Whew. What a year.
As March has rolled back around and we’ve marked one year of the pandemic, I’ve taken a big pause and a big breath.
We have a lot to reflect on. These are the questions I’ve been thinking about:
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What was hard about this year?
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What did I learn from this year?
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What am I most proud of from this year?
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What are new habits, routines, and lessons I want to carry with me?
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What do I want to leave in the past?
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How has this year changed my work?
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What has changed about my industry, either temporarily or for the long term?
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How am I different now than I was at the beginning of the pandemic? How has this experience changed ME?
Why Reflection Matters for Thought Leaders
Why does this matter for the public, grandstanding world of thought leadership?
Because if we want to be heart-forward, human-focused thinkers and leaders, we have to be willing to be raw and human.
Often thought leadership focuses on grand, sweeping predictions. But we’ve all lived through a scary, world-upending shared moment. A lot of moments, actually. And if we don’t take time to reflect, we’re missing the opportunity to understand the implications of this past year and connect with others about what we’ve all been through together.
Your raw, human reflections make your work more realistic and more interesting. They create a foundation for your “perch” as a thought leader.
As You Reflect, Look for the Shifts
We love to hear how other people have changed directions, changed their minds, or completely reimagined something they thought would never change.
What are the big changes you saw in your work? Show those shifts. Talk about your previous state — and describe what changed, what you learned, and what unexpected thing SHIFTED to get you to your new state of mind now.
What I’ve Learned This Year
I recently joined Wise Women’s Council, a community for women who are navigating their professional careers and parenting and all of the joys and challenges involved in both. Our first month has called up the deep reflection I’d missed in the busy, difficult blur of the past 12 months.
Here are my shifts and the little wins I’m celebrating.
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I have learned to accept and embrace constraints and the creativity they bring out. Only a few hours to work this week because there’s no childcare? I can figure out how to use that limited time and energy in the best way. Constraints can lead to zany ideas, too. A yoga studio near me was looking for ways to offer outdoor, COVID-safe yoga classes. They came up with “Yoga at the Zoo,” a class held on a huge outdoor deck overlooking the giraffe exhibit (!!!!) at our local zoo. I’m there every week and hope the class never goes away.
- I have a new appreciation for the relationship between work space and head space. After 10 years of working from home, the pandemic (and online kindergarten!!!!!) drove me to rent an office space near my house. Every day that I leave the chaos and noise of my home and walk into that silent, clean office, I feel deep gratitude — and I get so much done.
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Even in a year marked by physical distance, I feel more connected to many of the people in my life, including people in my professional circles. Before the pandemic, “authenticity” was a buzzword but none of us truly understood what it could mean. Now, we know each others’ kids, pets, schedules, and stressors like never before. I’m grateful for those deepened relationships and the grace we’ve extended to each other.
Your turn!
Stop. Breathe. And reflect.
Make time to reflect right now — to make way for new, meaningful shifts in the phase ahead.
I’d love to hear your lessons from the past year and the shifts you’ve made.
