The beginning of a new decade will be upon us on January 1, 2020. For many students on campus, this will be the decade that they graduate high school, go to college, and start their adult lives. Yet,  many people feel that the end of the 2010’s signifies a usually negative self-reflection on the past ten years.

The start of 2020 will just be like the beginning of any other new year: It will be a time for the calendar to start again. Except this time, the final number in the year will be a zero.

Across the Internet, people from around the world believe that the beginning of the new decade means that they must accomplish a great amount in the final weeks of the year in order to be deemed successful. However, the start of the 2020’s does not mean that one must rush their lives to consider themselves to be successful. 

To truly see how far one has come, one should reflect on who they have surrounded themselves with, and how those people have impacted the amount that they have been able to achieve. This shows that one has bettered themselves and has realized what is best for themselves as well.

The amount of success in one’s life should be based upon how hard they worked to become who they are every day, and how far they believe they have come from their lowest points. One should care more about the fact that they have survived their darkest moments, not that they have succeeded in everything they have done.

Failure is a part of life. With failure comes lessons that must be reflected upon in order to improve. Trying to accomplish so much in so little time causes people to lose track of what is important to them, as well as not relish in their accomplishments. 

When one tries to complete so many things in so little time, stress usually follows at an unhealthy level. This creates the belief that one cannot accomplish all the things they want to, diminishing their self-confidence.

Take your time doing everything that you want to achieve. What is meant to happen will happen if you work hard and persevere. It will help you in your self-confidence in various ways. The start of the new decade does not mean that you have run out of time to achieve all that you want to. The start of 2020 simply means that you have new chances to achieve anything you put your mind to. It means you are closer to finally achieving all that you want to.

One should not solely base their self-worth on how successful they have been in the past ten years. Instead, one should realize that they have the ability to become better versions of themselves in the years ahead.

The end of 2019 does not mean the end of one’s chances to improve, but an opportunity to better themselves.