How to make 2021 a better year

If you’re like most people on the globe, you might not want to revisit the painful happenings of 2020. The pandemic has left an ineradicable mark on every aspect of our lives. We have lost our loved ones, colleagues, and friends to the COVID-19 disease. And it has changed our ways of living, how we work, and even shop. We have faced arguably the worst economic crisis in human history. Food banks, self-quarantines, face coverings, and threats to front line workers have become part of our livelihoods. As the pandemic spikes at frightening rates, it has created a mental health crisis of unbelievable proportions worldwide. Here are a few tips for you on how to make 2021 a better year.

Focus on the positives – When there are so many incidences of desolation, fear, and heartbreak, it’s natural for us to focus on the downside of the pandemic. However, we can balance that out with how it’s brought people together, volunteering, helping one another, and strengthening the whole idea of collective selflessness.

Define 2020 as a lesson – Ask what you can learn from the struggles of 2020 and use them as stepping-stones, instead of roadblocks. Think of the difficulties of 2020 as happening for you instead of to you.

Practice acknowledgment and gratitude – Look beyond the dread, fear, and disappointment at the big picture. Take an account of your life and include all the things the pandemic prevented you from doing that you once took for granted. Think about all the people and things in your life that you’re grateful for, letting gratitude steer you beyond the gloom and doom.