2024
Happy New Year! I hope 2025 brings you joy and prosperity as we enter the second quarter of the century.
Some highlights from last year:
Graduating from the University of Pennsylvania with a Master of Applied Positive Psychology
Being admitted to Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management where I will start my MBA next week
Traveling to South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia where I took my first helicopter ride, over Victoria Falls, and tried paragliding, over Cape Town
Going back to Germany to reconnect with my host families and friends while enjoying the Christmas Markets
Visiting Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi for the first time, bringing my state total to 49. I aim to check off 50 with a trip to Alaska in a few months.
Road tripping with a friend from grade school I hadn't seen in over 3 years
Taking 56 flights, averaging to more than 1/week
Building some initial savings towards the island
While all those activities were very meaningful and I wouldn't change a thing, my habits definitely suffered amongst the busyness this past year. If you haven't read past years' posts, I use this quantiative record to factor in against how I feel my life is going qualitatively. I list each number compared to 2023.
8+ hours sleep (58%, down from 63%)
Average “sleep debt” of 8.4
Brief sun salutations (67%, down from 83%)
Mindful breathing exercises (42%, down from 78%)
Averaged 7 minutes/day, down from 12 minutes/day
Tea (73%, down from 82%)
Workout (45%, down from 58%)
Going into 2025, I am going to focus most on recommitting to exercise and mindful breathing and aim to get those up even beyond 2023 numbers. I am also trying to run a mile everyday as I figure out what is next for my running goal, which should help me workout more consistently.
Although I enjoy traveling, I also plan to fly significantly less this year, perhaps taking as few as half as many flights. This is partially due to some recent external changes which help my life be more Chicago centric but also serves to help me focus on the daily work needed to reach some longer term goals such as completing my MBA, finishing off my student debt and saving for the island.
What goals do you have for the new year? I'd love to hear where you are at in your own life journey!
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Photo is a wall inside the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. They designed the walls using all sorts of wave models and tests to ensure the best sound for each of the two concert halls.
