2021. A year with many difficulties but full of opportunities for self-improvement

Opening quote missing quotation marksPhoto by Olya Kobruseva from Pexes

We all lived 12 months more with the pandemic (a state of emergency) that no one in current generations knew about, but also a year of learning. Regardless of the limitations that 2021 brought us and how bitter it has been for many, I learned that we could discover something new from all situations.

Some of the things I learned in 2021 are:

1. You can't plan everything in life

How many plans did we make this year, which could not carry out due to the pandemic? It could have been because flights to the place you wanted to visit were suspended or because a member of your family got sick; or simply because you wanted to be careful and stay home.

Perhaps you had thought about opening your own company or starting an additional business. Still, the financial situation was not the best to achieve it, and you had to wait.

I learned that we could have plans but not was100% in our hands to fulfill them. And don't feel sad about this; keep going, keep dreaming. Everything comes in due time.

2. In bad times, you meet real friends

Equal that 2020, 2021 was full of challenges. Life can not be identical; our existence has changed, and some friends too. Those friends who were only with you when you wanted to have fun just disappeared. The friends you needed support from to continue a project were indifferent to them.

On the other hand, those faithful friends stayed with you. even if we could not get together physically regularly, there was always online communication, always a "hello, I am here for you."

Hard times serve to filter and discover who your true friends are.

3. Face new ways of working

I have spent 90% of the last two years working from home, and although everyone sees only advantages in this, I found it difficult to divide the work and home.

Being at home, I couldn't focus on work, even when alone or in a relaxed environment. But to remain responsible, I had to adjust to this new reality. However, now I may return to the office when this is all over, and I will feel empowered to do my best in any place.

Knowing how to adapt to circumstances is essential to living, producing, and remaining emotionally stable.

4. Develop my passions

I don't know if spending more time at home or stop believing that things are only done when people are young (or younger). But I learned to explore passions that deep down I knew was in me but did not develop.

Writing and helping others are two of them. I have always loved writing, but I have taken it more seriously this year. I've been creating content to bring something positive to my readers and, in this way, complement two of my passions.

Living life without something to make you happy doesn't make sense. I know you know very well what you would like to do, but often the fear of what they will say the excuse that you don't have time, or sabotage yourself.

In my case, it's writing, but yours can be singing, creating YouTube content, cooking cookies, volunteering for a good cause, running, etc. eta.

5. Exercise is healthy and necessary

I am too lazy to exercise; however, when I work in the office, I always was between one department and another, went down to another level of the building, went out to buy something, etc. Although I was not exercising myself, I was very dynamic, and my body appreciated it.

I didn't eat much at home, but I gained weight because I wasn't burning enough calories. I started to feel suffocated, and my body felt rusty. I always felt tired.

If I was going to continue working from home, I had to do something, so I started getting up a little earlier and walking for about 30 minutes. After taking a shower, I start working full of energy.

I hope those 30 minutes turn into an hour and thus complement the exercises.

6. We don't make the most of our time

The quarantine began in March 2020. There is very little left for 2022. Almost two years have passed without us realizing it.

Sometimes I think of so many things we could do, and we always procrastinate. We believe that we are masters of time, but time does what it wants and when it wants.

Value what you have now and enjoy your family, friends, and health. Things can change in a second, and that's when we say, why didn't I do that? Tell the people that you appreciate that you love them.

Enjoy a good meal, a good coffee, wine, or just tea. Enjoy each day as if it were your last because, frankly, we do not know if it will be like that.