Goodbye 2020. What are the gifts in this sh*t?

As I get ready to step away from the laptop for this year I started to think about what 2020 has taught me. Lady Diana Whitmore, who was one of my faculty on my post-grad in coaching often referred to the 'gift in the sh*t', in other words the silver lining, the upside to going through hard times. If there was ever a year to find them, this is it. Here is my list from this year.

1. The change curve is real. I experienced it in full 3D this year. It's easier when you roll with it.

2. I can happily spend a lot of time on my own but.....

3. Connection with others is vital. In absence of the real thing, online will do.

4. I know who my friends are and what I value most in friendship.

5. If I don't rest, my body will insist.

6. There will always be more work so don't postpone the self-care and exercise until tomorrow. See No. 5.

7. Plan and take holidays even when they are staycations. See No.5.

8. Emotional intelligence is an undervalued skillset most of us don't understand.

9. Always choose guilt over resentment. (Gabor Mate)

10. Give with no expectation of return and you will be rewarded.

11. There are no bad emotions. They are all just data. (Susan David)

12. I don't miss travelling for work.

13. So much more is possible online than I thought, all day workshops, yoga classes, choir practice, singing at open mic nights.

14. When I procrastinate its not the thing I'm avoiding, it's the uncomfortable feeling that accompanies it.

15. I know more than I give myself credit for but am learning all the time.

16. Listening with empathy for feelings and needs is hard at first. (Non-violent communication training).

17. When people show you who they are, believe them. (Maya Angelou)

18. My gut instinct is reliable. Trusting it more would be helpful.

19. Sticking with something you've outgrown will hurt eventually.

20. There really always is a gift in the sh*t.

What gifts have you found this year?