- Say a sincere goodbye to 2022! Lockdowns, shutdowns, who?
- Be career healthy! Rid yourself of toxic career-limiting thoughts. Go for what you want this year!
- Bring back manners! Say please, thank you, be gracious, show appreciation, be patient in traffic (a wave of thanks- old school!), hold the door open for someone… you get the drift!
- Shake hands and hug! Yep, I said it! We are humans, and we need it! One handshake can open relationships, seal deals, prevent loneliness… and even stop wars.
- Hello, eye contact! Let your eyes speak your thoughts!
- Less texting and more verbal conversations with full sentences!
- Less emojis and more real emotions and words to express how we feel- verbally!
- While innovative communication technology assists us in our daily lives, it can also negatively impact our ability to use English correctly. Let others marvel at our emails, reports and memos!
- I had to include this tip from last year: Stocktakes are happening everywhere right now. So, stocktake your career. What has been your career highlight so far (consider why, how)? Where to from here, and what are the skills gaps to get you there? Write a career plan with goals for the year (yawn, I know… but it’s a map with navigation tools! Thank you, career Siri!). Without it, you may end up like Alice in Wonderland, asking the Cheshire Cat which road to take!
Alice: “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”.
The Cheshire Cat: “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to”.
Alice: “I don’t much care where”.
The Cheshire Cat: “Then it doesn’t much matter which way you go”. Don’t be Alice! - Be curious! Ask questions, and don’t accept what the media or social gossip says in forming your truth. Go deeper!
- Get into the uncomfortable zone. Be comfortable with the unknown.
- Take a good look at well-being and make it your priority and responsibility, not someone else’s.
- No more self-sabotaging. Just when you are nearly there, you repeat the same mistake, action, or behaviour. You have been here before, but not this year!
- Own your feelings and emotions, don’t let others hijack them!
- Smell the roses and gardenias, in fact, every flower that crosses your path.
- Speak out loud to an animal, your pet or a random cat, dog, bird, or even the skinks or bees (just not spiders). It is even better if someone hears and catches you in the act. It is liberating if you let it be! And if you are really brave, make the next conversation be with a plant or tree!
- Be a little foolish; Relax, laugh loud and often, and at yourself more than others.
- Be willing to change your opinions and views. Time regularly tests how accurately we look at life. Changing your view isn’t being non-authentic. You might stay your ‘old’ self, but a stubborn one, inflexible or outdated etc.
- Master communication. It’s becoming a lost skill! Practice by listening and being present. Understand the message, not the words or sounds and learn how to reflect, not react!
- Be a doer, not a complainer.
- Make decisions for the future, not just the now.
- Eat your veggies first. Do the task now that you really don’t want to do! Learning to delay gratification feels so much better when dealing with the unpleasant first.
- Get more sleep. It is better and cheaper than botox!
“New year is the glittering light to brighten the dream-lined pathway of future.” – Munia Khan