Words cannot express the challenges, experience, and emotions that we have endured over this past year called 2020. Most of us could not wait to get this year behind us and move on to brighter days and smoother paths. Unexpected and unprecedented circumstances seemed to flood and overwhelm us at every turn. And just when we thought it could not get any worse, something else would happen and remind us that we are not in control.

In good and bad times, we must always learn from these moments to discern how to move forward. The past is a prelude to future moments, and we must learn from the past in order to grow, learn, and draw clarity about our future. When we become stuck in a moment and paralyzed by its effects, we allow circumstances to negate our impact and destroy our purpose. Even in unprecedented times, we can learn how to process them to become even stronger on the other side.

Instead of continuing to live and dwell in the past and the negative feelings of what a year it has been, what if we decided to have a positive and optimistic outlook regarding what a year this next one can be? What if we used the question of “What If?” in a constructive way to create a future that continues to leave a legacy of meaning, impact, and significance in the lives of people within our sphere of influence. But, how do we do that?

Here are 5 things you can do to have a clearer outlook in a world of uncertain circumstances and make 2021 a year of impact and achieving meaningful goals.

1. Focus on Your Why – We often wonder why things happen – especially bad things – but it’s in the mist of wondering why that we need to connect to our Why, or our purpose. There is power and resolve in our Why, because it answers the question of our reason for being. Your Why can be an overarching theme like your purpose or calling in life, and it can also be the reason you started to train to run a marathon or become a better leader or parent. We learned from this past year that things can be taken away and canceled, but that doesn’t mean that our Why has changed; it just means that the What or How changed. In other words, you may have set a goal at the beginning of last year to become a better leader by giving more one-on-one feedback and encouragement expecting that these moments would happen at a client site, in the office, or at your local coffee shop. When meeting in person was taken away, it was easy to just give up on that goal. Yet, upon further review, your Why of becoming a better leader remained the same and the change in circumstances provided an even more important reason and motivator to connect with your people, albeit through a different means and mechanism. Your Why provides resolve even when you can’t foresee the results.
2. Be Process-Focused – I have talked about this many times on this site as well as in our courses and sessions, but it is such an important principle if you want to make significant progress in your life. We can become so obsessed with outcomes that we become overwhelmed by the pressure and lose heart when we run into circumstances that we cannot control. Being process-focused is at the core of any great champion and leader in sports, business, and life. Peak performers set challenging goals and then challenge themselves to focus on the process to achieve the goal one moment at a time. They are not hindered by regrets of the past, and they don’t get ahead of the moment worrying about what lies ahead in the future. They strive to be fully present physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. They also focus on what they can control including their attitude, their effort, and their responses to unexpected moments. While they are outcome-driven, they understand that the journey and process of growth is just as important as achieving the goal. Being process-focused allows you to focus on the journey as much as the goal.
3. Be Flexible – The more I run, work out, and cycle, the more I understand how important flexibility is to my performance. The same is true in life. While determination and drive can be powerful allies, we also must embrace flexibility in how we achieve our goals. Being flexible allows us to shift our posture when the situation or circumstance requires it. During this past year, my sons who love to work out could not go to the gym. They could have just sat around complaining, but they chose to get creative by gathering a couple of 5-gallon water bottles along with a makeshift bench, a TRX strap, and some other workout equipment around the house and made their own workout gym circuit. Flexibility allows you to be agile in the way you accomplish your goals.
4. Be Resilient – Resiliency is the ability to bounce back and respond to adversity or a change in circumstances. We know from our research and experience in working with elite athletes and leaders that resiliency is a core trait that makes them different from other people with similar talent. Resilient people move in to possibility thinking smoothly and rapidly. People who have low resiliency encounter a bad situation and stay there worrying about how bad the circumstances are. Resilient people may admit the gravity of the situation, but they transition quickly to a mindset of “What If?”, “How Can We?”, and “I Will” focusing on a posture of possibility-thinking. They don’t allow the gravity of the circumstances to weigh them down like an anchor. Being resilient is an X-Factor in accomplishing your goals and maximizing your potential.
5. Be Principle-Centered – It was at some point during this past year that I felt like we had moved away as a society from being principle-centered. It was not so much a thought that people did not have principles, but it was as if they were not living by them. While I plan to write more about this in upcoming blog posts, it’s important that we get back to principle-centered living. I learned about this concept from my mentor Terrence Gee as well as Stephen Covey who wrote several books on this topic. Principles are unwavering and are true whether we want to believe or recognize them or not, and they don’t shift with the wind of unprecedented circumstances. Principles also provide true guidance on how to live and respond versus adopting changing opinions or  the latest fad or topic. Principles are natural laws that are timeless, and they provide stability in the midst of shifting sand.

As you develop you goals for this year, consider and apply these 5 things in order to become your best in the new year. If you embrace these tactics, you may just accomplish and possibly exceed your goals for the year, and you will definitely grow in the process!

On a personal note, I am going to be focusing on these 5 things and developing some personal and professional goals for the year as I always do. There are 2 things, however, that I am going to do that are a little different from goal setting sessions with myself in the past. First, I am going to shorten the number of goals that I develop allowing me to focus more on the most important and meaningful goals in my life at this moment in time.

The second thing I am going to do is focus more on my theme for the year. In past years, I have written about the power of developing an overarching theme for the year which could be a word or phrase that summarizes your goals and your focus. I have embraced what I have taught and have developed themes in the past but have probably focused my attention more on the goals than the theme, which really ties back to my first point in this blog post – focusing and connecting to your Why. For this year, my theme is: To Know God Deeply and Experience His Presence Intimately. I have had a recurring thought during the last few days of this year to know God more and see the world through His eyes so that I can use my position, platform, talents, time, and resources to live out my purpose/Why, continue to make a meaningful and positive difference within my sphere of influence, and glorify God in the process. I feel like if I know God more and experience Him more deeply, I will think like He thinks and act accordingly with love, compassion, empathy, and grace. I will become a better person, a better husband and father, a better leader, a better communicator and coach, and a better friend to others. Overall, my theme is going to be just as important or more than the goals I plan to achieve.

What a year this past year has been…but what a year this next one will be if we focus on these 5 things! My prayer for you is that you will find courage and peace in the new year and that your path will be purposeful and full of blessings and impact. Lead and serve others well, and become the best version of yourself no matter what may come your way!