In past years I’ve done a summary of lessons learned. I thought it might be appropriate to write down some of the lessons I’ve learned in 2023. Some of these are craft, but most of them are life lessons.

1. It is never a bad thing to learn about yourself.
2. Listen. When all else fails, if you set yourself aside and listen, you will learn what you need to know.
3. Listening is more than just hearing with your ears. Body language and tone speak louder than words.
4. When I have something to show, I want to just announce it, then go hide in the shadows.
5. If in doubt, I need to just step up and advocate for change. Large or small, personal or professional, written or in person.
6. The stories that you’ve been told, all have a bias based on your relationship to the teller.
7. When I take on too much, rest is my best option.
8. Taking the pressure off, sometimes means resetting my goals, and reprioritizing.
9. Sometimes, what I perceive as a failure on my part, has nothing to do with me, and everything to do with circumstances beyond my control.
10. What bothers me with micromanagement, is sometimes needed and desired by others.
11. When you get the chance, take time to watch the sunrises and sunsets. Close your eyes, feel the air on your skin, and bask in the glow.
12. We all need more margin in our lives.
13. Nobody hears the stories I tell myself but me. Unless I write them down and share them. The most brutal stories I will never share, and those are probably not the ones I should listen to.
14. Sometimes, the best thing you can do for others, is to get them together.
15. Letting go of former friends is sometimes necessary. Choose people who want to spend time with you, without asking for anything in return.
16. Read. In whatever form (physical, ebook, audiobook) and in whatever genre you choose (fiction, non-fiction, biographies, news articles). Read for fun, read for enjoyment, read to learn. Read because you’re interested. If you’re not, but still learning, keep with it.
17. The ideas worth chasing, are still chasing me.

Happy New Year!