Now that 2019 comes to an end, it is time to reflect and make plans for the new year.
Looking back
All in all 2019 was a very turbulent year for me.
Someone very close to me was diagnosed with cancer at the beginning of the year. After many different treatments and nerve-racking scan results, we have recently gotten the dreadful news that he will not recover. It is heartbreaking to experience and naturally left a big mark on last year.
On the other hand, and this is something that continues to feel very weird, I am very happy with most of the other things that happened last year.
I've started a new job and can now safely say it was a very good decision. Meeting new people, getting to know the software they build and learning about the business was great. It was good to get out of my usual rut.
My free time was also full of fun stuff. I've cooked many new recipes (seitan, falafel, gyoza dumplings, etc), ran further than I ever did and spent lots of quality time with friends and family.
All these things gave me lots of energy and some much-needed distraction. It definitely is a year of mixed emotions.
Plans for 2020
My biggest goal for last year was to "do new things" and that was a pretty good general rule of thumb. I see no reason to change that goal for next year and these are some specific things that I want to do:
- Every month I want to do a "theme" and change things up. In January I will not watch any rugby, something that regularly fills my evenings. Instead, I want to read more and work on my blog.
- Read new books from new authors. I've been reading lots of series and it's beginning to get boring.
- Create version 2.0 of this blog that is easier to maintain.
- Create a new website with some of my favorite recipes.
- Give a conference talk? This one scares me a bit but it might be good to get out of my comfort zone.
- Learn more about coaching and helping teams grow.
- Blog about less technical topics such as giving feedback, making a development plan, interviewing new colleagues.
- Run a 30K trail run, I've already enrolled as long as I don't get injured this should be fine :)