Why 2020 was a fantastic year for me!

Let’s be honest 2020 has been a horrible year for many. But as it turns out it was actually a good year for me. I’m posting this now as I hope that someone who reads this can take it as inspiration to do something meaningful before the end of the year. I have a few things to work on before the end of the year, so maybe I can add to this list at the turn of the year.

1. Learnt Python in my free time and applied it in my new job

At the start of the year when I was out of a job, I focused on learning Python. This was something I was keen to use because I believe it is the future for the industry I am currently working in. For those that don’t know, Python is a programming language. So you can write some code, run it, and it will generate an output. I was also learning SQL, both from free online courses, Udemy and Coursera.

There are many reasons why this was good for me. Not only was I learning something that I could use later in life, but it was very relevant to my present since I was applying for job roles earlier this year. This gave me something to talk about in interviews and demonstrate my desire to learn. I also completed a project in Python in my new job recently and my colleagues were very impressed with my work. What seemed like a minor thing to do for an hour a day actually turned into something quite big.

2. Got a job

As I mentioned earlier, at the start of the year I was jobless. Having gone through a really hard time facing many job rejections I was feeling pretty low in January. But I was able to pick myself up, complete some courses I outlined above and work on my interview skills. I started getting more face to face interviews and with some extra confidence I got a job in March. If you want to read more about my job and the journey of how I got it you can read: I started a new job under lockdown – my thoughts

3. Cleared my debt and overdraft

Following on from getting a job, by the time I actually settled in and received my first paycheck I was well into my overdraft. Not only this but I had owed my family some money. In some ways the pandemic has meant I have been able to save a lot more money by staying at home. Within a couple of months of working I was able to get out of my overdraft and pay back my family. Financial pressure is actually quite taxing on the mind (pardon the pun) and it relieved some of my stress. I am now saving my money in various ways!

4. Started investing

So now that I’ve started saving money into my savings account I’ve realised that I’m not actually achieving any income with the currently low interest rates. So I decided to do some research into investing. This started from reading a book on how to select shares that fit into your personality type. Whilst this was an interesting read, I wasn’t comfortable paying money into single companies at this stage. So instead I started reading online about funds, which are a collection of shares. I decided to invest a portion of my salary into 8 different funds, diversifying my risk. I’m not an expert but I did my research and it all started from reading a book. Investing is usually done with a long term view and I’m aiming to invest for at least 5 years.

5. Taking more care to think of the future

The first 4 things have been quite materialistic and easy to talk about. However one of the more positive things to come out of this year is a slight change in mindset. Before I was very focused on the present, trying to make the most of my time. But this meant I was hurting my future self. An easy way to look at this is financially. I would spend a lot on a night out or on a holiday, but then I suffered in the future because I’d be out of a job for a long time and would run out of money. Now I am more careful to save. This is also the case for relationships or at work, speaking out when you don’t agree with something. Otherwise you just suffer later down the line.

6. Realigned my goals

I made some 5 year goals quite a while back and they weren’t very specific or realistic goals. The most specific was to buy a Lamborghini. Whilst I haven’t given up on that dream I’ve changed my goals to be more achievable and almost adult like. So instead of “Buy a Lamborghini”, I have, “Save over £50k for a deposit on a house”. My other goals are: to qualify as an Actuary, work abroad for some time, have my first boxing/kick boxing fight and start vlogging more regularly.

7. Improving my blogging

I blogged my Nepal trip quite well last year I thought, although after having got back from Nepal I didn’t have much to talk about. However I brainstormed a few topics and started blogging again. Not anything specific but whatever I wanted to write about at the time. This then gave me the freedom to experiment and more crucially work on my writing skills. I think my writing skills have improved somewhat and this helps when writing professional letters or emails. I hope to be able to couple my blogs with vlogs in the near future.

8. Gained video editing skills

I’ve been working on a couple of videos this year. A quick one that I did and uploaded was about my first solo trip around North India. You can watch the video on my YouTube channel here: My first ever SOLO trip! Some things I still need to work on are transitions and thumbnails. And if I do start vlogging the improvements will need to be on how I capture footage and my confidence. However that’s still further down the line.

9. Improving myself incrementally

Another mindset change was the idea of improving myself incrementally. This applies to pretty much everything from skills to relationships. You cannot expect to become amazing at something overnight. I’ve already spoke about learning Python and Video Editing which are two examples of where this applies.

I’ve realised by working on something just an hour each day you can achieve something great in a month’s time or a year’s time. Maybe you can use this concept for a skill you want to develop, or a goal you want to achieve? I hope you can gain some motivation to do something meaningful before the end of the year!