What did 2023 do for you?

Another year is almost over, its the end of December and as always its a time of reflection, with many people sharing what they have learned or achieved throughout the past year, and planning what they want to achieve in the next.

I was going to do just that, as I have had almost a year with easyJet, working with some amazing people, a fantastic management team, and I have had some experiences that were only possible through working here.

But, I wanted to take a different look at things this year, and instead consider those who have really found 2023 to be a struggle, where surviving until this point has felt like climbing Everest, and just managing to cope with juggling all of life’s demands each day counts as a win.

This isn’t meant to make anyone else feel bad for sharing their highlights – we’re all different and think of things in a variety of ways. This is a personal choice to step back a little before posting (probably the first time I have done so) which has caused me to change totally what I had planned.

Reading up on other people’s successes should be something we do with joy in our hearts, to celebrate with them their achievements, without comparing ourselves and feeling inadequate. The problem is that as humans we are very good at comparing ourselves to others – I do it a lot. I look and think ‘how do they have time to do all of that, AND work as well?’. It makes me feel like I should be doing more, but its not their intention to make me feel that way, its the way my brain works.

So, I decided to flip it round and asked myself am I happy with what I have achieved, without comparing myself to others, and the answer is YES, I have had a good year. Is it as good as I wanted? Have I done everything I would have liked? Has it been relatively stress free? Not entirely but things never do pan out as intended. Its one of the reasons I try not to do new year resolutions, as its adds pressure where I don’t need it! Do I feel as though I have achieved something, progressed in my career, in my learning, public speaking and networking? Yes I do, and for that I feel really fortunate.

It makes such a difference to focus just on ourselves. Why not try it now. Are you happy with what you achieved? Not comparing yourself to others, just looking at you. If you are, then that’s great, but if not, this is a good chance to look at your year and reflect on what happened and why. Circumstances may have conspired to block your plans, life may have just taken over, your priorities changed, maybe you had health or work struggles – and that’s fine, as life is complicated, it’s a journey and it is never constant. You may be overlooking some of your smaller wins though so could it be time to get them out and reflect on them? A win is a win after all.

There is no need to compare what you did against other people – our lives and commitments are all different, so comparison makes no sense (so why do we do it I wonder??).

Looking ahead to 2024 can seem daunting, so one thought I had is to have some high level goals as a destination, and build in some smaller goals as stopping points along the way, as you would do on a long journey. That way they can be adapted as things change, and the smaller goals become some of the wins for 2024. Remember that everybody’s wins are different, some are big and some are small (it really does not matter), so take that win and move on with a smile.

What will I do? Take my own advice for once, and stop comparing myself to others. That’ll be a challenge for me, but one I know I need to do.

Here’s to success in 2024, whatever that looks like for you and I.

Thanks for reading, I wish you a Happy New Year.