my body over pharmaceutical remedies.

2019 was a roller coaster. Here are a few more of the important lessons I learned:

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There. Period. If you want to live the life of your dreams, you’re going to have to do things you’ve never done before. Watch out for getting comfortable, playing it safe (or playing not to lose); that’s like tiptoeing through life hoping to safely make it to death.

“Those who fear failure haven’t tasted it yet.”

— Simon Sinek

Gratitude does wonders. Ever get antsy? Thinking you should have more, be smarter, deserve a better title, more zero’s at the end of your bank account, and a heck of an easier time doing it? Be thankful for what you have and start where you are. Gratitude raises your frequency and allows the Universe to send more. Like responds to like, if you are seething all the time, wondering why life is happening to you, that’s the way life will continue. You have so much to be thankful for, recognize all of it.

Empower yourself through your mindset, attitude, and gratitude.

“If you wish to understand the Universe think of energy,
frequency and vibration.

— Nikola Tesla

Going it alone? Good luck. There is no way you can do ‘this’ by yourself. Every successful person has had someone help them along the way. It may be financial, emotional, or physical support you need: that first big break, a loan, a listening ear, some camaraderie, or a friend or mentor. We all need someone.

I wouldn’t have gotten this far without the support of my husband, parents, fellow Circle of Champions, colleagues, and teachers. They kept me going when I heard ‘no’ for the millionth time and was completely crushed; they made me want to try for million-and-one.

Eventually, it clicks. You have to become the person you need to be first. In my case, that meant truly committing to something I couldn’t learn overnight. Something that took dedication, time, and was no easy win. If we already mastered whatever it is that we need to, we’d have what we want already.

Get comfortable asking for, and receiving, help.

“If you want to go fast, go alone.
If you want to go far, go together.

— African Proverb

What’s Next: 2020

I’m psyched. I have a lot of exciting things going on, definitely the most professionally filled calendar since I’ve started. In addition to my steady coaching practice:

• I’m starting off my year with almost a full coaching roster
• This winter will be my second semester teaching a three part leadership workshop for our local junior college’s Business Continuing Ed program.
• I’ll be speaking at Berkeley on servant leadership for the third semester in a row.
• I’ve secured my first full day corporate training, taking place on January 31. I’m determined to provide an exceptional experience leading to more trainings with them and other local companies. This came to be because of personal relationships I developed throughout last year, there is nothing sweeter than seeing my commitments pay off.

Passion Meets Purpose

I get to carry out the exact purpose I launched my business: to improve America’s workplaces by coaching business leaders on how to inspire and take care of their team. This past year I’ve coached leaders from Google, LinkedIn, Salesforce, Capital One, Warner Bros., and many more. To be able to have this type of impact is so damn satisfying, I’m humbly grateful and looking forward to continuing this work.

I also think it’s time to make some changes where necessary. Since I am coaching and teaching more, I have found I have less time to provide what I believe is a quality blog each week. As I’ve said, part of my New Year’s is reflecting on such things, to decide if it is still serving me (and you), and make adjustments as needed. Going forward, I’m going to do a blog twice per month. I think the quality will be better and that I’ll enjoy it more.

Now it’s your turn.

The new year is just upon us, what can you learn from 2019? What went well for you, what didn’t go so well and what did you learn? Where do you want to be this time next year? Take an hour to put some thought into answering these questions ( ask me to help you if you’d like, I’d be happy to).

The only way you can have a life that you want is by being proactive about it rather than reactive. When you are living a reactive life, you are swamped by doing the things right in front of you. It feels like you are putting out fires All. Day. Long. You never have time for yourself and you never get ahead because you are constantly on your heels.

Let’s start this decade off the way you want to, not the way your inbox, iCal calendar, or that self-doubting voice in your head thinks you should.

“Failing to plan is planning to fail.

— Alan Lakein

Originally published at https://www.karyndanielle.com on January 9, 2020.