2011 - The Reflective

It has been a while since I have sat down to write, so I figure what better time than now to look back on the last year, and just as importantly, look forward to the next year. So here goes.

From 2011: Things I have done/am proud of.

- Moved to a new country: This is obvious. Having been accepted to Manchester Business School, I wrapped up my 4.5 years at Jackson, packed my bags, and jumped the pond. This is the first time since I lived in Australia I have been so far from home. It has been the adventure of a lifetime. And there is still 15 months left, it will be amazing to see where it goes.

- Ran 26.2 Miles. That is a marathon. And more importantly, I trained for the marathon. That was the challenge of the marathon, not the race, but the training. The dedication of running 2-3 times a week (ideally, more!) But it taught me a lot, the perseverance of it all. And I am like many marathoners, excited for the next one.

- Acted Academic. That is right mom and dad, I have been a student. And a good one, or at least I think so! I have studied for tests, I have attended classes (over 90%), and busted my ass on projects. And I have enjoyed it. Who know, being a student isn't all that hard. Working hard for classes doesn't kill you. I just need to keep that momentum into 2012

- Watched Every episode of Glee. And Merlin, and countless other shows. Hey, we all need an escape, and as a result, I have become a gleek.

- Made new friends from every corner of the globe. That is the nice thing about MBS. We are from everywhere. And everyone there is amazing in their own right, and it has been amazing to learn from them.

- I got engaged. Yep, this is the most important thing I have done in all of 2011, and can't be happier. I have found the woman that supports me and completes me. I would not survive in school, overseas, running marathons or anything else without Kathryn's support. And I hope (and she says I do) that I am half as strong for her as she is for me.

That is just the highlights for last year, and what a great year it was. From the move, to the MBA, to Kathryn, I couldn't have planned out a better year. But here is my attempt, my plans for 2012.

- Blog More. It is easier to find excuses than to sit down to write. I sometimes think more about the people reading than myself writting. But blogging for me is helpful, and even a bit therapeutic. It helps me process thoughts. It helps me learn from what I am doing. MBS talks about self reflection as a part of the learning process, and I believe that. I have done that to an extent, but I want to use this avenue to further it. I hope you find it interesting, but if you don't, I hope that I continue to find it helpful. Until the latter changes, I will keep at it.

- Study my ass off. I have 15 more months to go. It won't be an easy journey. But it will be an enriching year though. It will be a fun challenge, but a challenge none the less.

- Do what I need to do. This relates to Kathryn. I need to bust my ass in school, so I can get the job I want so we can start our life together. And after spending the last 2 weeks with her over break, I couldn't be more excited. Talk about strong motivation.

- Run more. And track my running better. I have marathon number 2 set up for April 29th, in Manchester. I have a full 4 months to train (better than 2!) I want to keep up the running more after the race too. I love running, but once again, it is easier to find excuses than to lace up the shoes. I have new shoes, cold weather gear, and new excitement for it this year. And lots of runner friends. Now it is just a matter of keeping it up.

- Live healthier. This goes hand and hand with the running. Go to the gym more, eat better, and balance the lifestyle. Now that I am not interested in drinking every night of the week, it is time to take the next step to a healthier living. I took out a lot of the bad, but never have added all the good, so that is my goal for this year,.

- Find an internship. My goal is to work for a consulting firm, and I have an application out there already. But I need to bust my ass, balance everything else, and commit to researching a whole lot of internships. I will, going back to blogging more, talk about the trials, tribulations and experience of finding one.

- Read another 5 books. Ideally, I would like it to be 10. I read about 15 last year, between fiction and non fiction. Jumping around books for fun and books on business and human behavior. I would raise the number, but I know that will be a challenge with studying. After school, the number will be at least 1 a month. But for now, 5 is a good goal.

- Work on goal setting. I have never been good at it. I have never put anything down, all though I have thought about it in the past. I have laid out maps in my mind, but nothing more than that. I am never going to make a specific goal based on a potential, yet volatile outcome. But doing something like this, will help me on this step.

- Continue my pledge and challenge I laid out to other people. Learn something new every day, and continue to go out of my way to do something nice for other people. This, in my opinion, is what is wrong with our world. People get complacent and don't treat other people with respect. If we can change that, just imagine what will happen in the world.

- Stay in contact with people better. I have to make a better effort to keep in touch with people. I have to make the effort, I am the one over seas (out of sight, out of mind, if you will.) And this is more than just my close friends. This is the old coworkers at Jackson, old business relationships, and people that helped me and touched me in my life.

Well, there it is. There was 2011, and a set of goals for 2012. This is not all I will be working on, but gives me some ideas, some points of reference for the next year. It will be added to, and subtracted from. But over all, I know it will be an amazing year.