Reflections on 2021

The start of the year is a great opportunity to reflect on the year gone by and look forward to the journey ahead. No matter what you’ve been through this previous year, there is always something to celebrate, new things to learn and opportunities to grow.?

At the end of 2019, I wrote an article on my reflections which I still look back on now in awe of how much I achieved during that time. I regretfully didn’t do the same at the end of 2020, for many reasons I’m sure it is a year many of us would prefer to forget; but I may revisit this as it’s from our lowest moments that we often learn the most.

Today, I’m going to focus on reflecting on 2021 and looking forward to 2022. I’ve decided to use this Squiggly Career's podcast as inspiration with their 7 self-reflective questions as a guide for this post.

Looking back, the one word I would use to sum up the year is Transition. While dealing with the effects of the pandemic, the move towards a hybrid work paradox and the experience of relocating from the United Kingdom to the Netherlands; it's been a year of transition. Bookended by two lockdowns and a move in the middle, life has felt like a bit of rollercoaster but it's been an incredible year to opportunity to learn, grow and be grateful.

Here are my 7 self-reflections of 2021.

1.?What’s the memory that will last the longest

A memory which lingers is my first day at Microsoft Netherlands. Having worked for Microsoft for the last 6 years, while I wasn't starting in a new company, starting in a new subsidiary was like beginning a new chapter. Like a kid on their first day at school, I was nervous and excited at the same time. While I didn't have the full in-person onboarding experience with our new office not fully open to staff, I was able to visit to collect my new device. Stepping into the building for the first time initially felt like I was visiting one of our many Microsoft offices around the world but this one would become my new base. Eager to make new connections, I'd made plans in advance to meet new colleagues for coffee, lunch and dinner. It was these physical moments which made that first day so memorable, a challenge with those virtually on-boarding over these last two years.

2.?What has surprised you over the last year

What has surprised me this year has been my ability to let go of perfect. From socializing plans, drafting communications to creating presentations; all tasks that my perfectionist mindset had me over thinking and spending far too much time on. The pursuit of perfection is very time consuming and at some point we reach a point of diminishing returns. This year, I've been able to shift that mindset to become less perfect at some things, giving me more time to focus on other things that are more important.

3. What have you found the hardest

After 6 years, my family and I made the decision to leave the UK to move to the Netherlands and begin a new chapter in our lives. While we not unfamiliar with the process of relocating abroad, with this being our fourth international move, for some reason this transition felt harder than any other.?Packing up our lives, saying goodbye to friends, finding a new job, settling into a new school and workplaces, establishing a new home, adjusting to cultural differences, learning a new language and making new friends; with most things that get easier each time you do them, this one seems to get harder. And doing it during a pandemic hasn't helped. But we're getting there.

4. What mistake have you made and what have you’ve learnt

As a problem solver, one of the mistakes I often make is trying to do everything myself. While I may feel capable of doing it all, it's not the most effective way of getting things done. Asking for help can be difficult but it's a great way to share the load, benefit from the experience of others and work as a team. As the old African proverb goes, “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

5. What have you experimented with for the first time

One of the techy things I experimented with for the first time was PowerApps. PowerApps is a great low-code-no-code tool for getting an application up and running in a short time. After leading a Hackathon in 2020, I used the idea and built a UK Speaker Bureau PowerApp to create a searchable repository of diverse speakers for our UK executive briefings and events. The experiment was not only useful, but it also had me recognized for a Microsoft global marketing award for Innovation!

Using my newfound tech skills, I went on to create Wellbeing Challenge PowerApp within 3 hours which was used by over 90+ people in our UK Marketing and Operations (M&O) team over 4 weeks and recorded up to 1200 entries of daily wellness activities. If you’re interested in experimenting with PowerApps yourself, head to https://make.powerapps.com/ .

6. How have you grown

A big area of growth has been learning to say no. Or unlearning how to say yes. Being agreeable had been ingrained in me for so long, it was hard to let go. Books like Essentialism made me realize that it is important to say no, so that you can say yes when it matters. As a diffusion of energy occurs when you spread yourself across too many things, it's more effective to channel this into fewer things in order to have greater impact. Having clear goals and objectives helps provide clarity on the the activities that will achieve this and those that won't.

7. What are you most looking forward to

While 2021 has been a tough year of transition, I’m incredibly optimistic about the future. My word for 2022 is Discovery as a learn more about the Netherlands, the industry, our customers, my peers and myself.

Have you spent time on self-reflection this year?