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January 10, 2022
October 29, 2021
These were my 3 words for 2021:
You can see why I believe selecting 3 words is so powerful, and how I selected these words here.
Last year's "create" was a call to break through the glass ceiling and start putting stuff out there. It calls back to simpler times when I designed or made stuff for the hell of it. Writing and learning to code in 2021 scratched the itch to make stuff that I missed from my work.
There is an intentionality to the word 'build' that 1% daily improvements lacks. No architect has 'simply' compounded their way to a magnificent building. To build something great requires a longer-term vision, and to think beyond just the next step.
"Build" is an intention to not just create, but to create things that matter, have substance, and last. It's about cultivating a strong foundation for skills, mindsets and relationships that will last me a lifetime.
In 2021 I realised the importance of being present with myself, with others, and with the task at hand. Where I struggled the most was where my journaling habit fell to the wayside. I disconnected with myself, and life went into autopilot. This year i've set an intention to cultivate a connection to the present. This means at a minimum, keeping up with meditation and journaling.
Connecting also goes beyond myself. It means cultivating meaningful relationships with peers, friends and family. I've had some amazing conversations this year with friends - new and old. 'Connect' is a reminder that exploring a different perspective consistently rewards. Sometimes in unpredictable ways.
Finally, a Steve Job's quote captures another side of 'connect'. It's an intention to keep making sense of my place in the world - to start connecting the dots.
You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
Looking back on 2021, whilst I achieved many of my goals, I felt I set the bar a little low. My goals were heavy on process, and I designed them to make action easy. As a result, I felt I put off difficult decisions like whether to go to graduate school, or to commit and double down on skills like programming.
This year is likely where my path continues to diverge from my peers' as I go deeper into digital health. Courage isn't a verb, but a virtue that i'd like to infuse into my goals and actions. It's setting an intention to be okay with taking risks and making bold decisions. It's about both doing things that scare me, and also rejecting operating from a place of fear or FOMO.