Random musing: One thing you're leaving behind + one thing you're bringing with you into 2021

[#1]

Hey, friends!

I was having an informal chat with some of our Community Leaders recently, and we started with an icebreaker question that I thought would be interesting to elevate to the group at large.

What's one thing you're leaving behind in 2020, and one thing you're bringing with you or starting anew in 2021?

This year has challenged us all in myriad ways, and it can be helpful to reflect upon things we're ready to let go of and things we're looking forward to.

For me, it's all about leaving behind some of the fear that permeated throughout my everyday life, whether it's related to COVID or the current U.S. political climate or long-term planning from a personal perspective (and everything in-between). Our work is far from over, but I'd like to begin to re-calibrate a bit.

I'd like to bring with me a curiosity and desire to explore activities and topics that will help me become a more well-rounded person and inject a bit more joy into my everyday. I was recently reading up on etiquette (Did you know that when you're trying to construct a table setting for a dinner party, you can remember to put the fork on the left because both of those words have four letters, and the knife goes on the right because they both have five?) and it would be great to hone my photography skills.

It seems silly, but being intentional about some of these goals — without assigning specific values to them and, therefore, further stressing ourselves out — can help to ease some of the emotional weight we've taken on over the past 10 months.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

[Dirk Ronsmans]

Leaving behind is the easy one for me. i learned over the last year that I tend to be very negative and mostly only see the negative aspect of a lot of things.

Instead of working towards a better status quo my initial reaction is "why bother, it won't change" and to just complain/feel annoyed by it.

That is definitely something that I want to leave behind in 2020. I might not become more positive over night but at least I want to make it so it doesn't bother me that much anymore. I'll still try and point towards the thing that I feel can be done better or differently but if it doesn't happen, so be it, not gonna let it ruin my day or week.

As far as taking with me in to 2021, sadly about 20-25lbs I've gained over the last year (we all got them covid-munchies right? :D) So those will be taken with me in to the new year but also the drive to start running more and work once again towards my goal of a marathon within 3years.

Change doesn't happen overnight but the mindset to start changing that's something that can be achieved pretty quickly! :)

[Walter Buggenhout]

I learnt last year that much of the work I used to do in the office can be done perfectly from home. I had honestly thought that this would be much more difficult than it is in reality. I used to spend 2-3 hours on average in the car each day commuting, so the work-life balance went off track seriously because of that.

A great experience of last year was the Community Wellness Challenge, which put a strong focus on well-being and doing stuff to keep that high up on the priority list. While I felt really great and was very mindful about the life-part of the balance, things shifted again towards the work side of the scales by the end of the year. Being at home, not being restricted by the environment to stick to one thing is a serious pitfall towards way too much context switching. And longer hours.

So what I'll definitely leave behind in 2020 is the endless commuting when it is really not necessary.

But what I'm taking into 2021 is the motivation to find the balance in this work-life balancing thing. More of the wellness experience should enter again, a bit tuning down on the work bit as well. I think I'm gonna make myself a plan for that :-)

[Sajit Nair]

..

[Sajit Nair _Trundl_]

This may sound a bit philosophical but I plan to leave behind all the negativity and stigma that came along with staying locked up inside the house alone without friends and family.. I love that it reminded me that its 'cool' to spend time with yourself and to reprioritize your goals.

One thing I will that I will take to 2021 is the learning that "hope" and "love" triumphs.. even in the hardest of times.

(posted from my work id earlier, nvm that :) )

[Kristin Lyons]

What's one thing you're leaving behind in 2020, and one thing you're bringing with you or starting anew in 2021?

I'm leaving behind being stuck inside all the time!  I'm going to make more of an effort to spend time outdoors in 2021.  Normally I'm outdoors quite a bit but it was not high on my priority this year.  One thing I'm bringing with me to 2021 is making an effort to log off at 8:30p every night and just spend time with my wife before bed!

[Matt Doar]

Yup, leaving behind the commute. What a waste of time!

Bringing forward an appreciation of the team I work in, and how it has worked in the last 9 months.

[Erica Moss]

@Dirk Ronsmans The COVID munchies are so real! Thank you for sharing.

[Erica Moss]

@Walter Buggenhout I love that the Wellness Challenge had a positive impact! Thanks for sharing.

[Erica Moss]

@Sajit Nair _Trundl_ Nothing wrong with a little selfie time, right? Thanks for sharing. 😄

[Erica Moss]

@Kristin Lyons That sounds like a great goal — thanks for sharing!

[Erica Moss]

@Matt Doar Very cool, thank you for sharing!

[Mike Rathwell]

I saw this link when it popped up and thought it was a cool one but, with one thing and another, I am only getting to it now. I thought two things that were apparently not correct:

• Cool Idea and I should be able to key in a little missive that covers those two things fairly easily
• By the time I got around to this there would be dozens of responses because 2020 has been... a Thing.

I was wrong on both counts and the two incorrect thoughts may well be related.

I sat down at my desk after my big 90s commute with morning coffee ~30 minutes before work as is my wont when I usually get my morning dose of doomscrolling and opened this discussion.... and froze. After all of this... thisness... How does one zoom in on the one thing to leave and the one thing to keep? I would not surprise me that many other normally loquacious humans on this forum experienced the same thing.

2020 has been dismal to be sure. When the celestial clock rolls us over to 2021, it won't be a magical switch to sunshine and lollipops. 2020 will be a gift that keeps on giving for a while. That said, I do notice in my doomscrolling that the mood and tempo is beginning to shift in the news cycle. With 2020 being so.... big my initial thoughts that my leave behind/carry forward would be big as well. It turns out that they are, somewhat but also small. 

Today, I realized it is two months after I wrote some 2020/COVID/Social Distancing thoughts, After all the comments and DMs resulting from this, I come to realize that "Social Distancing" is not the right way to think of it. Rather, I wish the term "Physical Distancing" had been promoted. While not any more pleasant in actuality than Social Distancing, the connotation is very different. Even with that said, with physical distancing, if one doesn't overtly work at it, social distancing will intrinsically follow.

So, long story short (too late and don't call me Shirley):

• I will leave behind social proximity indolence that can occur from physical distancing because you don't necessarily run into someone by chance at the virtual water cooler
• I will carry forward the mindset that just because they have timed out off the Slack DM list doesn't mean not out there and would welcome a chat so... do it.

[Erica Moss]

@Mike Rathwell It's quite a big prompt, I will agree! Really appreciate you sharing your thought process and your intentions for 2021 — I am cautiously optimistic. 😄