10 Genuine Reasons For Hope and a Better 2023

Before getting started, let’s acknowledge that 2022 was hard.

It’s the end of a long year. You’re feeling a roller-coaster of emotions from tired to excited to just plain worried for the future.

But despite the uncertainty; the recession, inflation, and market downturns, you’re still here.

Pigment’s mission was always special to us, but now more than ever, we feel duty-bound to help people like you envision a better future.?We can’t change what has already happened, but we can take charge of the factors under our control going into the new year.

We’re a business planning platform and that can seem numbers oriented, but we actually see a glimpse of humanity behind those numbers. And the signals are encouraging.

Take a break.

Laugh with us as we count down the biggest trends we saw that left us feeling hopeful and should fill you up with hope, too.

10. A slow economy is the best time to invest in yourself

In today's economic climate, it's easy to feel like you're just treading water. But instead of seeing a slowdown as a negative, what if you took this opportunity to invest in yourself?

Whether it's taking a course to learn new skills or finally tackling that side project you've been meaning to get to, using this time to focus on personal growth can pay off in the long run.

And since there are less demands on your time and money, you may find that you have more headspace to devote to these pursuits. So instead of bemoaning a slow economy, use it as an opportunity to invest in yourself.

You may be surprised at how rewarding it can be. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Take that course you’ve been procrastinating on: Seasoned expert or beginner, we can all benefit from learning something new. Why not take this time to finally learn SQL, or refresh your financial reporting fundamentals?

Keep up with industry buzz: Another way to develop your finance career during an economic downturn is to stay current on industry news. For example, do you know why continuous planning is the future of FP&A? By staying up-to-date on what’s going on in the industry, you’ll be better equipped to make decisions that will help your career during tough times.

Network, network, network: Community is key — that’s the biggest lesson many of us learned during the isolation of the pandemic. Not only does networking open up career opportunities, you also find a new perspective on challenges that would otherwise take much longer to solve by yourself.

Read nine other reasons to stay hopeful in 2023 on our blog!