21 things I learned in 2021.

2021 was an odd year — okay, very bizarre. Looking back, there are some takeaway moments that I can carry into 2022. Here are a few…with a couple of bonus moments in the end.

1. Being master of one thing is much better than being a jack of all trades.
2. I don’t have to be like everyone else. Umm, neither do you.
3. The choice is mine: I can win, or I can lose. Winners and losers have the same goals.
4. There are things that I’m good at, things that I’m great at. Then there are things that I don’t do so well. So either get better at those things, delegate them or eliminate them.
5. Life happens. It is no respecter of persons. What you do in response separates the leaders from the followers.
6. You can’t go it alone. You can go faster by yourself or farther together.
7. There’s always an open door. You just have to find it and, then, walk through it.
8. Do what’s on my “I should…” list. Do it now. You’ve waited long enough.
9. Who can I help today?
10. Life is a matter of perspective. Completely and totally. It’s all how you look at it.
11. This hasn’t changed: I’m 62 going on 35, and I still wake up some mornings wondering what I want to do when I grow up.
12. Seasons change…
13. Sometimes, you need to come to a complete stop, not just a rolling stop. And I’m not talking about rolling through a street sign.
14. It really is about who you are. What you do, your successes and how you get there flow ultimately from that identity.
15. A question is better than one piece of advice.
16. Everyone has a dream. Part of my mission is to help them find it.
17. My dad has been gone for nearly five years. I’m becoming more like him every day, and that’s a good thing.
18. Drilling down on my sweet spot.
19. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world.
20. What are you willing to give up to make a difference?
21. What you say “yes” to shapes your life.

A few bonus thoughts.

• If God said it, you can believe it.
• When you die and go to heaven, our maker is not going to ask, ‘why didn’t you discover the cure for such and such? why didn’t you become the Messiah?’ The only question we will be asked in that precious moment is, ‘why didn’t you become you? ~ Elie Wiesel.
• Until you decide to pursue your dream, you will never love your life the way you were meant to. ~Bruce Wilkinson.

COMING MONDAY in our newsletter: 22 Things to Consider for ’22.