Life in 2022 was full of both excitement and uncertainty. Safe to say it was an eventful year for many, including myself. While the world changed in major ways, I also saw my own life progress in amazing ways – both professionally and personally. In this blog post, I’ll be reflecting on my progress and sharing some of the lessons I learned from looking back at 2022.
In May & June, I failed 2 driving tests in 1 major both times
I failed my driving test twice in a row. It’s been such a frustrating experience as the first time around, I failed; it was due to a piece of advice given to me by my driving instructor in a mock test just the day before. The situation was that I was approaching a give-way line, and as I could not see to the left and right clearly, I stopped; however, the car driving behind me was driving so close to me that the driver had to suddenly break, causing me to gain one major in that mock test. My instructor then gave me the advice saying, “if I can see, even if it was a give-way line, just go anyway”, and I did exactly that the next day in my practical test and failed. The give-way line I failed in my practical test was more visible to me than the give-way line in the mock test. I stopped learning with this instructor instantly. The second time I failed was due to the friendly examiner chatting to me about his dog, which caused me to lose focus as I didn’t want to be rude – this was my fault!
Despite the setbacks, I’m determined to keep trying until I get it right. The most important thing is that I don’t give up – which is why I’ve already scheduled another test which was supposed to be on September 2022, but then some idiot crashed into my car while it was parked attempting to run away. It was a whole other drama causing my car to be written off and having to buy a new car, but I didn’t let him get away with it, and he got arrested.
In June, I received a promotion and a pay raise at work
I got a promotion and a pay raise at work! It’s been such an amazing journey over the past few years of hard work, and I feel proud of all I’ve achieved. I acted as a Digital Marketing Manager since the beginning of January 2022, but due to the business review taking place in June, this is when it officially reflected formally.
In December, I received 2 job offers
I received two job offers in December! It’s been such a whirlwind month of November juggling job applications, a full-time job, a master’s degree and attending a few interviews, but I feel incredibly lucky that both opportunities came my way.
Both companies that I was offered the jobs at are companies with great missions; however, I went with the company that I was more drawn to culturally as well as the scope of the role. I’ll start my new job in mid-January, and I am super excited to start the year with a positive change.
I now have fewer but closer friends
Having fewer friends isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Over the last few years, I lost some friends I’ve known for decades and formed stronger connections with new friends I’ve made more recently. Instead of having a lot of acquaintances, I’ve chosen to focus on quality friendships with people who share the same values as me and don’t drain my energy.
In my current friendships, no matter how far apart we are or how often we message each other, our relationships remain strong because of the trust and respect we have for each other. We don’t need endless conversations or check-ins every day to stay connected – instead, it’s all about being there when needed without any expectations attached. This has made my life much more fulfilling as I can count on those close friends whenever things get tough.
I continued to set boundaries
I have always had boundaries in my personal life, but more recently, I started setting boundaries professionally too. It hasn’t been easy, but it has helped uncover the things I was blinded to. I think it’s really important for us not to tolerate any kind of toxicity in our workplace. No one should ever feel stuck or powerless when standing up for themselves. It’s important to speak up, but when your concerns are not being listened to, regardless of trying, this is when you know it’s time to move on.
