2014: A Year in Review

Well that year went by quickly! Okay, 2014 isn’t completely over yet, but with the grand Everest adventure just a day away, it feels like a nice day for accountability.

Honestly, I can’t help wondering where 2014 went. I had quite a few goals and I started strong with a great focus. Inevitably, life happened. I enrolled in a personal leadership and life coaching program that has taken up a bulk of my time. It’s not that I was derailed from what I wanted to achieve, but perhaps I took on too many things, and found myself dabbling more often than seeing everything to fruition. Lesson learned. I’m gearing up for 2015 to be the best year ever with a clear focus, but first, it’s time for a quick roundup. I’ve copied the post from January, now with added reflection!

Travel

• View the sunrise or sunset from Haleakala Crater in Maui. Hopefully this is the first major trip of the year. I’m thinking 1 part relaxing, several parts swimming, hiking, and adventuring.

Oh this happened, with lots of swimming, hiking and adventuring. And it was glorious!

• Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia. My good friend Marie and I have been trying to work this trip in our plans forever. I want those cliché photos from the salt flats. And apparently there are amazing hiking trails in Bolivia. This is the year it happens!

Or not happen! Bolivia has escaped me this year, yet again. But I think the Everest Base Camp adventure is a worthy substitute.

• Snowboarding in Montana. In just a few weeks, Robbie and I will be heading down to Whitefish for a wonderful weekend of skiing and snowboarding. I’m not a huge fan of winter, but this trip is going to be so awesome.  

It was an awesome ski trip (yes, I didn’t go snowboarding, but opted to ski instead). In fact, Whitefish ranks up there with one of my favourite places to ski!

• Visit a friend outside of Alberta or Ontario. Many of my travels are between Calgary and Toronto, which makes sense. But there are some friends I’ve been longing to visit. It’s time to start working in these travel plans.

These travel plans were never made. Sigh. 

• Take another trip! So that’s 4 trips outlined above. Why not make it 5. Travel is the theme of the year. So to cap it off…

I ended up going to Portland for the World Domination Summit. It was an amazing experience in a city that never crossed my mind beforehand. Now I just can’t wait to visit Portland again.

• Achieve Elite flight status. Woah, this one is ambitious because at this moment, I’m not sure how to go about it. But based on my trips above, this has to be possible. Somehow. Luckily, through my recent obsession with learning how to ‘travel hack’, I’ve come across some great pointers. Maybe I can have a first-class flight experience by the end of the year!

I’m achieved Aeroplan’s Distinction Silver! It’s no first-class experience, but hey, it’s something :). And I did manage to try the Maple Leaf Lounge and get free food, so it’s a win in my books.

Health and Fitness

• Fix my broken self. I’ve been plagued with injuries since St. Swithin’s Day ;). It’s time to get this under control and get my body back into fighting form. The main areas of focus: my right leg and the SI joint that wants to remain out of whack; and the tendonitis in my right arm. Ugh.

So I’m not sure what kind of goal this was to be honest. I mean, with the level of activity I’m doing, I anticipate being in a state of constant repair and maintenance. I’ve been to physio more times than I can count this year. It will probably never end!

• Complete Beachbody’s P90X3. Well, this is going to happen. I’m already 14 days into the program and I absolutely love it. With only 30 minutes each day, I really have no excuses. And I’m already seeing changes in my body and fitness levels.

P90X3 is awesome! I felt great after completing it. It’s only 90 days…. which seems like a long time, but with a plan set out from Beachbody, you have great results with not a lot of guesswork.

• Complete a second 90 day fitness program. It doesn’t just stop with P90X3 Round 1. Oh no. There will be others. There will be more. I’m thinking of P90X3 again; a second attempt at P90X2 to really further my athleticism; or Body Beast, which was supposed to be January’s fitness goal before I learned about P90X3. Apparently I could make significant gains in muscle with the Body Beast program. I’ll put my scrawny physique to the test.

I just finished 90 days of Body Beast, Beachbody’s weight training program. Scrawny no more :). Sagi grew on me over time, and I can’t thank him enough!

• Run a Fitness Challenge Group. Here’s another task already underway with a strong group of 30 people committing to fitness goals for Q1.

Although people dropped out over time, there was a handful of us committed to the end. 90 days later, we all achieved something together. It was great.

• Explore Beachbody Coaching. Whether it’s becoming a discount coach, trying Shakeology, or just learning about the program, this is on my radar.

Here is one of those cases where I “dabbled”. I signed up… tried Shakeology (which is awesome) and then shortly after, I closed my accounts. I may revisit in the new year. I still support Beachbody programs, but being a Team Beachbody Coach may or may not be in my future.

• Take  a CPR or Wilderness Training course. This came up recently during a conversation with Robbie. We have no idea what to do when the unthinkable happens.

Epic fail. And I still don’t know what to do.

• Run at least one MEC race. I love that MEC races are about $15 to enter.  Once I fix my lower half, there’s no reason why I can’t complete one of these!

Another epic fail.

