As the new year is starting, I like to reflect on what happened. There is a lot of wisdom we can find in our day-to-day lives. For me, 2022 has been a crazy journey of ups and downs. I've gone through several different stages of happiness. I started pursuing what I wanted to do and I've also found meaning in the work that I do.
For anyone that is looking to improve year over year, this is a great opportunity. We usually like to say what's in the past is in the past. We don't just say it but we forget it also. We're too busy looking into the future. At what might be. You'll write your new year's resolutions and then move on. But you also have to review and see where you can improve. Here are the main things I've learned in 2022.
Don't expect success right away
Having started my writing journey last year, I was amazed at the results. Since day one I had no expectations. It was a big event for me to finally publish something I wrote to show what I can do. It wasn't a revolutionary post but it was the beginning of something much bigger than I imagined.
Over time as I started writing more, I felt a sense of fulfillment that I can't express. It was as if I was building the map of my own thoughts. It forced me to think through my belief system. It also made me question whether some of the things I believed were good ideas to hold close to me.
Yet last year felt as if the seeds I've planted for years, started sprouting. I had been chasing success for at least ten years before that. Only now did everything feel like it started to come together. All the lessons I had learned and all the decisions I made.
Combining all those things, I wanted to see if I could make my writing more than just a hobby. And after half a year of hard work, the first sign of success started to show. I never thought I would be able to build an audience on Medium in the time I did. Yet, it happened faster than I imagined when I'm looking back.
Follow your dreams
This was the most cliche thing I've stumbled across this year. But I felt very unfulfilled in my other areas of life. The more I worked, the less rewarded and appreciated I felt. It was a constant cycle of waking up in the morning and looking at a sky that was grey instead of blue.
Part of me thinks that my thoughts brought me into depression. While I didn't get diagnosed, I can't discount the possibility. No matter what vacation I went on or what type of company I had, there was something in me that wasn't right. I could not feel fulfilled no matter what I did.
All these thoughts made me re-evaluate my life. If I didn't find any meaning in what I was doing, then maybe I'm doing the wrong things. Writing is what saved me during all this time. It was the only constant that gave me the piece of mind that I needed. Feeling like I was building something only I had control over felt very rewarding.
In the end, that's exactly what I needed. I wanted to have control over my own life. Not to feel like I was wasting it away. Once everything clicked then the colour started to come back into my vision. I was able to dream again and chase after it. Now while I don't feel like I am fully in control yet, I feel that I am much closer. And 2023 is when I will go to great lengths in making sure I can achieve the control and freedom I am looking for.
Be grateful for everything
I had a gratitude journal for quite some time. It is the most important activity I do once I wake up. The only reason why I have my phone next to me. It has been almost two full years since I started writing down the things I am grateful for. If you're looking to start your day on a positive note, that is what you should do as well.
It's easy to think about the things you don't have. Or how hard things can be for you every day. But counting your blessings also allows you to centre yourself better. This has been a big contributor which has saved me from an abyss I could have fallen into last year. It was as if in a world where the only constant changes, my not having to change was what helped the most.
I do hope your takeaways from last year were a lot cheerier than mine. My rollercoaster allowed me to see a lot of the things I had blinded myself towards. And I wouldn't want anyone else to go through those bad days. Yet at the same time, those things had to happen to me in order to become better.