The start of the new year is always a challenge, especially for freelancing. You come off the high from the crazy working hours of the holiday period only to be met with the low season of the new year. Motivation is low as we enter back into the work year. Like many, I experienced this slump during the first few weeks of 2021. The momentum was lost and I felt disorientated as my creative side was neglected in the last few months of 2020. With any new year, I look back at my goals of the previous year and decide which ones to keep and which ones to add. To my surprise, some of them were achieved (despite the craze of 2020) so, with much excitement, I added some new ones to the mix.
My realignment to my goals sparked the momentum and motivation I had lost in the past few months. In realising this, I decided to make it a practice to remind myself of my goals everyday in order to achieve what I want to do this year. It has made an incredible difference in my mindset and overall mental health. The hardest part of any goal setting is believing in yourself and believing that its at all possible. That's why we tend to make smaller goals for fear of dreaming too big and failing to attain it. Why do we fear what might not happen? You could argue that there is always a possibility of failure but can't you also argue the opposite? That it IS possible?
Without getting too woo woo on you guys, I want you to know that I too had scepticisms. The leap of faith in the unknown was the hardest thing for me to grasp. I liked knowing things, I liked being in control. Life just isn't built that way.
Recently, I was on an assisting job and had the best time. I was surrounded by amazing people doing amazing things. It was a great reminder that I was right where I needed to be. I didn't plan to be there, I just took cues from life (the random email, the availability to assist, everyone's attitude on set) that told me I was in the right place.
Too often we lose sight of what we want to achieve and where we want to go in life. I was just as lost amidst the chaos of 2020. We reluctantly accept that mundane job or we attend to the demanding client's needs which only adds sucks more of our soul away. Yes, those jobs are necessary at times, but we can offset the misery by doing what we love in between.
Imagine feeling the bliss of knowing you're right where you want to be all the time. That's what goal reminders can do for you. You naturally steer yourself in the right direction and open yourself to opportunities when you do this. It's going to be hard. We are creatives after all - our thoughts are always in a million places of possibilities.
The one thing that helped me stay on track with this habit was knowing that things take time. You can't expect to rush things, or for your goals to come to you in an instant. Life doesn't work that way. The sooner you can accept that, the happier you'll become.
Let's face 2021 together. We've got this!