My Learnings from 2021
« Start by telling yourself who you want to be; then do what you have to do. »
Epictète
It is with great pleasure that I once again share with you in 2022 the lessons I learned over the past year.
Even though 2021 remained complicated, difficult and even exhausting for some of us, I once again chose to focus on the positive aspects of the crisis we are experiencing. I accepted all its ups and downs and decided to transform them into opportunities I now want to tell you about!
1. Family and health first
The question is simple: “Were you able to stay close to your loved ones despite the circumstances? Did you take care of your health? Did you optimize it to be as resilient as possible in the face of the pandemic? Did you exercise?”
Whatever your answer, bring even more intention, more caring, and more involvement to building and maintaining your well-being in 2022! This was already true in 2020, but this new year shows us the situation may continue... And above all, don’t judge yourself! Be kind to yourself if you feel like you haven’t done enough; there is always time to catch up.
The crisis may be your chance to celebrate freedom, the joy of living, and being fully yourself with your chosen family. Personally, even if large gatherings weren’t possible due to COVID, I still benefited from the support of a small circle of close ones I hold dear. Inspiring, extraordinary people who love me as I am, even with my little touch of eccentricity…
2. Refreshing wellness and productivity rituals
Meditation, any form of physical exercise, positive affirmations, reading to learn, intermittent fasting, nutritional supplements like fish oil and blueberries for vision, zinc for protein and energy metabolism, vitamins... Whatever your needs or desires: listen to your body and take care of it to achieve your goals with greater ease.
In 2021, I revised my list of role models by adding Mick Jagger, for his longevity and ability to maintain his rocker image (he’s also a great athlete), and Clint Eastwood, who continues to direct brilliant films at 91!
3. Maintain your communities and build strong teams
In 2021 more than ever, maintaining your personal and professional networks became a key challenge. Daring to call people, to connect and really listen to them, was decisive for me in maintaining long-term relationships. I also made time for business lunches when possible and brought flexibility to my schedule. I was careful to constantly adapt my clients’ coaching goals to the shifting environment to close 2021 strong.
Due to the situation, I facilitated only a few team coaching sessions in 2021, just three in-person seminars, but these physical gatherings became precious opportunities for my clients to foster team bonding.
I’m proud to have successfully supported my clients 100% digitally, with the support of my team! BNPP trusted us with global trainings involving participants from Australia to Brazil, covering topics like storytelling and personal branding. Avanade also brought us in on leadership issues in a 6-month program. It was an incredibly rewarding 100% digital experience, even for someone like me who loves live group facilitation.
Also, growing and strengthening a remote team that stays connected despite COVID and distance was one of the keys to Be&Lead’s business success.
4. Protect yourself, embrace surprise, and build
Remote work has disrupted our daily lives and home organization. In my case, after issues with a very bad-faith landlord, we won our case 100%! Protecting ourselves, patiently building our legal file, finding the right lawyer, and investing the time needed were the keys to our success.
Many coaching programs didn’t go as planned: talents I was coaching had to completely reposition themselves due to reorganizations; clients were promoted mid-coaching; CEOs were replaced; and there was strong pressure to accelerate and transform. In short: lots of uncertainty, with many top-level movements making coaching especially complex.
This pushed me to work on accepting the unexpected, an effort I must continue, as 2022 has already started with many surprises.
In these challenging times, my 25 years of yoga and a few years of boxing practice were incredibly useful, especially for stress management. I also invested myself in table tennis, a fascinating sport based on strategic thinking and reflex development. Thanks to a great coach, I learned to channel my energy to develop winning strategies against my opponents.
With my co-authors, we published The Game of Intelligences, created version 2 of The Archetypes Game (we sold out of V1), and we’re now working on international expansion and new games.
Finally, I continued transforming Be&Lead by partnering with Open Mind, which helps me offer more holistic support to leaders during these challenging times. It’s a fantastic self-awareness tool that strengthens your personal success strategies, I encourage you to discover it.
5. Nourishment
I rediscovered the joy of taking time to reflect and step back. I read some deeply inspiring books, like the 2021 Goncourt Prize winner The Most Secret Memory of Men, and The Duty of Violence by Yambo Ouologuem (which inspired Mohamed Mbougar Sarr). I also appreciated Living with the Dead by Delphine Horvilleur. These thinkers, writers, and rabbis shaped my 2021.
On the business side, No Rules Rules by Reed Hastings and Erin Meyer challenged me on how, as a coach, I can contribute even more to a culture of feedback that enables business transformation—like Netflix achieved.
Similarly, Adilson Borges' Test and Learn led me to add a new weekly ritual question:
What did I learn this week?
I also loved Frédéric Lenoir’s book on Jung, who, even in the 1930s, defended the idea of educating the educator:
“Jung’s work leads us to see that the educational relationship is not just about rational content or instructions, but also the influence of the educator’s sensitivity and personality. Education is not just about discourse—it depends on the adult’s own psychological disposition… This Copernican revolution in pedagogy means that the being of the educator becomes the primary factor in their influence, so the educator must first be educated.”
I highly recommend this book, especially The Red Book, if you’re interested in Jung’s work.
Lastly, “Crisis” in Chinese is Wei Ji: two ideograms, one meaning “danger” or “disaster,” the other “opportunity.”
The slowdown in social life and time saved through remote work allowed me to rediscover time for myself, time I dedicated to reading and deeper exploration of meaningful topics.
6. Social engagement
2021 was once again a call for social engagement. I supervised, pro bono, a team of talented coaches doing solidarity coaching—a wonderful experience that enriched me deeply. After co-founding PSF (Professional Supervisors Federation) in 2012, I was elected its president again in 2021.
I focused a lot of energy on defining PSF’s role within SIMACS, using the core posture of supervision: systemic questioning, ethical clarity, and perspective. PSF asked me to be its representative and serve as president of SIMACS, the professional union of coaches, supervisors, and related fields, bringing together 7 organizations.
It’s a young union that must now define its governance amid a transforming ecosystem (France Compétences and RNCP certification), while managing the rise of 100% remote coaching platforms. Finding the balance between representing 5,000+ professionals with humility and building ethical governance is a new challenge I fully intend to meet.
So, at the start of this new year, thank you for reading and keeping this blog alive. Your comments are precious and motivate me to keep sharing keys to personal and professional transformation.
I wish you a year full of learning, growth, health, love, connection and joy!
With passion,
Your coach, your supervisor,
Gilles
#transformation #care #crisismanagement #community #leadership #executivecoaching #supervision