2021 in a Nutshell

The last week of December is the perfect time for summing up the outcome of 2021 and setting New Year’s resolutions! So, I would like to follow my annual tradition, share a few thoughts on the past year, and commit to the goals I want to accomplish in 2022!

Things to Be Thankful for

Even though 2021 was a challenging year for the whole world, and there is still a lot of uncertainty in the air, I am very thankful for the past 12 months and excited about the upcoming year.

I had many great moments and learnings. And here are a few things I am thankful for:

• Getting incredible opportunities to develop myself. If I need to sum up 2021 in one sentence, that would be, “2021 was a year of learning”. I was learning from others, from mistakes and success. I started the year in a setting where I had to find quick solutions and learn how to make decisions fast, and be in an action mode 24x7. Things changed a little in the middle of the year, and I had to learn how to delegate, trust others, and support people when they struggled. At the end of the year, I tried my hands on high-level projects and worked with strategies. But I also realized I still had so much to learn.
• Flexibility in daily life. Most of us have been shifting from the office mode to “oh no, we need to stay home again.” I found it beneficial because I have adjusted my schedule in a way that allowed me to succeed with work and a few side projects, have quality time with my family, and get back to healthy habits.
• Opportunity to be close to loved ones. We met our families and friends only a couple of times this year, but it was the best experience we could have at these challenging times.
• Becoming more profound in thinking and setting emotions aside. This achievement happened only thanks to my mentor, who pointed out a small but crucial thing. I used to be very emotional when it came to specific topics, and my emotions could control reactions and actions. I learned how to set a “business mode” and be rational as much as possible.
• Becoming a better listener. Can you imagine how I was surprised to discover I am not perfect at listening, even though it is an essential part of my work life? My main problem was becoming so passionate about a topic that I would be impatient to share my thoughts with others. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always help build a productive conversation, and lately, I am trying to be quiet and listen to others more.

What things did you enjoy the most this year? What did you have a chance to learn?

Something to Improve

I am trying to be ambitious and set big goals every year. But, to be honest, I had never ticked all the boxes when I summed up the outcomes.

Perhaps, I have to work on my prioritization skills. However, I have been pretty lenient with myself lately and postponed some of the pursuits for the following year.

Few things I neglected, and I would like to improve in the next 12 months:

• Improve my writing skills and write every other week.
• Have a settled working out schedule and exercise every day.
• Read more books.
• Build up my network.
• Participate in public speaking activities.
• Meditate twice a day.
• Learn more about investing and balanced portfolios.

Sometimes, we could be demanding with ourselves. It is alright to be ambitious, but it is also ok to relax a bit and postpone some things.

New Year’s Resolutions

As I mentioned last year, I am a dreamer and like to start my goal-setting with crazy ideas. I won’t bore you with the categories of my development plan for the upcoming year. Instead, let’s dream together! Here are my silly and ambitious goals:

• Get closer to the stage “feel free as a bird.”
• Write a draft of my book.
• Visit places I dreamed about, such as Iceland, the UK, Norway, Japan, and the rest of the world.
• Get back to places I love, such as my parents’ house, Italy, Switzerland, New York, Los Angeles.
• Spend quality time with our families at least once a quarter.
• Bring together my lovely friends I haven’t seen for ages in one place and have one big memorable party.
• Get a coffee with at least one public person who inspires me.
• Go to at least two concerts.
• Read or listen to 33 books.
• Dance more.
• Help someone succeed with their dreams.
• Learn how to play accordion.

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To end up on a positive note, I want to share two essential ingredients of the happiest year. First, enjoy every single moment of your life and be thankful for all positive experiences. Second, remember that anything is possible as long as you put in some effort!

Happy New Year, friends!