The Wanderer

New years is as good a time as any to do some reflecting. Yet another year has gone by and a lot has happened, and as the ground begins to harden and work winds down, we find ourselves returning home and looking back.

This time last year felt like a turning point. 2023 was a year of new beginnings. I had just moved to a new neighborhood and made new friends. I had found a way out of a bad situation at work and was beginning to burrow a little place for myself in this massive company. I had just started dating my girlfriend and things were new and scary at times, but it felt worth while to keep going. And I was finally prioritizing my health in a focussed manner I had never done before. Things were looking up. So I entered 2024 with truly concrete goals.

My biggest resolution was a cliche: I really wanted 2024 to be a year focused on working out. I wanted to live a healthier, more sustainable life to really set the foundations for the years to come. Now I had smaller challenges related to it, like 75 hard and running a marathon, but the general goal was to, by the end of the year, feel like a healthier, more mature individual.

Spoiler alert.

I didn’t run a marathon, and I didn’t complete 75 hard.

But does that mean 2024 was a failure? Absolutely not.

I started the year attempting 75 hard, this difficult, no impossible, goal to work out twice a day, drink a gallon of water, read 10 pages of a book, all without any alcohol. For many many reasons, I was not able to complete this challenge. I was traveling every week during this period of time, working up to 12 hours every day, with 2 flights a week. I simply did not have time for 2 45 minute workouts a day. And while everything else was fairly simple to incorporate into my day to day (like reading/writing and drinking water), I could not reasonably expect myself to complete a challenge like that in such a manner. That being said, it’s not impossible, in fact while I was doing it, 2 of my coworkers, who also traveled as much as I did, were able to complete the challenge. And more power to them, I have no idea how they did it.

But I learnt lessons from that experience. In my mind, a challenge like 75 hard is designed for people to make drastic changes to their day to day life, and take what works for them. There’s a reason the challenge isn’t called “365 hard” or “10 years hard.” It’s a trial period, and I used it as exactly that. I found that I liked working out often, that I loved to read and write before bed, that drinking a few bottles of water a day helped me focus, and that after a long week of traveling, I like to unwind with friends and have a few drinks.

After that first stint, I found a rhythm that worked, which I still continue to this day. I was able to set realistic goals that I keep me honest every day, like drinking water, eating 3 meals, and getting a workout in. But I was also able to give myself the grace I needed in hard times, allowing myself to fall to old habits within moderation, like eating ice cream, taking rest days, and going out to the bars with my friends.

And as these habits began to form, it felt like all the other parts of my life started to fall into place.

I found myself getting stronger and faster as the days went by. My running workouts would get longer and longer every week, culminating in the 15k I ran in November. It was my furthest run to date, and I was so excited to be able to complete such an immense achievement. It wasn’t a marathon by any stretch of the imagination, but it was a step in the right direction. Completing that 15k told me that the marathon wasn’t this impossible achievement, but something that is in reach. As long as I kept going, I would get there.

I got promoted at work and continued to grow, finding work that I enjoyed, that drove me to understand business in new ways, that challenged my abilities and allowed me to form new skills. I was able to create products that I’m proud of, build relationships that can stand the test of time, and carve out a path to more endlessly upwards.

I was able to dedicate more time to writing, and I was able to grow the blog and publish “The Stars In Her Eyes.” This novel was my more adventurous endeavor as a writer, it was a dream come true (literally), and the thing I am most proud of from this past year. I put my heart and soul into that book, and I can’t even begin to describe how thankful I am to everyone who read the book. From the bottom of my heart, thank you, and I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

And with all of this growth, I find myself always coming back to one person as the reason for it all. Life changes when you find someone truly meaningful, who pushes you forward, who makes you want to be a better person. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without you, and I’m so happy that I was able to spend this year with you.

So as we enter another year, and I reflect on the year we’ve had, this crazy, difficult, frustrating, intense, exciting, amazing, beautiful year we’ve had, I can say with the upmost certainty that I feel good moving into 2025. I’ve put in a lot of work to get this far, and we’re not even close to how good it’ll get. My professional, social, and physical aspirations are all building on the foundations I’ve made in the years before. And with every day I can feel myself getting closer and closer to my long term goals. So what’s my resolution coming into the new year?

To do business as usual.