First of all, let’s clarify a thing or two about the word reinvention. Some people say it feels too large, too undoable. Too hard. Some say “reinvention” sounds like it requires a huge break from the past or a 180-degree change in direction.
To which I say, Not True! Reinvention can be as big as leaving your job, your marriage, or your country, or it can be as small as rethinking the level of sugar in your diet, your approach to skincare, or your attitude toward your houseplants (I rethought my negligent attitude toward watering mine, and wow – what a difference!).
After interviewing more than 180 reinventors for my podcast, and helping hundreds of people find what’s next for them through classes and coaching services, I can tell you that reinventions come in all shapes and sizes and happen for a zillion reasons. Therefore, I suggest that in 2023 the first step in your reinvention should be to think about reinvention as a refresh, a reimagining, a rethinking, or a retooling of some area of your life you have been dissatisfied with for a long time. The size and scope are up to you.
Here are five trends coming for 2023 that will reward anyone reimagining their new year.
- Rethink your career/job. Economic indicators suggest it’s still a worker’s market, meaning that there aren’t enough applicants to fill all available jobs. Plus, JP Morgan’s 2023 Economic Outlook shows the job “quit rate” remaining at 2.9% for 2023, making it the perfect time for you to ask for that promotion, offer a new idea, or reconfigure your division. Got a great corporate intrapreneurial idea? Write it up and put it on the boss’s desk. Ears may be more open.
- Reexamine your work/life balance or design a new one. According to Accenture Life Trends, the work-from-home movement created by the pandemic is still bumping up against the old corporate demand for in-office nine-to-five seat-warming. “There’s a tension brewing between those who enjoy the autonomy of remote work and those who crave the rewards of being together,” the report says. “Leaders will need to go back to the drawing board and create logical, mutually beneficial plans.” This is great news for women who may be able to ask for/design a better work/life balance using accountability and results, instead of face-time, as a measuring stick. Those who work in human capital management (the old HR) may find openings for new workplace designs that take into account employee lifestyles and travel/family needs. Conversely, it’s also great news for single workers or empty nesters with fewer at-home responsibilities who are willing to spend time in the office when others won’t.
- Reestablish your relationship with uncertainty. Let’s face it. Things are not getting more predictable. Many things we thought we knew for the last 30 or 40 years are being thrown out or upended. The climate is going nuts – more frequent hurricanes and floods, strange blizzards, unprecedented droughts. Heck, even things we thought were settled law – like a woman’s right to choose an abortion – are being overturned by the American Supreme Court. How can you get comfortable with living in an ever-changing, unsettled world? What does that mean for you? For your family? For your work? What are the opportunities for you created by turbulence?
- Refocus on your health. “The pandemic may now be in the rearview mirror for Europeans, but its legacy has been to remind people of what is really important in life; their health,” so argues Mintel, one of the world’s leading market watchers. I say this is true for Americans, too! Nothing like mortality breathing down your neck (tiny throat-tickle today, in the morgue two weeks later!) to focus the mind on the word “safety” at the bottom of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs! What in your personal health needs prioritizing? What needs reexamining? What needs reframing? Is it time to finally start an exercise routine? A low-cholesterol diet? Start with something small, like making sure you have your annual check up, switching from Toblerone to a bar with 70% cocoa, or just taking a two-minute walk around the block after each meal (which a recent study by Sports Medicine found can lower blood sugar). You can even start by flossing just one tooth as a gateway to creating new healthy habits using the Tiny Habits method created by behavioral scientist B.J. Fogg, PhD, at Stanford.
- Replenish your connections. One thing Covid-19 taught us: we need each other. And yet, economic tightening suggests we are disconnecting – cutting nonessentials like media and gym memberships. Accenture calls it the “Great Cancellation.” The danger? An anticipated rise in loneliness and mental health issues. Ask yourself: what can I do to create a sense of connection in my life? Where and how can I create community? How can I help myself by helping others connect? At CoveyClub, because we’re all about community and connection, we expect 2023 to be an unprecedentedly fabulous year.