Reviews are a great way to look back at the year gone by. While attending a recent session to look back at the year, I was amazed how several other participants also resonated with my observation that its so hard even to remember stuff that happened just a quarter ago. While trying to recall all the good and the bad that happened in the year, it was difficult for most of us to just think of even major events that happened 3-4 months ago. Our memories are so shaky.
However, I am inclined to believe that it always pays off to go through to the deeper recesses of the mind to dig out the happenings of the past. (at least for the past year). The wise Seneca’s words ring a bell – “I will keep constant watch over myself and — most usefully — will put each day up for review. For this is what makes us evil — that none of us looks back upon our own lives. We reflect upon only that which we are about to do. And yet our plans for the future descend from the past.” (Thanks Nils & Jonas for this quote)
There are multiple formats to look back at the year, but I will continue to follow the one I used last year. (Looking at key events across Health, Wealth, Leisure and Relationships)
Health
Physical
- While I was quite ambitious about my plans for the year to build muscle, things didn’t turn out as planned as I had to apportion my time to other buckets of life more (Work & Relationships)
- However, during the 1st quarter of the year I completed Phase 0 of the Bony to Beastly Program, quite religiously; I could see differences in my biceps and chest just after Phase 0 of the program
- Getting down with dengue was an experience of a lifetime. My platelets dropped to <20 and then shot up thanks to Papaya juice and my family members
- The episode taught me a lot about dealing with fever and cold, bacterial vs viral origins of flu, the right time to meet a doctor and several others
- Its interesting that the only treatment for dengue is saline + paracetamol
- I got multiple tooth cavities filled and started water flossing – writing this is also a reminder for me to be more regular with my dental hygiene
- Daily water flossing
- Annual dental check-ups
- Getting aligners
- I got a sleep test done to understand my snoring patterns and the bottom line was to
- Change my sleep position from supine -> side
- Use nasal strips and mouth tapes
- Consciously mouth breath most of the time (As Much As Possible)
- I also found a great article by Ankush Datar online to improve sleep habits
- Got a Blu lens to use during night calls and prolonged hours of screentime (it has been helpful)
Mental
- Calm App was my go to for my daily calm and daily trip meditations (250+ days) this year
- In October, I decided to switch to Waking Up to just revisit how the Waking Up app has evolved. Have been loving it so far
- The app introduced me to Oliver Burkeman’s ideas via the Time Management for Mortals course and it was not surprising to find out that it was the most popular course on the app this year
- I got a great deal on “The School of Life” App and have been loving it. I use it almost daily and every time I finish reading something on the app, I feel that I have more compassion for my own self and for others
- I have also started talking to a therapist to get to terms with some past trauma – It is still in progress and I hope to be a better version of myself with that
- Hoping to give psychotherapy a more solid try in this upcoming year
Wealth
Switched Jobs
- I changed jobs and moved from consulting to a more platform sales focused role in 2022 (thanks to my wife’s friends’ referral)
- The new job did have quite a learning curve, but I managed to do a good job, in spite of other competing priorities
- I love the new role and feel I’m suited to it, given that the day-to-day tasks leverage most of my strengths. The Stand Out assessment I took based on an HBR Ideacast featuring Marcus Buckingham on the future of work was a great testimony to that
- Companies that change rapidly and where the latest and greatest ideas become obsolete very fast suit me well
- I got to work on some of the biggest deals that the company has ever bid for and learnt a lot about the company’s capabilities and got introduced to a lot of new folks within the company
- A HBR article titled “How to Succeed Quickly in a New Role” was quite instructive. It pointed out the key factors to succeed in hyper-collaborative and dynamic workplaces and I felt it was written for me
- While the job was remote this year, I did get to make new friendships in the US and India. I have found some great folks and it has been terrific working with them
Case Prep
- Preparing for case studies was a great experience this year. Meeting new fellow aspirants preparing for case interviews from various countries, understanding their approaches to case solving, was quite informative
- Watching Victor Cheng’s videos and going through his blog and content was eye-opening. A key insight – Analysis is the opposite of Synthesis and Analysis is the only way to solve big problems, not just in business, but also in life
- While trying to solve big problems, one can get easily overwhelmed. Hence, the simple suggestion to break the problem into its constituent parts is phenomenal advice
- Many of us might know this, but putting this into practice is a whole new challenge. Case preparation this year changed my perspective towards problem-solving and I am absolutely thankful for it
Leisure:
Blog
- One of my biggest achievements this year for me was blogging. I managed to write almost one article per month; The first half of the year was quite productive, while the latter was a bit more challenging than expected.
