This has been a bit of a confusing year to look back on as it has had so many chapters and quite a number of surprises. My partner Jack and I started the year in lockdown in Highbury Stadium and are ending it in relative freedom in a converted Church in Tufnell Park (more on that in a moment)!

Whilst in January we were all hoping that the speed-tested vaccines would work, now we are looking down the barrel of the Omicron variant hoping that it won’t put the kibosh on another family Christmas. Perhaps by the time you are reading this, Omicron will have subsided into a big false alarm - or perhaps we will be back in lockdown - planning another illicit Christmas-present drop in a dimly lit car park off the M4. Covid certainly has a powerful way of teaching us about non-attachment. When we now make plans, we do so holding them ever so lightly – knowing that at any moment they may just disappear…

Obstacles

If we had forgotten from previous real estate adventures, 2021 has confirmed that moving-house is not for the faint of heart. It is with a certain confusion, pride and exhaustion that we look back on three completed transactions spanning December 2020 to June 2021. Our 2 sales and 1 purchase seemed to go on forever. We had decided to sell in March 2020 just as covid was announcing its arrival on our shores. To add to our load, my flat in Highbury Stadium was affected by the retroactive cladding regulations that resulted from the devastating Grenfell fire and investigation. It was frankly a miracle of alignment that we were able to sell it at all – let alone for its pre-covid value.

In April of this year, the toll of covid’s impact on my business and our lives, losing a buyer, losing a dream property purchase (twice) and not knowing if the cladding-hit flat would complete had left me pretty close to breakdown. When the sale went through, lockdowns lifted and our new purchase finally landed – it was as if I was reborn and the Summer was the most uplifting I have experienced for years – perhaps even a decade. With hindsight, I look back on the journey to our new home with a sense of awe – all of the alignments, the losses, the support, all moving beautifully (yet in most mysterious and sometimes alarming ways) in order to deliver us to our new nest. A place beyond the scope of our dreams. The obstacles were merely re-directs – and here we are. It literally blows my mind.

Obsessions

As I say, this year has been hugely challenging for me personally and professionally – finding myself at different times enormously inspired and at others imagining throwing in the towel. Transforming a business that relied on in-person appearances for corporate and public training into one that serves both individuals and groups online and in-person has been quite the stretch. Yet, in the alchemy of these times, what emerged most strongly this summer was that at the core of who I am –I want to do good work. I want to be of service to my clients and to create enough abundance doing so to enjoy the flow of my life.

Central to this is my dedication to my mission. I am an advocate and inspirer of personal and spiritual growth. I stand for the cultivation of conscious awareness, mindful living and wellbeing. Even when times were tough this year, there was no getting away from my dedication. I am in this work for the long haul. It may take numerous forms, but I have found my calling, perhaps my obsession, and I will create and innovate as much as I need in order to stay true to it.

Enrichment

Thanks to some dear friends, I am studying a work called The Gene Keys by Richard Rudd. It is fascinating and overflowing with inspiration for deep contemplation. In this model, enrichment is all about finding the richness of each moment, even those that are repetitive quiet or troubling. It is about seeing through the diversion of distraction and coming to know yourself as the root of joy and pleasure beyond passing sensory desires and the unfolding narrative of circumstance. I felt it most keenly through the summer months as I was spending time swimming in the ponds at Hampstead Heath, connecting with like-minded peers and friends on various retreats, and opening to a new creative project that will take me into 2022 with plenty to look forward to.

Enrichment is also the journey of the storyteller who learns how to share their truth in a way that uplifts, inspires and enriches the spirit of others. It has become an important part of my practice to nurture this in my day-to-day, in my relationships, and in my work. If you are looking for some enrichment this month or over the coming year, I wholeheartedly recommend beginning your Gene Keys journey too. The teachings are profound, the journey revealing, and I believe you will know yourself more completely as a result of it.

Coda

As we close out 2021 – I want to particularly thank you for reading these words and for following my journey and for allowing me the honour of being seen and heard. I hope your year, was full of learning and love.

From my heart to yours, Happy Holidays and here’s to an inspiring New Year!

By Neil Seligman

Mindfulness and Conscious Leadership Expert, Neil Seligman is dedicated to delivering inspiring learning experiences and catalysing conscious creativity in all aspects of life and business. 

Find out more: theconsciousprofessional.com