A Season to Pause and Reflect
You did it. You survived the holidays and hopefully enjoyed them while you were at it.
You did it. You made it through another year, and if you’re an entrepreneur like me, this is no small task.
You did it. You made decisions, you trouble-shot, you continued to learn and grow.
You did it. You worked hard, you planned, and you adjusted.
You did it. And now it’s important to rest.
Take time to pause. Take time to reflect on 2019 before diving into 2020 head first.
What did you learn?
How did you grow?
Where did you fail, and how will you adjust?
When were you brave?
What were your big wins?
How are you feeling about your professional life?
How are you feeling about your personal life?
Where do you need boundaries, and where do you need to work to tear down walls in your heart?
Be radically transparent with yourself. Sift through the past year with a fine tooth comb and work to see things through an honest and objective lens.
And then rest.
Don’t rush ahead. Take your time and sit with all of the highs and all of the lows. I would strongly suggest writing it all down. Sometimes it’s hard to organize your thoughts any other way. Take time to write out everything you worked on in the last year. What went well and should be continued? What should you for sure stop? And what new ideas would you be so excited to start? Try to look at the facts and not just the emotions of it. And take your time.
What’s dangerous about working so hard to refine a craft or pursue a dream, is that all of the hard work and laser focus can keep you from asking the relevant questions. We’re trying to excel at something, but is that something what we really should be pursuing? This is exactly why it’s so important to pause and examine. As I’ve mentioned before, when I started this business, I was focusing on watercolor painting, drawing, and calligraphy, and I spent years growing and refining what I was offering. Once I paused and considered what I was actually enjoying about art making and where I was feeling the most inspired, it became crystal clear that I needed to switch gears. I was focusing on something that I should no longer be pursuing. So I stopped. It was really scary, it took some time, but I stopped. I chose to pursue the thing that was actually making me excited and giving me peace. If I hadn’t paused to be brutally honest with myself, or if I hadn’t bravely stepped away from years and years of work and effort, I know that I would not be here today. I remember even when I made the decision, for months I was still scared. Had I made the right choice? About 6 months in, I did that “Top 9 on Instagram” thing where they compile your 9 most liked images from the year. I started to cry when I saw it. All 9 images were linocut prints. I had still made a lot of watercolor paintings that year, and not one of them made it into my top 9. It was the most validating feeling, because not only did I feel good about the new direction I was going in, but my followers felt the same way.
Maybe you don’t need to start all over like I did, but I would venture to assume that there are some aspects of your job or life that need some refining. Maybe it’s that you realize that you have way too much on your plate, and you need to examine what needs to be removed and how to do that. Maybe it’s that you’re in a relationship, romantically or not, that you realize is not serving either of you well, and you need to work on taking steps to protect yourself. Maybe, when you really slow down, you realize that you don’t feel like you’re on the right path for your life, and even though it’s scary, you need to start making steps towards that thing that you are feeling called to do. Maybe it’s that you realize you have unforgiveness in your heart, and you want to make steps towards healing… or you’re the one that needs to ask for forgiveness, and you need to take steps towards walking in humility.
Whatever your thing may be, take one tiny step. And then another tiny step. Ask someone to come alongside you and help you and keep you accountable. This is not a path that needs to be or should be walked alone.
In all of this, there is so much hope. As we go into the new year, the slate is wiped clean, and we have a new starting line. Many things will stay the same, but if we want them to and are willing to work, many things can change.
So take time to pause and reflect, and then get after it.