As the year comes to a wrap and the turkeys and gifts come out, people begin to think about the new year ahead. New Year’s Day will be coming in a blink of an eye. The year 2020 is approaching us faster than ever before. In less than two months, we will be entering a new decade.
Although Jan. 1 is just another day, it represents a blank page. It’s easier to set goals and resolutions when you feel like there is a fresh start.
Sometimes it is hard to think of those goals, though. Every year, we are faced with the task of coming up with new year’s resolutions. We want to lose weight, follow our passions, create new memories and start different side projects. By the time it’s August, we sit and wonder how time passed by so fast and how we still have not achieved all of our goals.
Something that I am planning on implementing into my life in the new year is saying “yes.” It will be the “year of yes.” I first learned about this from Shonda Rhimes, the writer of the shows we love to binge watch like “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal.”
The idea behind the year of yes is that you should say “yes” to every opportunity that presents itself, no matter how scared or unsure you are about it. Sometimes we are so afraid of not being good enough or making mistakes that we completely avoid new experiences.
As an introvert, I tend to stick close to my comfort zone. Getting out of that comfort zone is deeply terrifying, but I think we could all benefit from getting out of our comfort zones. The fear paralyzes us, but the best things happen when you step away from what you know. It all sounds like a cliche, but when I look back at 2019, the best memories I made were saying “yes” to different opportunities even though I felt completely terrified. I had a chance to visit New York, attend PERIOD Con and even model at College Fashion week.
Obviously, we can’t say “yes” all the time. There are times when you need to take a step back and say “no.” But the idea behind it is important: Do not let fear dictate your experiences. Apply for the job. Take the class. Say “yes” to the late-night Waffle House run with your roommates. Join the club. Go to the tryout. It is important to remember that you can say “yes” to all of these things and still fail. Part of saying “yes” is also accepting that failure is normal, and it happens to the best of us.
In Rhimes’ book “Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person“, she writes, “Saying yes is courage. Saying yes is the sun. Saying yes is life.”
In 2020, I hope we all find the courage to say “yes.”