"There is Purpose in the Pause"

I have some reflections on the year that was 2020! A dear friend of mine was listening to me lament about the loss of income and clients during the 2020 economic recession. She said these profound words to me: “There is purpose in the pause”. When Ms. ChristIna Armstrong said those words, it gave me a little comfort during this very tumultuous time we were all living. I’m thinking about those words and I focused my thoughts on these two words—Purpose and Pause. Here are my reflections. When I heard these words, I felt compelled to reevaluate my purpose with my business, family, finances, and faith. I began to drill down deeply into the purpose of what I was doing and was it working for me. After a deep analysis, I realized that some things were not working for me as we were moving into this new age. So, I stopped doing those things and began to do the 21/90 cycle. The rule is simple. Twenty-one days to build a habit and ninety-days to build a new lifestyle. Next, I began to value what the pause was giving me. It was giving me time to reflect, write, connect, and reacquaint. I value health relationships especially in the work that I do with Restorative Strategies, LLC. And the pause has given me time to appreciate the relationships I do have and the importance of maintaining them. I aspire to be an author of my thoughts that I have around our American society. The reflection time has given me space to think deeply and to imagine and visualize where and what I want to be doing in the years to come. I deal with health challenges that need my attention but when you are moving about the country working it can be challenging not getting a home cooked meal. The pause remedied that challenge by allowing to work from home. And my ever evolving family and how much we have gone through. We went through

this pause together. So I value what this pause gave me and is giving me as we speak. In conclusion, I would encourage you to value the purpose in this pause. Write that book, sing that song, live your authentic life and be unapologetic. And I hope that you will realize as I have that their is purpose in the pause.