What I Learned in 2012

This past year, I’ve had the privilege of working with amazing clients, colleagues, entrepreneurs and the like.  I am incredibly grateful for all I have learned from them and with them.  Below are twenty of my key “take-aways” from this past year.  I wish all of you a very Happy New Year and hope that you all have learned a great many things in 2012 as well.
1.    I learned that a little act of kindness goes a long way; I feel better for giving and the receiver feels better for the kindness.
2.    I learned that sometimes I am my own best friend or my own worst enemy…I prefer to be my own best friend.
3.    I learned that even when I am at my wit’s end with my family…that I am truly blessed to have them.
4.    I’ve learned that not everyone is blessed with family and that loss can leave its mark on a person’s soul.
5.    I learned that really bad things can happen to really good people.
6.    I’ve learned that really good people can do really hurtful things.
7.    I’ve learned that, in order to make friends, you have to be a friend.
8.    I’ve learned that being vulnerable often leads to closeness -- not judgment -- when done with the right people.
9.    I’ve learned that the new year is a great time to reflect and start anew.
10.    I’ve also learned that any day of the year is a great time to reflect and start anew.

11.    I’ve learned that good habits are the most difficult to form and … that they yield the greatest results.
12.    I’ve learned that countless people struggle with insecurity and, although we try like hell to hide it, we would all be better off if we simply normalized it.
13.    I’ve learned that letting go of insecurity requires compassion -- for others and for ourselves.
14.    I’ve learned that people settle for too little, accept too much and then suddenly quit in their relationships too quickly.
15.    I’ve learned that, in order to have a chance at getting the relationship you want with your current partner, you must be willing to risk losing the relationship you have.
16.    I’ve learned that when people don’t follow through after making empty threats, they teach others to not listen to anything they say.
17.    I’ve learned that sometimes the only thing you can say in response to tragedy is, “I’m so sorry” and then be willing to be a shoulder for them to cry on.
18.    I’ve learned that anyone has the power to change if they truly want to…and that change takes hard work, discipline and a dogged determination.
19.    I’ve learned that the hard work of change is worth the effort and that the hardest part of change occurs in the beginning stages and almost invariably gets easier.
20.    I’ve learned that I am constantly learning, hopefully growing and forever a work in progress.

Challenge: May each of you have a very Happy New Year and start 2013 a little wiser, a tad bit kinder and a great deal more compassionate towards yourself and others.  Warm Regards, Lisa

Comments

[Nick Morgan]

These are wonderful insights and words to live by in 2013. Thanks, Lisa