5 Things I Learned About Life In 2022

Every year on new years eve, I always contemplate my experiences and learnings for the year.

It’s been a year full of ups and downs and lots of experimenting, particularly with changing and creating habits.

Having said that, I feel it’s worth sharing what I’ve learned in case any reader gets some benefit from it.

Here are seven things I learned about life in 2022.

#1 Creating powerful habits can change your life

Ever since I read the book “Atomic Habits” in 2021, I have been determined to find a way to start building good habits on a daily and weekly basis.

I first downloaded an app called “YourHabit” on my phone and started to add simple habits to complete every week.

Here are some examples of habits I started to practice

Gratitude Journaling — 3x a week
Write a Medium Article — once a week
Read a book/listen to a podcast on personal development — 3x a week
Visualisation meditation — twice a week
Gym workout — twice a week

It was easy to complete at first. I even get a virtual celebration confetti on the app when I complete my habit tracker by the end of the week, which is an incredible feeling.

I then started to increase the reps slowly. Sometimes I hit them. Other times, I miss the mark due to life getting in the way.

What’s important is that I get back up and try again when I have a failed habit week.

I always try to ensure these habits don’t stress me out.

After one year of tinkering and creating new habits, I’ve become more confident, knowing I can change my life.

Even if it’s one tiny step at a time.

#2 Our quality of sleep can determine your level of motivation

Sleep was the biggest challenge for me last year.

I realised that the poorer my sleep, the less energy and motivation I have to do the things that help me reach my yearly goals

Based on my research, there were new habits I had to incorporate to make sure I got the best sleep possible.

Make sure I don’t drink caffeine past midday
Avoid screen time 1 hour before bed (This is the hardest)
Wear sure the room is dark
Use sleep masks
Use meditation music to help get to sleep (auto shutdowns after 30min)

These habits, however, don’t happen all the time since I reward myself every Friday and Saturday night for either a movie night with the family or a gaming night for myself.

So I usually use these habits from Monday to Friday to enjoy my rewards. But I sleep early on Sundays, which helps me prepare for the upcoming work week.

#3 Marriage requires consistent work, especially after ten years

You can skip this part if you’re not married or don’t plan to be involved with a partner for the rest of your life.

But for the rest of us, this is something I have to remind myself of on a daily basis.

Dating is hard work. Marriage, however, is more challenging.

Let me explain.

The first year of marriage is usually the easy part. The love is there, and the connection is at its strongest.

But once it reaches the 6th year, it starts to become stale, predictable and boring.

Did you know that in America, the average length of a marriage is seven to eight years? Some states have a higher rate than others, but the divorce rate for the country is around 50%

I’ve been blessed to have a marriage last for over ten years.

It does, however, require a lot of work and a lot of back-and-forth communication to understand each other on a consistent basis.

Five things that I have been doing more last year are:

Buy flowers for her on a monthly basis
Have more date nights once or twice a month (We don’t like spending too much money eating outside, and the little one always wants to tag along)
Send more cute messages to her during work days like “I miss you” or “I’ve been thinking of you”
Write a letter to her whenever we get into a big argument to apologize and explain my side of the story
Reading books or articles on marriage

Just like parenting, marriage also requires ongoing work. As my wife and I get older, our values change, our goals will move differently, and our love will transform.

Photo by iStockPhoto.com

#4 Seeing a Psychologist has plenty of benefits

In my last job, one of the perks that staff members get is a free monthly psychologist visit.

I get to choose a Psychologist to book, and I get reimbursed once I send my company the receipt for the visit.

Now, in the beginning, I didn’t need to visit one. I’ve never taken one in my whole life.

But since it was free, I decided to try it out and see what it was like.

The first session was ok, and the Psychologist was getting to know me and the things I wanted to explore about myself.

It was in the third session that I started to see the benefits.

To be able to tell someone about my deepest fears, regrets, challenges and failures without any judgement is something I felt I needed in my life.

I can do the same with my wife, but I can’t open up to her because I also have to play the role of a husband.

If she knew about everything I talk about with my Psychologist, then there’s a high chance she’ll lose confidence in me.

Another benefit I got from my meetings with the Psychologist is that she was able to see reoccurring themes in my life that I have missed.

When she explained this to me, It helped me understand better and make some changes to ensure it either happens less or eliminates.

Now, I can’t think of going through life without my trusted Psychologist.

#5 Interested VS Committed — there’s a big difference

I once listened to a Podcast by Tom Bilyeu where he hosted someone by the name of John Assaraf (Author of the book Innercise)

I remember a quote that resonated with me on so many levels.

“If you’re interested, you will do what is convenient. If you are committed, then you’ll do whatever it takes” — John Assaraf

All the actions I have taken in my life that gave me the most joy and purpose all came down to being aligned with my values and committed to the outcome.

I even wrote a post on Medium about it. You can read it here.