How 2020 Helped Me Pivot by Aria Craig

If there is one thing I have learned from 2020, it is how unpredictable the future can be. I also learned how to utilize time as an opportunity to make necessary changes. I did some deep thinking and reassessing, then made a decision to pivot during the pandemic.

Last year, I started another 9-5 job. It was a means to an end while I figured out how to reinvest in myself after a painful divorce and reinvent my brand to achieve the success I desire to manifest. But, like many other educated and talented women of color, I reported to a woman who not only was mentally unstable but felt threatened by my credentials and ability to naturally form relationships. Through her insecurities on a platform of systemic racism, she used her position of authority to sabotage my employment for an entire year. I was so stressed that I lost hair, sleep, and weight. I also lost the time and motivation to work on my entrepreneurial endeavors. By the beginning of 2020, I found myself in therapy for work-related stress and struggling to deal with reality.

In March, when the media began to focus on Covid-19, I was waiting for my manager to communicate to me when to pick up my work-from-home equipment when Human Resources called me to inform me that the law firm no longer needed my services. And guess what? I was very much at peace with that decision. It’s like The Creator was forcing me to pivot. And now, I had time on my hands to figure out my next steps.

What I originally did to grow my brand was not working or I would not have needed to find employment. Somewhere, somehow, I was unclear. And tired. A piece was missing, but I didn’t know what piece was. Something had to change, so I prayed. Not for strength or patience. Not even faith. I prayed for clarity.

One day, while scrolling through Instagram, I read several posts that changed the course of my thinking. The first one stated that successful people made decisions based on their visualizations for their futures instead of their current circumstances. It was an epiphany. This was not the first time that I had read this, but it was the first time that it truly resonated. 

The next post stated that I would continue to choose people who did not choose me until I choose myself. That was deep! It was time to purge, again (I did this more than four years ago and it is cathartic). This time it was not out of anger from tolerated treatment to protect my peace, but out of healing from unresolved trauma for the sake of my future.

As if that wasn’t enough, I continued to use the tools I learned in therapy: regulated my bedtime, started changing my eating habits, practiced mindfulness, and meditated. All this while still receiving confirmation to move forward, despite my current state. I placed affirmations in my bedroom and bathroom mirror. I even changed my passwords to reflect manifestation. I wrote down what I wanted with a timeline for accomplishment. This was my declaration. 

Slowly, but surely, things started to shift, even during the pandemic. My followers increased, programs that I wanted to participate in were available, and media publications reached out to me to get my views on topics related to co-parenting and thriving after a divorce. Not to mention I found that missing piece and currently working on certification to incorporate it into my business model – holistic mental wellness coaching for emotional and behavioral trauma.

My mindset had to pivot, then everything else followed suit. I made a decision to be intentional about overcoming obstacles created to derail my course of purpose that was already predestined. Now, I am in alignment with the Universe and in the lyrics of SZA, “All the stars are closer”.

Learn more about Aria at www.ariacraig.com

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