Five Life Lessons from 2019

Can you believe it’s already about to be 2020? That flew by! Every December I like to sit back and reflect on everything I learned from the year, and think about what I want to manifest for the next year. It got me thinking about how much I’ve grown this year, and I wanted to share a few life lessons from 2019.

Stop worrying about the plan. My whole life I’ve been hard pressed to break any sort of plans I’ve made for myself. This year I’ve realized that you can’t plan everything, and you have to just ride the waves as they come. It’s no biggie if things don’t go as planned, and it will always work out even if it isn’t the way you wanted it to.

Be kind, and gentle with others. This one weighed on me hard this year. The Internet can be freakin’ mean! On every post where someone does one thing “wrong” there are a zillion hate comments acting like they’re the worst person in the world. Public shaming is totally not cool, and we should all be more gentle with how we educate people on any sort of mistakes they make. Be kinder to strangers, and be gentle with friends. We can all use a little more kindness.

Don’t focus on the numbers. Boy in this day and age we really fret over numbers, don’t we? It’s hard not to when there are many questions like: “How many followers you have?” and “How many people liked your photo?” Or thinking about how old you are, and what you should have done by a certain number of years on this planet. Whew. It’s all too much. This year I finally felt like I could step away and not focus on the numbers, and instead focus on the bigger picture like “Does this make me happy?” When you really think about it, the numbers are all so pointless. Focus on what feels right and will last down the road!

Give yourself the time you need. Your mental health, and physical health are a priority. I don’t want to look back and feel like I sacrificed going to the gym to meet a work deadline, or like I ignored my body telling me to focus on my mental health. Those things have to come first.

Try something new. Isn’t it too damn easy to get into habits? This year I learned to challenge myself more. Break habits, think differently, and get creative. As soon as you’re doing the same thing over and over it takes out all of the sparkle out of life. Try something new, and feel the spark come out again.

Hope these help you to be a little more gentle with yourself! I’d love to hear your life lessons from the year. xoxo Erika