I recently written my views in an article for the Emerging Workplace Leaders on my reflections of 2020, and what I see for 2021 and the future. Take a few minutes to visit the website and check out the reflections from other industry leaders too! My thought are below…

The COVID-19 Pandemic has dominated peoples lives throughout 2020; reading other reflections and understanding what people have went thought (both negative and positive) did however remind me that regardless of the pandemic; everyone, whether you know it or not have their own fight. We may always not be able to help with the fight, but we can always be there to support.

Last year we saw our industry, our network, our nation, and our world come together. We learnt more about each other, the huge strides in digitisation gave us the ability to connect better and reflect on what’s important to each and every one of us.

For me, to truly reflect on 2020 I need to put the pandemic to one side. So many life-changing things happened last year which we must ensure we don’t forget; think about the Australian bush fires, the US wild-fires, accidental and non-accidental explosions and terrorism. Think about the Black Lives Matter movement, the controversial political situations in the UK and abroad, the emphasis on sustainability and the devastating impact around plastic pollution – the list just goes on!

2020 has made me realise that we can’t forget the whole picture. Every individual counts, everyone is going through something, everyone needs support, and everyone needs to continue to come together to tackle the issues that matter and bring hope, motivation and positivity. Personally, 2020 brought loss, grief, stress, anger and many other challenges; but I also got married, connected with family and friends and realised there is support in the people around you, and as long as you have that hope, motivation and positivity; you really can get through anything.

So, what do I see for the future?

I see that the pandemic will continue to affect us, I see political and financial shifts that will change our nation, and I see that people with personally and professional continue to struggle.

But what I also see, is the incredible efforts to stand as one, I see that when people have time to think and take action, we tackle huge life-changing issues that are too often forgotten, I see people networking and coming together, I see comradery and support for all who have helped us through the most challenging of times in our lives (especially within our industry), and I see that we will always get through the worst if we stand together.

What do I hope for 2021? That this will continue.