What a lucky year!

I started typing out the kind of blog I’d usually write to commemorate the end of a year. Something light and inspirational about overcoming failure, finding joy amidst darkness, growing as a person and a business.

It’s true, I did those things this year. I found a way to pivot my business virtually in response to the pandemic. We welcomed our first child amidst lockdowns, isolation, and family deaths with no closure. And in the end, I’m both stronger as a person and more successful as a business.

But I’m also very, very lucky.

‘Luck’ has been an underlying theme in my thinking and writing for at least the last two years, and never has the role of luck in success been more apparent than this year.

Here are all the blogs I’ve written about or around the theme of luck.

Here are some of the ways I was lucky this year:

• My wife and I had the financial means to order delivery or curbside pickup for 100% of our essential purchases, which means we never had to take an ounce of risk going into stores during her pregnancy.
• She kept her job as a therapist and shifted seamlessly to remote working at home.
• My business had savings enough to weather the storm, buying me time to reinvent my programs and marketing in order to continue supporting the household.
• We did not already have children in need of either child care or remote learning, so we could each focus 100% on our respective pivots.
• My wife and I are in a loving relationship, unlike so many couples in strained or abusive relationships who got stuck together due to lockdowns.
• We both have large, extended families who are stable and provided emotional support from afar during the pregnancy, as well as gifts for the baby to keep our spirits up.

I could go on. The point is, be wary this year of inspirational year-end memes or posts. If a global pandemic had hit me 5 years ago, I would have been devastated by it. If it had hit 2 years from now, I couldn’t have been nearly as productive with a 2-year-old in the house.

Luck is...

Timing. Chance. Circumstance. Privilege. I had all of those things, and maybe you did too.

If you were lucky this year as I was, think twice before posting about all the things you accomplished in spite of the pandemic. Many people, through no fault of their own, were not in a position to be so productive.

Yes, of course, be grateful for all you have. Be proud of those accomplishments. But perhaps this year those thoughts should be shared privately amongst immediate family and friends, not publicly.

If you were not as lucky or fortunate, consider turning off your phone for a bit. Put away social media, and generally tune out the excessive positivity from influencers, motivational speakers, and perhaps even your friends and family. Don't let anyone make you feel bad because you didn't learn a new skill, build a side business, or get in shape.

Simply having survived this year is enough. You are enough.

Have a safe and hopefully very happy new year. I’ll see you in 2021.

With love,

Brian