• The 50th Anniversary of the Calgary Scotiabank Marathon. What a milestone. Obviously I’ll be entering, either for a 10k or the half-marathon.

Weeee! I did complete the 10k earlier in the year. Oh how things started so strongly…

• Run a total of 100 km. It may not seem like much, but this will be a Runkeeper goal. And once it’s set in Runkeeper, then I’m accountable. To Runkeeper. Or myself. *shrug*

… and then things were a disaster. I could blame it on my right leg and hip… or I can just admit that excuses got in the way. Yeah, I’ll blame it on my right leg and hip 🙂

• Backpack at least once for a minimum of 2 nights. Last year, I tried backpacking for the first time at Cracker Lake in Montana and enjoyed it, but that was for one night only. As I work my way toward the West Coast Trail, I figure I should backpack more. A lot more. For at least two consecutive nights.

Remember I said “where did the year go??” I think summer was the quickest period of them all. I had high hopes for backpacking. Sadly, I did none. This failure has really fueled the focus for 2015.

• Bike to Work from May – October. Living so close to work, I really should be walking or biking to work at all times. Here’s my attempt to at least bike once in a while, sheesh!

Nope, I didn’t bike. But I did manage to walk pretty much ever day! So I’m considering this one a success.

• Take a Mountaineering Course. I’ve been wanting to do this for years with my friend Dan. Will this be the year?

Nope, this was not the year. But like the backpacking fiasco, my inability to fit this in has helped navigate what’s in store for 2015.

• Conquer Mount Temple. This will be the last year I ramble on about this. The last year I shake my fist at this goliath. Mount Temple MUST be conquered this year.

I don’t want to talk about it *shakes fist*.

Finances and Career

• Become SAS Advanced Certified. Geeze I feel like I’m all talk. I’ve also had this on my list for a while. Step 1. Study a bit. Step 2. Code some more. Step 3. Take the test and pass with flying colours. This should be a giant NBD (No Big Deal).

Holy hell, something so easy has not been completed. Again. And again. And again. Maybe that’s code that it no longer fits into my priorities.

• Read “Canadian Small Business Kit for Dummies”. If I’m going to contract on the side, I should know a little thing or two about working for myself. Currently I fall into the “dummies” category when it comes to such things. Action items to follow.

Ha! This is the goal I kept forgetting about. And it makes sense. It’s not the most fascinating or exciting on the list. Fail.

• Tutor at least 1 student in Introductory Stats. Last fall, I tutored a student. Tutoring used to be a regular part of my life, but over time, it’s something I haven’t been doing. I was reminded how much I enjoyed helping with introductory stats. 

I’ve tutored once. While meeting the goal is technically a success, having one session is kind of abysmal.

Managing My Digital Life

• inspirationrick.ca. I enjoy blogging. I enjoy  making lists and writing about stuff. I enjoy seeking out inspiration in this amazing world. Needless to say, this website will be a focus for the year as I continue to transition from Blogger to WordPress and update the blog. Could WordPress offer any more plug-ins?? The customizability is a full-time job on its own. Abiding by copyright rules and laws will be paramount.

I had some hardships with this early in the year, but alas, the blog is up and running now, yay!

• Revamp my photo management and photo workflow with Lightroom and Photoshop. I made the jump from Picasa to iPhoto. This was a fail. I’ve now decided to use Lightroom and Photoshop. The transition will be a huge project for the year since I’m organizing over a decade’s worth of photos.

I’ve made huge strides in this area. Going through photos since 2005 can’t be done overnight. I’m still working on it, but I would call this a success since I’ve moved everything out of the dreaded iPhoto.

• Login, Passwords and Security. As tedious as this task will be, I am planning for an overhaul of my logins and passwords, and increasing the security associated with all aspects of my digital life.

Tedious. Boring. Done.

Summary

Why do I make lists like this? They can sometimes be too restrictive, and perhaps they can be both motivating and crippling in terms of taking action. But I love them! They work for me because even though they are specific, I allow for any changes as I see fit. I don’t get caught up on a score of 15/25 completed because I know it was an awesome and full year. I did several hikes that were not planned and had weekends away that were just what I needed. Sometimes opportunities, trips and experiences come up that you don’t plan for, and rolling with them opens up new possibilities. I had no idea I’d be life coaching by the end of the year… crazy talk.

The goal list has also acted like a mirror. When I reflect, it’s clear that areas of my work life are not getting much attention. Is that an area that deserves more attention? Or perhaps it’s clear that my priorities no longer lie in the domain of my career. Similarly, I’m choked about the backpacking and mountaineering. I’m okay with not accomplishing these tasks; however, that fact has ignited a fire in me to focus my efforts in these outdoor pursuits. Another revelation? I don’t always have to be so specific in my fitness goals. Beachbody and fitness have become part of my lifestyle, and I can continue to integrate physical activity 5 – 6 days a week without such stringent guidelines. I’m now thinking about other options to add variety to my fitness activity.

And the crystal clear point that has punched me in the face? Travel. More. There needs to be more.

With all of these reflections, things are percolating in my mind. 2015 really can be the best year ever…