December 31st finally has come! I love taking the time to review my year to actually take in what I accomplished (and didn’t!) in one year. I decided to split it in 3 categories for 2016: Work, Travel and Lifestyle.
Work
It was definitely a great year for me! I’ve been working with the same two clients I’ve had for 3 years now. The projects were exciting, demanding and forced me to learn new things which is sooo important! I was also picked to join Crew which helps bring some peace of mind for slow periods. I’m able to work with smaller clients on fun projects, mostly with WordPress and Shopify.
In June, I decided to make WeWork my new office and it was probably the best decision I made for 2016. Having an office downtown now forces me to get out of the house and commute for at least 80 minutes roundtrip which gets me moving even on very busy days. It feels great to be surrounded with people even if I don’t necessarily have the time (or energy as an introvert) to chat.
In November, I traveled to Lisbon to attend the Web Summit for the first time. It was such a great event and I got to catch up with people I don’t see enough in Montreal.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQ_bZoVkO_w?list=PLeAHLDGM1oyfFgEFKozWQVJiQPjuRcXgt]
Work Plans for 2017?
Go back to Lisbon for another Web Summit in November.Get an iMac for my office and keep my laptop for remote trips as I feel it would increase my productivity.Get an iPhone (ugh) to be able to fully QA my websites as Android seems to be playing nicer.Go to Toronto for 2.5 months to complete a course in UX design.
Travel
March Dominican RepublicApril TorontoJune/July New Orleans and FloridaSeptember Prince Edward CountyOctober IcelandNovember London, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Oslo and FaroDecember St. John’s
I’m super happy with my year of traveling! I rested a little bit in Dominican Republic and Iceland as I had to leave my computer behind. New Orleans, Amsterdam and Oslo were cities I really wanted to see for a long time and I finally got there!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OZeuyTMH2k]
Travel Plans for 2017?
I’m leaving on January 11th for one month in Tulum, which I’m so excited about!I would love to make it to Lake Louise, Cape Town, Bali and Colorado in the next 12 months.In general, I just hope I can do more slow travel with at least one month per stop with a total of at least 6 months away.
Lifestyle
I can’t say I’m happy or disappointed with my lifestyle choices for 2016. I have done several tests with my nutrition over the year after losing control on my weight. I don’t believe in eating a strict diet, whether it’s low carb, gluten free or paleo.
I think I have reached a pretty solid diet that is made of whole foods, delicious drinks (if you don’t know what a Golden Latte is, you’re missing out!) and also having treats when you want them. It’s funny because I did a Juice Cleanse from Freshii with my partner yesterday just to compare and it made me feel like sh*t. It just shows that when you eat right, you don’t need to restrict yourself.
Training wise, it was a decent year until my Euro trip in November. I wanted to travel light with my carry on and computer bag so I gave up on training gear and it hurt even if I was out everyday discovering new places. I also ended up being sick for a full month when I got back to Montreal so I couldn’t make it to Crossfit once.
As for my living situation, I am super excited about it! I bought a new condo (due for 2018) in July and listed my current condo for sale in October. The sooner I sell it, the better as it will give me the budget to rent places in other cities while I travel.
Finally, the biggest change in 2016 was that I finally got my driver’s permit! It’s really opening new doors to me.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dqW4-Ragj0&w=560&h=315]
Lifestyle Plans for 2017?
Get a normal gym membership so I can workout whenever I want to and make my own programs (which will still include Crossfit wods but also strength training).Keep eating right, including a lot of poke bowls, homemade bone broth and Intermittent Fasting.Find a way to drive regularly to be more comfortable when I do. I was thinking of joining Car2go!
—
So how has 2016 been for you? Any plans for the new year? Have fun tonight and be safe <3
Leave a Reply