I’m not sure if it’s just the optimist in me, but 2021 was better for me in almost every way than 2020 ever was. Sure, it was the second year of the pandemic, but things finally felt more normal and hopeful for me in regards to being able to do the simple things I used to be able to do like visiting and sit in coffee shops to work on things and visit friends and eat inside restaurants.

While I usually like to have a long list of accomplishments of things I did in any given year, I realized that this year I probably did the least amount of personal work than any year prior. And that’s mostly evident if you visit my Instagram account.

But I’m actually okay with it. 2021 for me was really a year of adjusting to change. In December of 2020 I moved to a new city and spent most of 2021 getting used to a new environment and being away from the things I was used to. Luckily I didn’t move too far away but still far enough that visiting family and friends and going to my usual hang-out spots was at least an hour-long drive.

2021 was also the year I finally got my job back at Live Nation. In May of 2020 I was furloughed and spent the entire time in between applying and interviewing for jobs with little to no luck. I was incredibly burnt out with the job search process by the beginning of 2021 that I gave up trying. But fortunately in March I was finally contacted by my team and they gave me the good news that they were bringing me back.

Also this year was when COVID vaccines were widely available and being able to get them along with my mother and grandmother helped ease my nerves and allowed me to have one less thing to worry about so I could get back to focusing on myself and my work.

Overall, the way I ended 2021 felt right. I had a 2-week long break from work and I used that time to set myself and my projects up for success by putting in the time and effort to re-do my website and shop and restart my Patreon and come up with a new content plan for YouTube and Instagram. I spent my time focused on finishing all the behind-the-scenes stuff so that I could start the new year in a state of creating rather than reactive planning.

I’ve done way too much planning and not enough doing over the years and given the fact I have and incredible amount of skills and abilities that are not being used like they used to, really annoyed me. I realized I was not living up to my fullest potential and that realization finally helped kick-start my mind to give 2022 my all and push myself even further than I ever have.

So here’s to making 2022 much better in every way possible!