2020 Was A Great Year
Ok ok ok… 2020 Sucked in a lot of ways. Lots of people dying from some crazy virus is pretty damn awful. The constant connection to politics sucked. Not being able to go watch sports or see a concert sucked. Wearing a face mask all the damn time really sucked, especially because I have a beard. Seriously, it’s one of the most annoying things ever. The itching, the line the mask makes in my beard, it’s the worst.
So yeah, 2020 had some really pain-in-the-ass stuff going on. However, there were some really great things that happened for me. Instead of contributing to the “2020 sucks” cliche, I’m going to share some of those good things, 3 of those things to be exact. And no, this is not one of those “you gotta look on the bright side” or “positivity, bro” messages. This is me just sharing some of the good.
First, Genius
January 1, 2020, was the day that Genius Digital Marketing was officially born. We had been working on the business since about October of 2019, but Aaron and I didn’t officially form it until the first of the year. Genius is actually the 5th company that I’ve started if you count me operating as a freelance digital marketer for a couple of years. Sole proprietorships count, right?
Since forming, we’ve done, what I would define as, some really fantastic things. We’ve hired 6 people. We’ve worked on interesting and impactful projects related to the 2020 Census, robotic furniture, and multi-family real estate in Chicago. We’ve also been fortunate enough to generate nearly a million dollars in revenue this year. All of that in our first year of business and during a pandemic. I’d say that is worthy of a high-five.
Second, I Figured Out Some Shit About Myself
This is going to sound super lame, but I can’t think of a better way to say this.. I feel like I found myself this year, at least professionally. I might need a few more years on the personal-side, check back in 2022...
I’ve known that marketing was my thing for a while. I knew that I wanted to run my own business too. What I didn’t know was what my unique selling proposition was - what differentiated me. At the very least, I couldn’t define what that was. This year, I found that thing.
I’m great at project management. Maybe that sounds like a dumb skill to have, but it’s really one of the most important skills for a team. Being able to bring team members together, all with different skills, and keep everyone going in the same direction is extremely useful. Maybe it’s not the kind of thing that makes for good television, but I’ll tell you what it does make. Happy teams and happy customers. That’s pretty epic if you ask me, and this is my blog so I’m saying it.
Third, My Relationship
Caution: a story about sappy bf/gf stuff is ahead. If you don’t care, just skip ahead to the conclusion.
At the end of this year, I moved to Texas. I did so for a few reasons, and maybe those reasons are interesting enough for another article. The point to make here is that I did not move alone. Rachel came with me, which is special. Firstly, because we started dating about a year and a half before making the decision to move to Texas. Secondly, because we did not live together before, moving in together was a big step on top of moving to a whole new state. And thirdly, because of the way she agreed to come with me. Admittedly, I was very unsure what to do about the Texas-move and how that would impact my relationship with her. Not because I didn’t love her or because I didn’t want to move in with her, but because moving to Texas is kind of some epic life-altering shit. I didn’t want to make a choice for her. Fortunately, I didn’t have to. She was so willing to join me on this journey and I am unbelievably grateful for that. Seriously, Rach, thank you.
Focusing on What I Can Control
There are a lot of folks that have had a very hard year. I think about all the business owners that shut their doors. All the families that lost someone. Many, many people lost their jobs and are struggling. Our addiction to ego-driven social networks is driving us all insane. The 2020 garbage fire exists, I’m not denying that. The thing is, I can’t control any of that stuff. What I can do is focus on making myself better and in doing so, maybe make the world just a little better because of it.