Picture this.
The year is 2020, it starts off without a hitch, nothing can stop you and your goals. You are unstoppable (as you should be). But than something stops right in your path. That something was a national pandemic. We all lead through extraordinary times in 2020. There was no playbook. We were all forced to learn, change and move (quickly). As 2021 approaches, I wanted to take a moment and recap my 2020. We survived, we adapted, we advanced and we thrived. 2020 wasn't all bad & when we look back we should be proud of how far we've come.
Here's a little recap of my 2020.
1 Book Re-Design. Yes, in a middle of a pandemic, I released a fresh, new, paperback copy of Better Human: It's a Full-Time Job. Why? It had been five years since I first wrote Better Human. I can remember waiting for the first shipments of the book to arrive. I called my publisher and asked if we could turn the ship around, if we could stop the book. The vulnerability hit me all at once. Did I want to put myself out there? And then the emails, texts and cards came pouring in. The gratitude and love from better humans from all over made me realize that I was meant to write this book, I was meant to pay it forward. Thus 5 years later, I felt that the world needed an updated copy. I've met some amazing and inspiring people over the last 1,825 days.
We are all alike. We all want the same things. We want to be better.
1 New Book Published. When COVID-19 hit our community, our team, I needed everyone to know that there was no playbook for what's going on. We don't know. I don't know. I've never had a pandemic happen to me, to my team, or to my family. I'm no different than you. These are extraordinary times and I was ready to share everything that I had been going through as a leader. Leading Through Extraordinary Times was written and published within less than 1 month. It's a quick read where I share my tips and tricks on leading no matter the times.
18 Speaking Engagements. 2020 started out strong with 3 in-person speaking engagements in January. When the world went virtual, so did my speaking engagements. And let me tell you - it was amazing. I was able to pay it forward with even larger groups. I met tons of people from all over the world virtually. It was the best.
42 Podcast Episodes. YES, you read that right! 42!! Did you know that I only uploaded 16 episodes in 2019? When the pandemic hit, I made it a goal to post 4 episodes a month. I wanted to share and spread positivity. We were all going through a lot. If my 8 minute podcast episode on your way to work could brighten your day, then I was ALL IN. Watch out 2021 - I'm coming for you!
Met Oprah. Of course, I had to throw this in! I MET OPRAH! Yes, and it definitely ranked Top 10 Best Moments of My Life. Her Conference was out of this world and I made a few podcast episodes about it - hint hint check it out here.
Other things I'm thankful for in 2020. When everything slowed, I spent more time with family. We welcomed Bubba, my son's dog, into the family. It was a year of learning, growing and just spending more quality time with friends and family.