Gifts of 2020 ✨

What have been the biggest gifts of 2020?
Have you paused for a moment to acknowledge the gifts, the golden moments, the glimmers of light and the silver linings of the year, no matter what your experience has been? Have you made a list?
This is one of my favorite end-of-year rituals–to make a list and acknowledge, celebrate, and praise the gifts, wins and opportunities of the year, no matter what has happened.
Doing this lifts my spirits, ignites soul passion and evokes feelings of joy, possibility and abundance! It literally changes my reality and supports me in bringing in even more of what my heart desires.
This isn’t to deny the challenges–and for so many there have been gargantuan ones this year.
This is about being aware at a very loving, compassionate level of what isn’t working, and shifting your attention to what IS working, where abundance IS showing up in your life, and the gifts of this present moment.
Here’s a sampling from my list:
* Connected even deeper with my intuition and trust in myself. I took time regularly to receive inner guidance on my business–what to write for emails and social media, what to offer my clients & community, when to offer it, how much to charge. I grew to trust myself implicitly, let go of doubts and second-guessing myself, and made decisions that sometimes went against the grain of expert opinions or coaching industry norms.
* My business is now fully online. After delivering my Speak Shine Sell Workshop 20 times in-person, I successfully pivoted to leading it on Zoom three times this year and had women entrepreneurs from all over the U.S. attending! (Next Speak Shine Sell Workshop is January 21 & 22.)
* Launched my Soulful Speakers Club membership program. I chose quality over quantity and started small with 10 founding members, which has now more than doubled.
* Spoke 2-3 times most months–on podcasts and at online networking events, did livestream interviews, hosted my own radio show, delivered free online trainings, participated in a talent show and improv classes, and even spoke in-person in front of 50 people on March 13–literally the very day that things completely unraveled and began shutting down.
* Hired a new level of VA and social media support.
* Invested in my own speaking support for 2021.
* Got my first card deck printed and did daily readings on my FB business page. This planted the seed for creating a NEW card deck, which feels even more aligned and exciting to me.
* Attended virtual writing retreat and wrote 23,000 words as a first draft of my book.
* Had a big wake-up call around racial injustice, systemic racism and my own white privilege. Attended an anti-racism workshop to support me in doing all I can to speak up and actively live as an anti-racist, knowing there is much, much more work to be done now and in the coming years.
* My husband is now working from home permanently, something he had been wanting for years. We spend more time together now–playing ping pong, going on walks, doing yoga–and we spend more time with our son. We’re also getting closer to realizing our dream of converting our garage into my husband’s home-office.
* My son is attending in-person school 5 days a week and thriving in 6th grade. Yay!
* Spent almost a week with my sweet, amazing 91-year-old mom. I’m appreciating how well she is doing. Her mind is sharp, her attitude is positive, and she’s enjoying her life.
* We did a road trip for my birthday in July and met best friends on the Central California Coast to celebrate. Three days later we celebrated my husband’s 60th birthday at a splurge-worthy beach resort.
* I got to boogieboard in the Pacific Ocean 5 months out of the year and spent almost a week in Mexico with a dear friend in February.
* My close family and friends are all healthy and well. Wow, what a blessing!
* And my heart opened wider with compassion for all those suffering and struggling. This year also gave me the opportunity to donate more money to my favorite causes as well as a few new ones.
If you haven’t yet already, spend some precious time these last few days of the year to look back and acknowledge the gifts of 2020.
- Puppy, Paris & passion projects, oh my! - July 6, 2022
- Favorite quote from TEDxSanDiego & how this relates to you - April 1, 2022
- My biggest “aha” as a TEDx speaker coach - February 18, 2022
- 2021 gratitude & new year’s intentions - January 27, 2022
- How to find your Big Idea + my SUE Talk! - December 21, 2021
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