The Beginning of a New Year and a New You

The year 2020 is a year we will never forget. I feel like I can speak for many of us in saying that we are all ready to move on from 2020 and start 2021 with a fresh start. This past year has delivered some of the most heartbreaking news we have had to endure, and it kept on coming at us with one piece of bad information to another. It started with the wildfires that burnt over 20% or 12.6 million hectares (31.1 million acres) of forests in Australia, then we all were hit with COVID-19 that dramatically altered the way we live our day to day lives with social distancing. This continued with the largest decline in our economy since The Great Depression, and to top it all off we experienced one of the nation’s most extreme civil rights movements that has occurred in the history of The United States of America. This does not mean the next year has to continue like this. With crisis happening all around us we can create an opportunity to make positive change. We can help create opportunities by taking the first step in meeting our goals in what we want to accomplish. During this past year, I was hit with some of the most detrimental news, I was let go from my job. Hearing this news, I created an opportunity that I have been waiting for my entire life. Here is what I did…….
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Reflecting on this past year, anyone can find the tragedies and losses that has come with the year 2020. However, there is always beauty in life’s thorns. Of course, we want to recognize our losses, but we also want to recognize the gains and blessings that have happened because of those losses. Maybe you put more of an effort to stay in contact virtually with your family and friends, or perhaps you started improving yourself and made the decision to act on what you have been putting off for so long. Whatever happened this past year, reflect on the good and recognize what made you a better version of yourself. For me, I was hit with the loss of my job due to a restructuring of the organization. At the time, this was a huge blow to my confidence, self-worth, and belonging. Reflecting on my time in my previous position I can say I made a positive impact on many lives by the work I had the privilege of doing.  I also realized that this was not because of me that I lost my job, it was because of the needs of the organization and the goals to be met. Due to this change, I was presented with one of my biggest opportunities to date; I made the decision to continue my education with a Master of Business Administration and start my own business to help serve others in their goals through Exemplify. Because of the incredible loss with everything 2020 had brought me, it gave me the opportunity to live my passion for leadership, giving others the opportunity to start living their passion as well. I could have given up after hearing the news. I could have settled for something that was not going to meet my goals but provide a steady paycheck. I made the decision to finally take hold of my destiny and start living the life I was meant to live.

There is great opportunity in some of the biggest crises you will face in life. What will you choose to do when that crisis comes? How will you respond? Will you start leading yourself to become the best you can be? What goal do you want to set for yourself this upcoming year that will give you your greatest return? I know times are tough, but do not let that get you down. Rise up, live to your potential, and create the opportunity you were meant for!

Yours in success,
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Carl