2022 - Post-mortem - A Look Back

2022 is officially over, and it was a doozy. It held some of the highest highs and the lowest lows. While I won't go into details, I'm glad it's over.

It's funny how it's just another day, yet every year has the fresh air of optimism that this year will be better than the last. However, it wouldn't take much for this year to be better than the previous one. 

I'm still recovering from the flu I caught at Walt Disney World, so I didn't ring in the New Year with a celebration, choosing instead to try and wrap up some initiatives and start the year with a good night's rest.

Here's my original benchmark: (99+) Reflecting on 2021 Goals and Planning for 2022 | LinkedIn

Meal Planning:  ACHIEVED - Most weeks, I have prepared meals in place. I'm trying a few different methods this upcoming year, such as freezer meals and scheduling different meals for dinner, so I'm not eating the same meal three times in the same week. (Yes, I love chipotle shrimp fajitas, but 3x a week can be a bit much.) Those methods will be a short-term initiative and not a tracked goal.

Steps Goal:  ACHIEVED / Reduced Goal - I reset my goal to 4k a day after a challenging first 3/4 of a year. (2022 was a hot mess). 2021 averaged 3,661 in 2021 to 4,595 in 2022. I'm sure doing 20k+ days at Disney World helped. It's how I managed to eat nearly non-stop at Epcot and maintain weight.

Meal tracking:   FAILED - This is a failure again this year, and I'm not surprised. I'm trying an Excel spreadsheet to track my goals this year, so I can see it in multiple places in real time if I fail. Good times.

Networking:  ACHIEVED - Note: I need more consistent follow-ups with people I meet. 

Self Care: ACHIEVED - I'm planning all the places I'll go to and things I'll see and do for 2023. Frankly, it's made me a better person. Prioritizing self-care has been a game-changer.

Career:  My commitment to branding and developing thought leadership for 2022. The specific tactics or KPIs I put into place were as follows:

1. Post every day. - ACHIEVED - There was a week or two of downtime, but I posted for the entire year outside of that. Except for when I couldn't schedule any more posts due to HootSuite limits, my postings ended while I was on vacation. It's fine. No small children will die because I stopped posting for a week or two. I'm changing from HootSuite to another provider that will better fit my needs because I can't have it slowing my goals.
2. Write one article per week. - FAILED* - "The cadence needs to be met, but I may still achieve the 54 articles before the end of the year." I posted nearly every day, trying to catch up. Then I sent my laptop for repair and could not post for a week. Then my vacation hit, and I was at Walt Disney World from the time the hotel shuttle dropped me off until near closing every day (because after closing was too expensive for rideshare). I still did about 1/2 of the articles, which was more than I did the year prior, which was zero.
3. Film 1x per month. - ACHIEVED - I've put out well over 12 videos this year. I haven't counted, but I know it's been more than 12 by a landslide.
4. 7,500 followers - Achieved around the first of December. This was harder than I thought it would be and took a lot of studying and experimentation.

Looking at my vision board, I achieved everything except passive income and getting into a relationship. I'm building foundations, so I'm not worried. As for getting into a relationship, the first 3/4 of the year wasn't conducive to getting into one due to several challenges. Relationships are challenging enough when everything is going well. During the last few months of the year, I focused on achieving pushed goals and physically recovering from unexpected setbacks. The timing was awful for it. There's always this year. Besides, I'm having a great time, regardless. I'm also a firm believer in intentionality, so...

I decided to celebrate the overall tough year by going to Walt Disney World for my birthday/Christmas present to myself.

Because if not now, when?

I rationalized that it's probably harder to be sad in the happiest place on Earth. (I was right - although another Disney attendee said it's easy to be sad once the money runs out. He was Asian, too. I love that about my people.) After a year like 2022, the holidays were tough.

I dealt with life-changing challenges and came out on the other side, only to lose my best friend, my little brown dog, who was there for it all. Watching her get older and frailer was tough. Every vet visit was new bad news; frankly, I wasn't ready to let her go when I did. Then I went back to work the next day. I still fall apart randomly, and it's been four months.

I'm grateful for the opportunity to start anew. It's also fair to say it has changed me, for better or worse. 

But I was a caring grizzly for 2022 (my theme), and I'm tossing around some themes for 2023. I spent more time being courageous this year and having difficult conversations (not fun). I can still improve, but I'm proud of my achievements.

I've used themes for the year for most of my life. It's my go-to when I need clarification about what to do. I think of the one sentence and use it as my guiding light for decisions. I'll be thinking about that in the next few days as I hammer out my goals for the upcoming year. 

Also, I placed as a semi-finalist in Stage 32's Screenwriting contest for "Everything Changes." Having a group of fellow writers whom I can bounce ideas off of, who will come and help me out at the last minute with a tire change during the writer's mecca, and who help me turn the lowest moments in my life into comedic gold, it's priceless. Of course, this means that one day 2022 will pay handsomely because there were many low moments. There were so many that I don't know how I survived.

I love that they allow me to share my original off-beat perspective with a laugh. "That's Victoria!" I have dealt with people trying to silence me for much of my life. In some ways, it's understandable. I can be quite a talker. I'm grateful to have people I respect because of their compassion and intellect appreciate my quirkiness while helping me become a better writer and, consequently, human. 

I graduated from #GirlsClub sales leadership program when I couldn't get into my company's program, too. All while dealing with setbacks. I am so proud of myself and grateful that I was redirected to meet an industry full of lovely, ambitious women and male allies who put their efforts where their beliefs lie. While I was initially upset that things happened the way they did, I'm glad they did. It reminds me of the saying, "Go where you're celebrated, not tolerated." There's always more than one way to get where you're going.

I learned some tough lessons these last couple of years. Many were painful. I now have some of the most incredible people to call friends and unforgettable memories to reflect upon. For that, I'm truly grateful.

Happy 2023, y'all. 

#victoriableading