Jumpstart 2021 with a plan, take control of your life and livelihoods
After 10 months of waiting, I am finally sharing the link to my podcast interview with Jim Cirillo of Jim Jim’s Reinvention Revolution Podcast (JJRR). The podcast explores the process of reinvention in the digital age as it relates to career, creativity and technology and how it impacts daily life.
At the time of the interview in early February, I was extremely optimistic about 2020, sharing my life journey and talking about my big plans for the year to come. Then COVID-19 hit. Nothing could have prepared anyone for this. Although most of my early 2020 plans mentioned in this podcast did not come to fruition, other pivots and reinventions happened during 2020 which I am thrilled to share in the REINVENT section of this blogpost.
https://www.jimjimsreinventionrevolution.com/post/jjrr-65-with-aya-garcia-shlachter
I am a big planner and goal setter. Every year, I establish 8 to 10 personal and professional goals. When I am extremely busy, I am notorious for planning my days by the hour or even by the minute. I use my planning system as a navigation tool for my life. As soon as I realized the magnitude of COVID and its effects on the world, I was temporarily lost. My navigation system suddenly evaporated; it became null and void. However, this confusion provided an unexpected opportunity to reset and reinvent myself as most of us did.
With the new year fast approaching, now is the time to plan and make changes for a prosperous 2021. Here are my 3 key strategies for not only surviving 2020, but thriving as well.
Reset
Take a pause. Take time off. Relax. Free your mind. Procrastinate. Most of us feel guilty if we are not productive or constantly working. It takes utmost discipline to do nothing especially if you are one of those go getter, A-type personalities. It is ok to procrastinate. Oftentimes the best ideas take time to develop. Go ahead, delay.
“Procrastinate strategically….Procrastination may be the enemy of productivity but it can be a valuable resource for creativity” -Adam Grant
If you are a firm owner and decision maker, you really NEED to set aside your personal pride and take time off, as this will provide many benefits. Remember this: if you are constantly working, you are missing out on other opportunities. During COVID, this reset gave me the freedom to observe behavioral changes on a global scale, which then allowed me to restrategize my personal and business goals.
Reinvent
For those of you who do not know me, I am the CEO and founder of MGS Global Group (formerly MG Shlachter). Our mission is to help architects and interior designers, creative agencies and retailers grow their businesses by providing them with experienced CAD drafters, 3D and Graphics support people to help fulfill their deliverables during project spikes. Most of our clients are in the retail and hospitality industries but due to COVID-19, most of our projects in these sectors were put on hold indefinitely. This gave me the opportunity to RESET and REINVENT.
One day, as I was looking through my Facebook groups – particularly the women in architecture groups – I noticed a common theme of problems that women firm owners and employed architects were experiencing:
- Being overwhelmed with running a business while taking care of kids at home
- Having difficulty finding new clients which led to cash flow problems
- Difficulty fulfilling and delivering new work, while balancing personal responsibilities
- No job security
- Anxiety
It was at this moment that I decided to pivot and reinvent my business. I felt compelled to help find a solution to this problem. Because of this, Architect My Life was born. We help architectural firm owners and aspiring firm owners start, scale and accelerate their businesses.
Covid-19 allowed us to pivot quickly but still remain true to our mission of serving the creative industry and especially women. Leveraging our current business model and past experiences, we were able to expand MGS Global Group to add the following divisions:
- Architect My Life helps creative entrepreneurs start or scale their business through our online learning and executive coaching. Come and join our Facebook group to be part of our community.
- Architect My Life Podcast. In the spirit of giving back, we are looking for firm owners who want to share their inspiring journey to success. The podcast will be launched in January 2021. We believe that every individual has a unique and powerful message that can positively impact the world. If you’d like to be featured, apply here.
- MGS Vizualization: Instagram portfolio of our 3D renderings.
- MGS Graphics Pro provides graphics production support to creative agencies, designers, retailers, e-commerce and product manufacturers looking for support in graphic design.
Repeat
Now that the year is coming to an end, I urge everyone to find time and discipline to RESET. Exercise, meditate, read a book, do a 1000 piece puzzle with your family. Being able to RESET will allow you to realize your own amazing REINVENTION. Trust me on this one.