One long year

I've just finished my final meeting of 2021, and there seems no better time to reflect on a very long year. It's been a complicated twelve months for many of us, and I've found it easy at times to dwell on the negatives - but this post isn't about that. This post is me taking a step back to think about all of the things I've learned this year and how much I've grown through those experiences. Self-indulgent? Absolutely, but what better time to be a bit indulgent than the holidays?

Here in the UK we started 2021 heading into another lockdown. I'd just turned 30, I was still on furlough one day a week, and it was dark a lot of the time. We still tried to do Veganuary though (with mixed success) and when it wasn't dark we went on long crisp walks. By February things were brightening up, and my highlight was receiving the news that I had passed my certificate in Charity Law and Governance.

Throughout spring I refocussed my mind towards planning my wedding, attended and hosted seven online board and subcommittee meetings for various charities, and continued to work with my Leeds Vocal Movement colleagues to host our online choir rehearsals every two weeks. In the breaks we went camping (something I never thought I'd end up enjoying so much) and climbed more hills than I ever thought possible for little old weak-joints me.

In May I took a huge leap, and applied for a new job. It thrust me right out of my comfort zone, and pushed me to have important conversations about my life and my future. It forced me to reflect on what I want from my career, and helped me to learn what I have to give and how to articulate it. It was a great process, but in the end I wasn't the right candidate for the role.

In May I also bought my wedding dress.

Applying for a new job and doing all of that important thinking spurred me on into the summer. We moved forward in leaps and bounds with our wedding planning, I joined my third board of trustees (thank you for having me Elliot's Footprint) and towards the end of summer I applied for another role. This time, I was successful.

We moved into autumn ready for huge changes. I left my role at LUU just before Freshers' Week, got married, and spent two weeks in a campervan in Scotland. I came back and started at NCVO in early October. My husband also set off on his new career at the same time. Choir also started back in person, and Northern Opera Group planned for their fabulous Christmas community show 'Amahl and the Night Visitors'.

Since starting at NCVO, I don't think there is a part of the last year which hasn't come into play in one way or another. I've leaned on my students' union experience in training, I've spoken about being a trustee of small charities as part of my consultancy, and I've shared a lot about my personal experiences of this long, yet somehow very fast-paced year. Change is constant - I've already seen new colleagues move on in the short time I've been with NCVO, and welcomed others. I was the new girl for less than a week in my team.

As I come to the end of this year I also want to be thankful to the people who've been part of my journey. My lovely and endlessly supportive husband, my managers (old and new), my colleagues and my clients. I've worked with some of the most fantastic and inspirational organisations and people, and though 2021 isn't ending in the way any of us might have hoped, I feel very lucky to have experienced this year and all of the changes which have happened along the way. Thank you all for being part of it with me, and here's to the next one!