A Year In Review
A year ago, I set out on a journey to reinvent myself.
It was less a decision born of boredom and more of curiosity.
Curiosity to find out how far I could push myself.
Like every hopeful with a New Year’s resolution, I created an ambitious list of things I wanted to accomplish in a single year.
I didn’t stop to think about how much time and effort it would take or even where I would start.
I just knew I had a list and a desire to be better.
I started this newsletter to document my explorations and share my learnings and insights, in the hope of helping others achieve their goals.
Now, I submit the receipts.
The List
Before we dive into where I stand today
Let’s take a look at the list.
This is in no particular order:
Web development agency
Learn web development
LinkedIn profile building
100 days of working out
25 LinkedIn newsletters
Startup consultations
Get better at writing
Finance certification
Get hired at “Big 4”
Solve Rubik’s Cube
YouTube channel
Read 50 books
AI certification
News feature
Learn Django
Learn Python
Learn French
Learn Guitar
Build Dygres
Journaling
It’s a long and very ambitious list.
Let’s see how far I’ve come
Learning How To Learn
If you are going to learn something new
The first thing you need to learn is how to learn.
My very first newsletter on LinkedIn was called “Learning How To Learn.” This newsletter was an exploration and summation of a course I took on Coursera. The idea behind taking this course was to make my learning journey easier and, above all else, ensure that I did not lose or give up on the material I was striving to get better at.
The course taught me how the human brain learns and remembers new information, and how I can make that process easier and faster.
Because of this course, I managed to:
- Get certified in Financial Markets (Coursera certified).
- Get certified in Python (Coursera certified). I built multiple programs and am currently exploring computer vision and AI.
- Learn Django. I built a small-scale social media prototype.
- Learn French (J’étudie beaucoup le français). I achieved an A1 level on the CEFR.
- Get an AI certification (IBM certified).
- Learn web development (IBM certified).
Taking this one course helped me knock out 6 goals on my list, and all of that happened within the first half of the year.
Not a bad start.
Failure & Persistence
My third and eleventh newsletters focused on the concept of failure and persistence. The key takeaway was to embrace failure with a positive attitude rather than a defeatist mindset, and above all, to keep going no matter how many setbacks you face. These newsletters were partly inspired by my repeated failed attempts at sticking to a workout schedule and my inability to find success in some of my ventures.
I never intended to write about failure or persistence
But when you fail enough times
You start to question not just your approach but also your thinking and response to failure.
I asked myself:
Am I persistent because I am stubborn?
Or am I persistent because I know I can succeed if I adjust my approach?
Let me show you something.
I have had this goal since 2019
To work out consistently five days a week for 100 days.
Honestly, I have failed more times than I can count.
In October 2023, I decided to try again. I managed to stick to it for two weeks, but starting on November 6, I began missing days. Notice how it has a “1” after November 6—that “1” represents a missed workout session.
I tried hard to stay on track, but I kept missing days, and sometimes I missed entire weeks.
I did not give up, even though on the board it looks like I did. Instead, I started to analyze why I was failing and what I was doing wrong.
Was I doing too much?
Was I starting at the wrong time?
Was I too ambitious with my approach?
After a four-week reflection period beginning on February 19, I decided to eliminate my strict workout time block and focus on doing the day’s workout whenever I found a moment. I also rethought my overall approach and redesigned my exercise plan. I have since refined it to be even more effective, and every week I work out every muscle group in my body. My daily workout sessions are either an hour long or about an hour and twenty minutes, depending on the day. Weekends are reserved for cardio, since I spend a lot of time hiking or exploring my city. On average, I cover about 30 km on weekends, plus around 5 km each weekday.
On March 18, I implemented my new calendar (“NC” on the board). On July 29, I hit 100 consecutive days of working out without missing a day. I took it a step further and reached 150 days on October 7, and on December 16, I made it to 200 days.
The goal now is to reach 250 days!
Just Start and Just Do It
For as long as I can remember
I have had this entrepreneurial drive in me.
I have always wanted to do something of my own, regardless of the consequences or the challenges I would face. Some attempts have brought me wild success, while others have crashed and burned harder than the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs.
Over the years, I have avoided certain endeavors because I either considered them too difficult or felt I was not good enough. Yet every time I set out to do something, there was a voice in the back of my head telling me to try one of the things I constantly avoid.
This year I decided to Just Start and Just Do It.
