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2021: ‘Let’s Hope It’s a Good One Without Any Fear’

I have been accused of being an optimist—even a “rose-colored glasses” optimist—which to my pessimistic accountant and banker friends is just about the cruelest insult they think they can launch at me. But I just laugh them off and put my rosy glasses back on.

This has been a horrible year is many ways. Years like this can be an optimist’s worst nightmare, but hey, the proverbial glass is not only half-full, but filling up rapidly.

Other year-in-review scripters are listing all the reasons why this was a horrible, terrible no-good year. It would be easy to do the same because, I get it and I’m not naïve—I know how bad it’s been. However, I believe that your outlook on life is your choice. As my mother always taught me, “When you get up in the morning it’s your choice whether it is going to be a good day, so you might as well make the choice that it is going to be a good day.”

So, being the “silver linings” person that I am, here are 10 things to be optimistic about as we head into 2021.

1. We have the vaccine, or actually three of them as of this writing, which were developed in an amazingly short amount of time and proven to be 20 points more effective than normal vaccines.
2. Our medical workers and caretakers have proven themselves to be the most dedicated and committed of all of us. They have been working tirelessly to take care of the sick throughout this challenging year.
3. We are on the verge of one of the most innovative times in our history. With challenges like pandemics, there also comes with it times of great creativity and innovation. We are already seeing a slew of new products in development, and more to come. For our industry, this means staying tuned and being ready to work on some of the most exciting and innovative products the world has ever seen. From sanitizing and purification devices; to ventilators and respirators that are less expensive and easier to build; to automatic, no-touch devices, and much more. I just took part in a demo for a new software called Back2work which helps your associates choose their safe workspace as well as track who is wearing a mask and who is not. It’s amazing stuff.
4. All environments—including stores, restaurants, gyms, factories, our homes and places of worship—will all be more sanitized, cleaner, and safer after this pandemic is finally over. We have all learned to be more careful about passing germs.
5. We have found ways to work remotely, realizing that many positions can be done much more effectively away from the office or factory. Recently, I read that a full 40% of those who started working at home in 2020 will continue to do so. Think of how this will save money, time and energy.
6. There will be less business travel as we realize how much more we can do in a virtual environment. We have come to realize that although face-to-face meetings are nice, many of them can be avoided with a simple virtual meeting. This saves hour, even days, of time wasted in airports, not to mention the cost savings.
7. Because companies will not be allocating as much of their budgets for travel, there is more money to invest in marketing, publicity, and social media. We can expect to see much more of this kind of selling in the future.
8. Qualification audits have been performed virtually this year. We can expect more of that in the future.
9. During this pandemic, most of us have found time to reflect and work on things we didn’t have the time for in the past. We’re reading more books, watching more intelligent television. I know several businesspeople who have taken advantage of the time at home to work on themselves. They have taken the time to read, study and watch seminars on how they can become better at what they do. I’ve had several others reach out, asking me to recommend some good business books that can help them to be better salespeople. We can expect all of us to be a little better going forward.
10. And yes. there has been more time—both quantity and quality—for each other, our family and friends. We have more time for meals with those we are locked down with, more time to visit with friends through Zoom calls, and more time to reflect on what is, in the end, really the most important things in our lives.

Finally, there is hope. The end of the pandemic in actually in sight. With a little bit of luck, we can look forward to next year at this time when we will be able to meet and celebrate the holiday season in the more traditional way: Safely and in person with those we love and cherish.

I wish you all a safe and happy New Year.  In the words of John Lennon, “Let’s hope it’s a good one, without any fear.”

It’s only common sense.

Dan Beaulieu is president of D.B. Management Group.