Have you ever picked a word or a theme to focus on throughout the year? I like to do this at the beginning of each year to give myself a direction to aim for.

However, none of us could have predicted the catastrophic events of 2020, including the global pandemic.

As for me, my words for this year were Productivity, Happiness, Abundance, Growth, and Ease.

Despite the unexpected changes that occurred, these words stayed with me, and I’ve seen how they’ve positively impacted my life so far this year.

When the world went into lockdown, a lot of business owners were struggling to adapt to the new normal. However, I had been sitting on a course idea for two years, and people needed help with it more than ever. That’s when I finally created a whole new program on how to create and sell online courses called The Online Course Journey. The pandemic gave me the push I needed to turn my idea into a reality. Creating a whole course is no small task, so I had to focus on improving my productivity to make it happen.

Due to the pandemic, traveling, eating out, and socializing were no longer options, and everyone was forced to stay home. While my routine didn’t change too drastically as I mostly work from home, I decided to use this time to focus on my hobbies and personal goals, including working out. Even though I wasn’t able to achieve the six-pack abs that someone joked about online, I’m still glad that I took this time to focus on myself. These changes made me feel happy and took a weight off my shoulders.

Even during a pandemic, I always try to feel gratitude for the abundance in my life. However, I noticed that a lot of people were struggling with scarcity thinking - worrying that there would be no work, their business would collapse, and people wouldn’t spend money anymore. But, I saw many of my clients make changes to their businesses so that they could survive where they otherwise might not have. These people proved that people are still buying, still spending, and there’s still plenty to go around, even if we have to change the way we do things.

This year was full of challenges, and I worried that my business wouldn't grow as much as I hoped it would. However, I realized that the best antidote is action, so even on days when I wasn't feeling it, I forced myself to do something small that would push me towards my goals. I’ve also been focusing on my physical health and grew my muscles, making me feel stronger than ever.

I firmly believe that business doesn't have to be hard, and it can be designed to suit your lifestyle. This year, I've seen the fruits of my labor, and I’m happy to say that it wasn't that hard to achieve my goals. It took focused efforts on the key areas that needed it and plenty of leisure time to support myself in my work.