I launched my one-person web development company sometime in the summer and struggled to get clients. No one wants to work with a company that does not have a portfolio, but through rigorous persistence and trying again and again, I managed to land clients. I currently have a roster of four that I am working with and two that have launched recently.
Happee Pants and J Laser Clinic are my latest deliveries.
happeepants.com are reusable potty training pants for children created by an entrepreneurial mom in Canada. Born out of a desire to create pants that are easy to clean, environmentally friendly, fashionable, light on the wallet, and rash-free, Happee Pants have found popularity with parents who want an alternative to diapers.
Be sure to check them out!
jlaserclinic.ca is a venture started by a woman obsessed with skincare. Born out of a desire to elevate the skincare and treatment game, J Laser uses high-quality equipment and Korean skincare products to offer services at competitive prices, with a dedication to the craft unlike anything I have ever seen. Launched recently, the brand has already seen raving reviews and a long waitlist of customers.
If you are in the Vancouver area, make sure to check them out.
If you had asked me two years ago whether I could see myself doing something like this, I would have scoffed at the idea and changed the subject.
Yet here we are.
The push for my web development company came from my conversations with entrepreneurs who were struggling to bring their visions to life. Having worked with more than 500 of them, from storyboarding their visions to filling out paperwork, I decided to offer web development as a way to help them get started and commit to building their products and services.
I am pretty proud of myself for stepping outside my comfort zone and committing to this.
It has paid the bills and helped me realize that life really can be Limitless.
Journaling & Emotional Resilience
I got into journaling in October 2023 as a way to deal with depression and trauma.
My writings and musings evolved as I learned to explore myself
Ask better questions, and even attempt to answer them.
One question that sparked most of what I have accomplished and attempted was a question on validation:
Do I need external validation to do what I want to do and continue doing what I am doing?
Believe it or not, the response to this question can either act as a barrier or a stepping stone to a new you.
If all your attempts rely on external validation, then you will find yourself frequently giving up or doubting everything you do.
I am not going to bore you with the last 365 pages of reflections from my journal.
Here is the key takeaway you need:
Whatever you do
Do it because you want to do it
And because it makes you happy.
Here is the impact of this thinking:
I started dygres, a YouTube channel where I create research-backed content and the occasional rant.
At first, I created content to test the waters, but a lack of validation made me give up for many months.
When I realized that I want to do this because I enjoy it
I started to create content that got thousands of views, and my channel jumped to 600+ subs.
Even more amazing: I got featured on local news.
If you happen to be cruising YouTube, I would appreciate it if you checked out dygres and dropped a like or subscribe.
Be An Unstable Genius
The way I see life now, after going through this extended period of self-reflection, refinement, and reinvention…
There are two ways to live your life.
One is the formulaic version, where you do what everyone else is doing
Maybe with your own twist:
Get a job, get married, have children, buy a house, lease a car, and so on.
There is nothing wrong with that.
Then there is what I call the Unstable Genius way.
Set everything and yourself on fire repeatedly.
Fail every single day.
Question every decision, every choice.
Reinvent yourself a thousand times.
Let no one and nothing slow you down or weigh you down.
Attempt to do it all.
We all get one life, and I see mine as a gift. I would rather spend it achieving the visions and dreams stuck in my head than spend another day slaving away, living a formulaic life.
Oh, and I did get hired at one of the Big 4 in a fully remote position, working with some of the most intelligent people I have ever met, and I get to do what I want.
I did not learn how to play the guitar this year, mostly because I overestimated my abilities, but I did learn how to play one song.
I also did not read 50 books this year, but I have read hundreds of articles and research papers to make my videos and better understand myself.
I still have a few days left before the year ends. I think I can learn to solve the Rubik’s Cube by then.
I only need to do it right once.
And finally, my white elephant: dygres, the social media platform.
I did not meet my goal of building it by the end of the year. To be transparent, I had promised myself that if I did not achieve this goal, I would shut the platform down.
But then again
I never gave it a fair shot.
One more try…
It’s what an Unstable Genius would do!
Publishing this newsletter completes my goal of 25 newsletters on LinkedIn, and if you managed to read my lengthy review of the year, then know that I truly appreciate you and am genuinely grateful for your time and support.
I wish you all success and happiness, and may the new year be in your favor!
You made it to the end. That means you liked it or you’re very patient. Either way, subscribe, share, and tell your friends. I need a big network for reasons.
For moving pictures and questionable facial expressions, check out YouTube @dygres.