We’re 30 days out from a new year and a new decade. I don’t know about you but I plan on making 2020 a year of EPIC achievement, EPIC health and EPIC experiences.
Having an EPIC 2020 sets you up for an EPIC decade and as they say, victory loves preparation. So here are 10 thought starters on what you can do in the next few weeks to set your 2020 up and give you a serious head start on momentum.
1. Let it go.
Don’t let the past sneakily mess with your future. Make 2020 the year you start light and bright, having let go of anything that doesn’t serve you – past relationships, regrets, habits and beliefs that don’t have a place in a year of awesomeness.
2. Expand your connections, tighten your circle.
I plan on going into 2020 with an abundance mindset when it comes to my professional network and a renewed energy to expand it and impact more people, but also with complete clarity on who’s in my inner circle. As I get older I realise that I don’t need lots of friends — just a handful of fiercely loyal, just-like-family confidantes that I can count on through thick and thin. Your income, your mindset and your health is directly impacted by the 6-8 people you spend the most time with so choose wisely.
3. Choose a theme.
Before I set any goals for the new year, I set a theme. It’s usually one or two words, closely aligned to my values, that will be my guiding mantra for the year. It’s also the broad theme that informs decision making, goal setting and priorities. My theme for 2020 is EPIC.
4. Set one goal that scares the pants off you.
If there’s ever a year to set a goal that feels unachievable, it’s this one. Make 2020 the year you strive for the impossible and reach for the unattainable. Who knows, you might just do it, and even if you don’t, you’ll high five yourself for having a go.
5. Commit to nurturing your most important relationship.
Expand your connections and strengthen your network in 2020 but put total, selfish priority on the relationship you have with yourself. Ask yourself – if 2020 was the year you loved, respected, cherished and adored yourself outrageously, what would that look like?
6. Eliminate negative talk – about others and yourself.
In an era of next level bullying, make a commitment now to speaking only in positive, uplifting terms of others, including yourself. Make 2020 the year you eradicate self-bullying.
7. Outsource the stuff you hate.
Time is our most precious, non-renewable resource. And it only increases in value as time goes on. One of the simplest ways to skip into 2020 with a calm focus of a ninja ready to slay the year is to eliminate the tasks and jobs you don’t like and are probably losing hundreds of hours of cumulative procrastination to. Don’t like cleaning? Get a cleaner. Avoid doing your BAS? Hire a bookkeeper. Find cooking a chore? Hire a chef for 2-3 hours a week to cook and stock your fridge. Outsourcing isn’t an indulgence, it is about freeing up time and mental energy to focus on the things we love (that often ultimately produce a better financial or emotional outcome).
8. Get some social media discipline in place.
Like many people, I allow social media to invade my life far more than I should. For me, social media, like email, will be limited to twice a day for a set amount of time. It’s too easy to lose cumulative hours to mindless scrolling in pockets of time, kidding ourselves that it’s just a way of using what would be downtime anyway. Set some limits before the new year on either times per day or total time. And find something more constructing and nurturing to fill in the pockets of time.
9. Declutter, simplify and streamline.
Spend some time in December really getting organised for the new year. Declutter your wardrobe, your kitchen and your life. Get organised. Create some systems and processes for things you do regularly. For me, I’m designing some streamlined processes for something I have to do every week, sometimes multiple times – travelling. Packing lists, a bunch of kits and things that stay packed I estimate is going to save me a few hours a week and a load of headaches.
10. Set some EPIC goals, but make sure you include some EPIC experiences.
Between Christmas and New Year each year I set aside a whole day to plan out my year. I review the previous year, make a list of business, financial, health and personal goals and think about the way my year is going to pan out in terms of content, programs and strategies. But in 2020 I’m also committing to a year of EPIC experiences – the ‘one day’ things we want to do but never quite get around to it. I’ve made a list of 50 and as a result, I’m more excited for 2020 than I can ever remember being about a new year or decade.
I’ll be sharing each of the 50 EPIC experiences along the way so if you don’t already, make sure you follow me on Instagram and add your own ideas or strategies in the comments below.
