How did you have fun this year?

A simple question to reflect on 2024.

Dec 27, 2024

As 2024 comes to a close, there are a lot of ways you can reflect on the past year.

You can think back on the big moments, review your calendar for the events that stand out, or check out your Spotify Wrapped and ask yourself, did I really listen to that much Sabrina Carpenter?

However, a friend of mine recently asked me a reflection question that I loved answering, so I thought I’d share it with you:

How did you have fun this past year?

To me, this is a wonderful way to frame the task of putting the past year in perspective. Because undoubtedly, you have experienced stress (and possibly trauma) over the last ~365 days. And it’s easy, and perfectly fair, to focus on those things.

However, you also laughed, smiled, and had at least a tiny bit of fun. So how did you do it? What were the moments that brought you joy? When do you recall laughing so much it almost hurt? How did levity light up your life?

By focusing on those positive experiences, two things happen:

First, you remember the positive moments, reminding yourself of the good you experienced.

I stressed quite a bit this year over business, the US election, and being the father to a toddler (there’s a fine balance between teaching your daughter how to set boundaries and then trying to brush her teeth and hearing her say, “No, Papa, stop! That is enough!”)

But I also had a tremendous amount of fun. Playing with my daughter has re-ignited my imagination, sense of play, and passion for Lego.

Second, you can be more intentional about experiencing joy.

By consciously thinking about the moments that you enjoyed, you can proactively create similar experiences going forward. Like now when my daughter is wondering, “what she would do,” I’m pretty quick to say, “should we build with Lego?”

So how did I answer the question, “how did you have fun in the past year?”

There are a few ways I could have answered. In addition to playing with my daughter, I also:

Played the NYT daily games each day. I’m great at Connections, not so great at the Friday and Saturday Crossword puzzles.
Watched Only Murders in the Building with Pretzel (my wife) as a way to wind down at night.
Implemented a “No meetings on Mondays” rule so I could start each week with space to plan and create.
Wrote stand-up about learning a new language (and performed comedy in Spanish for the very first time).
Started playing soccer (aka football aka futbol) more regularly.

But the one thing that came to mind when my friend asked me was… this.

Writing this newsletter.

For anyone who has been subscribed since before 2024, you know that I used to write a post sporadically at best. At one point, I went 14 months without sending any emails. I simply forgot, for over a year.

So at the beginning of the year, I gave myself a goal to write a weekly post. And now that it’s the end of the year, I can say: I did it!

Aside from a 2-week vacation I took in the middle of the summer, I’ve shared a new post every week. That’s 50 posts (including this one) bringing in 253,026 views. Well 253,027 with you reading this right now…

In the past year, we’ve covered:

And I have enjoyed writing each and every post. Each week, I get to explore an experience, topic, or feeling in a deeper way.

I can share insights on research on how to be more effective in our work, or recount the experience of giving a TEDx talk or Dry Bar special. I can share a behind-the-scenes look at what I’m up to or ask for your guidance on where to go next.

Then, after the post drops, I get to hear from you through the comments and replies, continuing the conversation beyond just my own ideas.

That to me has been the most fun, the growing community we have in like-minded people who simply want to get better results while having more fun.

So, as we wrap up 2024, I want to hear from you: how did you have fun this past year?

How did you have fun this year?

A simple question to reflect on 2024.

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