- I have been able to socialize my blog with a small circle of friends but hope to share more in the upcoming year
- The highlight for me was the writing of the gratitude series which helped me a lot
Journalling
- In spite of the time crunch and the official and personal responsibilities this year, I managed to write my journals almost regularly throughout the year
- Just writing these journals has been transformative; being able to look back and laugh at the stuff that stressed me out just yesterday, gives me a weird satisfaction and consolation that things will pass and I don’t have to take everything seriously
- Writing these journals also helps me to follow through with things that otherwise would have been forgotten amongst the vast number of threads that disappear into the depths of my curious mind.
Interesting Stuff
Below is a list of some of the most interesting stuff I found this year:
- Great Articles:
- Hunter S Thomspon’s letter to his friend
- Network Effects Article by nfx.com
- Adam Grant’s Give & Take NYT Article
- How To Succeed Quickly in a New Role, HBR
- David Davidar’s Book Recommendations – RD India
- Movies:
- We didn’t have time to go to the movies this year; However, I did manage to watch some movies over the weekends. Top movies of the year include – Tick Tick Boom, Love and Leashes, Hridayam, Lalitham Sundaram, and 777 Charlie
- TV Series/Documentaries:
- Some of the best TV Series finds of the years include – Blood, Sex & Royalty, How To Change Your Mind, Rise (Basketball), The Playlist (Spotify Story), and Babies
- Best books of the year:
- Can’t Hurt Me, David Goggins
- Stumbling on Happiness, Dan Gilbert
- Design Your Life, Dave Evans and Bill Burnett
- Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway
- Silas Marner, George Eliot
- Eppothum Pen, Sujatha
- Podcasts – Episodes:
- Rich Roll – Max Fisher, Tommy Rivs
- Seen Unseen – Pratap Banu Mehta & Nandita Iyer
- HBR Ideacast – Marcus Buckingham – StandOut Survey
- Foundering – The story of Tik Tok
- Music:
- I am still exploring the world of music
- For the most part of the year, I listened only to Tamil songs – quite fascinated by lyricists Vaali, Vivek & Karky
- Went into multiple rabbit holes involving these folks last year
- I have to expand my taste in music in the coming years
- Travel:
- We could manage to go to CGH Earth in Kumbakonam, which was the only trip of 2022
- It was memorable and it was a good one, as it was the first with our daughter
- The food and the long walks amidst the greenery made it special
Relationships
- Haiku:
- The first 9 months with Haiku have been absolutely wonderful
- Every new day has been a new experience
- Right from birth, it has been a terrific year
- Experiencing the birth in the labor ward was the most emotional moment ever so far
- That April 16th evening memory will be etched forever in my mind
- Thanks to iPhones, we continue to have a record of Haiku’s every month on our phones
- We did have some struggles with feeding and sleep throughout the year, but thanks to support from doctors, caregivers, online resources, and our mother-in-law, we managed to overcome most of them
- The naming ceremony was such a memorable event of the year
- We did put our heart and soul into organizing it and it turned out to be an unforgettable event
- We spent close to 5 months of the year in our native and it was a welcome change for our daughter
- Our daughter’s every milestone achievement has been exciting to watch (turning around, sitting up, crawling, walking with support, solids start)
- She continues to amaze us every passing day with her curiosity to see the world afresh
- Thanks to social media and influencers, we attended some helpful sessions for Labor Management, Solid Starts, and Toddler Montessori
- All these sessions have helped us become better parents
- Spouse:
- As a couple this year has been a rollercoaster. We did go through a lot many ups and downs, but we continued to be there for each other
- Like most parents, we now fully understand the time and effort required to attend to a baby in the first year. And as cliched as it might sound, this journey was worth it all
- So grateful that my wife had a normal delivery and could resume work after 6 months of maternity leave
- Parents & In-Laws:
- Our parents absolutely mellowed down after the birth of Haiku. It seems all their prior egos, weird behaviors and anger have taken a backseat after the birth of the granddaughter
- Grateful also to have the support of our in-law to help with our daughter; Managing Haiku without her support would have been quite difficult
- Friends:
- A great piece of advice I received this year was to increase my collisions with other people and to make new friends. Also, read up about the Dunbar number for friends (his book about friends is a “to be read” on my list)
- I did reach out to a lot of new folks (with whom I have resonated a lot) and hope to meet them in person soon
- Some of these are folks whose work I admire
- Others, to reach out to for help for a specific task at hand (recommended by other friends)
- Meeting new humans and talking to old friends definitely gives me a lot of joy; Friends and people are an absolute treasure
- We just hope to be able to meet and make new friends and rekindle old friendships in the upcoming years
2022 has been a very eventful year. Our daughter’s arrival has definitely changed a lot of things for the good!
This year, I literally slow down, remained more in the moment, and got closer to my family members and relatives. The new job has been a welcome change and has been quite exciting so far!
While I haven’t been able to stay focused on anything specific this year (hobbies/work/physical health), I hope to be more goal-oriented, disciplined, and process driven in the coming years!
