Top 12 Lessons of 2024 that Changed My Life (Part 2/2)
Yup, two weeks into 2025 and I'm STILL shouting about these.
➡️ Did you miss Part 1? « Catch up there, then join us back here!
The other 6 of My Biggest A-ha! Moments From 2024 That Will Shape My 2025:
7. Regular novelty is a necessity for me.
So much of 2024 felt like a grind to me, and I’m not about that life. I thrive on newness, curiosity, experimentation… novelty.
This Liz Moody podcast episode perfectly puts into words what I’ve instinctively known since I was a kid. Even as a child and a teenager, I remember lying in bed awake at night, feeling unfulfilled if I didn’t have something new to look forward to on the calendar!
With last year being so full of 100 mile run training and working too much, I didn’t have as much time for novelty as I like to build into my life.
After my race, I decided that for the month of September, I would commit to doing something novel every day (even if it was tiny). Biking roads I’d never seen before, trying new foods, having coffee chats with people I didn’t know... These small experiments reignited my creativity and joy. So I’m looking for mini-doses of novelty as often as possible in 2025.
8. I want to be revolutionary in my work.
I’ve been intrigued AF by watching fellow small business owners challenging traditional systems. Anti-capitalist commerce, building in time for rest, sharing a ton for free, trade work, innovative collaboration, prerequisites to working with someone, inviting others to one-up you, businesses not on social media… There are so many little actions I’m noticing others do that shake up the status quo. Because y’all know the status quo isn’t working.
Seeing these revolutionary ideas motivates me to be bold in my own work. The first “aha” moment I had in this realm was post presidential election in November 2024. I wondered what I could do with my own unique set of skills and knowledge to make a positive impact in communities in my country.
One big step: In 2025, I’ll publicize my fertility awareness resources for free. This feels revolutionary because it challenges norms, supports bodily autonomy, and aligns with my values (health, freedom, and empowerment included). I wrote about that more here on IG. What will you do?
9. We don’t have to be everywhere (especially digitally).
These days, Instagram’s current culture feels robotic and draining. Sometime in the past year, I reflected that the fun and “pros” I’ve gotten from connecting on social media don’t outweigh the “cons” (data security, time wasting, constant ads, spam, etc.). More on that here.
Same in business. My business partner and I realized we’ve never gotten a paying client from Instagram. Instead, we’re focusing on platforms that truly work for us, like LinkedIn and word-of-mouth referrals. My energy is better spent where it matters most.
Substack is an experiment for me to find more meaningful digital connection than Instagram or other social media can currently give me. Which is why it means a lot if you share, comment, or subscribe! 😉
10. Embrace the “Blender Bottle” mindset.
LOL, this one is weird but I also love it. I’m going to paste an Instagram caption from April 2024 to explain:
I was on a call with biz bestie Emily Holland and telling her about some running pre-workout powder a brand sent. Struggling to get it to fully mix, I asked whether she put the powder in the glass before the water, or the water before the powder. She was like... Um, why don't you just use a blender bottle? And I was like... Why would I spend money on a bottle that I don't technically need?! 🙄
But a few days later, a gift from Emily arrived in the mail: A (pink!!!) blender bottle. I was skeptical. But immediately, I noticed how this very simple tool made a task easier enough to be a notable help. Suddenly, I started seeing "blender bottle" metaphors EVERYWHERE in my work.
For years, I've told myself my minimal desk setup was enough to "get me by." But I've been hating the way my laptop camera lines up on my desk while on calls. So I bought a laptop stand and second monitor and OMG within 10 minutes it made everything SO much more professional.
I've been going nuts with back-and-forth emails to schedule meetings, and also to hold my boundaries of not wanting morning meetings. But it was working "enough," so I didn't want to buy scheduling software. Well, blender bottle inspired me to investigate software options, and I found an incredible open source calendar app that took me less than an hour to set up and that will prevent endless future headaches.
Delegation and outsourcing allows me to spend more time on deep work. But that's scary-- to invest your money and TRUST (😵💫) in other people to help you with your mission.
But damn, I'm looking at that 'lil pink bottle and know that intentional initial investments of money, time, and effort will only help me in the long run. Small investments in tools or processes can yield massive rewards.
11. Complacency is the enemy.
At a retreat with extraordinary coach Justine Mulliez, I got to meet my “inner leader.” Naturally, she’s a bold and wise Sparkle Ice Queen. Think sexy Gandalf meets Glenda the Good Witch.
Problem is, my inner leader is often stifled by a gray blob of complacency.
Complacency tells me to settle for “good enough.” It tells me that it’s not worth the effort to shake something up when I’m not truly in danger. It blocks me from living in alignment with my deep values. It keeps me from fully tasting everything I want out of life. Lame.
In 2025, I want to embody my inner Ice Queen: sparkly, unapologetic, and ready to lead.
12. CHEESY BUT DAMN TRUE: So much more is possible than I’ve ever imagined.
Running my first 100-mile race shifted my perspective on pretty much everything. When I signed up for the race, and even through training, I wasn’t sure I could finish. 100 is a lot of miles, folks. So much could go wrong— injury, dehydration, bad poops, getting lost, being too slow, getting bored…
This sounds absolutely bonkers but… it wasn’t that hard. Like, yeah, it was a huge mental and physical feat, but in the moment, it felt like I was ready to do it, made to do it, the person for the job. It was FUN while being hard. None of it was as bad as I’d feared (except for 10 hours of mild hallucinations/eye tricks and falling asleep while running).
Choosing my challenge made it bearable—and, more than that, transformative.
I crossed that finish line with period blood on my thighs, stroopwaffel crumbs on my shirt, and a grin plastered on my face (all of which had been there all morning).
(And then I ran an extra .75mi around the parking lot to get my watch to triple digits, of course.)
This race proved to me that I can set big, audacious goals. I can break my own rules in work, relationships, and life. I can think bigger, dream sparklier, tell the doubters that I don’t need their input kthanksbye.
If I can imagine it, I can do it. I’ve believed that my entire life. But now I have the proof that it’s true.
That energy is carrying me into the new year. Ready, set…
That’s it: 12 lessons, one year. Wanna know what’s coming next?
My sleeves are rolled up, my Google Drive is open, and my fingers are cramping. There are a LOT of mini-experiments coming to this Substack in 2025, like:
Money stuff: Best and worst things I spend money on each month, income planning/reflection in my work, what I’m learning about investing, etc.
Adventure stuff: Training insights (100 mile gravel bike race is next!), travel reports (Taiwan and the Dolomites, for example!), self-imposed endurance challenge recaps, etc.
Creative stuff: Things I’ve created, things others have created that inspired me, etc.
Stuff I’m not sure of yet but I can promise it’ll be transparent, thoughtful, and conversation-sparking.
Subscribe if ya like!
If you found this post and you’re like “Wait, where am I?” check out my About page to see why I’m sharing on Substack instead of Instagram these days. In January, I’m sharing a few reflection-y posts like this. Then, I’ll move into some transparent work-life weekly updates that I hope you’ll love!