At the beginning of the year I take a look back at all the thing’s I did, places visited, highlights and the lessons learned. I sound a smidge like a program and project manager! However, looking backward can help you see just how far you’ve come, particularly during testing times. That said, annual planners were one of the most useless stationary items for 2020. Nowhere to go, nobody to see, work from home, cover your face, wash your hands and space yourself well away from potential silent spreaders. Yet still, I bought a new one for 2021 in the hope that life might return to some form of normality before the year end.
The tricky bit has been trying to add plans to each category:
1. Health and body – the obvious goal is to come out of lockdown 3.0 fitter, not fatter than I went into it.
2. Emotional, spiritual and personal growth – not an issue in lockdown. In fact it frees up time to concentrate on this area.
3. Intimate relationships – potentially problematic when you are locked down with two kidults and no hope of escape for some ‘alone time’!
4. Social and fun – Hahahahah! Really? Fun, yes. Social – heck no!!!!
5. Family and friends – hello video calls. Real life encounters are off limits. The best I can do for now is a chat through the hedge between us and our nearest neighbours.
6. Work and career – All training courses have gone virtual, or, in my case, cancelled indefinitely. On the bright side, I do have a job and am in a key industry (phew) and educational institutions have ramped up their on-line offering. Management training here I come!
7. Money and finances – See above. Unless my company makes an unexpected turn, I should be comfortable this year. Lockdown reduces my spending so I should be able to make savings.
8. Community and giving – charitable donations are more important than ever. Most charities run events to raise funds and missed out last year. I know I missed my Race for Life for Cancer Research last year and it doesn’t look hopeful for this year… so I give on line. As for community, see point 4!
Now more than ever, I need to supercharge the brain cells and find some creative solutions to set targets for some of the above areas in my life. But what to do safely? I’m sure solutions will present themselves.
So I may not be able to socialise as much as I’d like, but I can set up more zoom calls with friends and family. I can get fit by hitching my street bike onto a turbo-trainer and pedalling like fury before work. My career progression can be managed by online training courses, as can my spiritual health and development.
The trick is to do some epic blue-sky thinking to invent new ways to achieve goals in each area, within the current restrictions, oh, and write them in pencil. You never know when we might be let loose again and the plans change!
cathdean.com 