Making my getaway.
Every year I dedicate myself to improving an aspect of my life where I see something missing. I started this in 2009 as opposed to the standard ideas of New Years Resolutions. When I moved back to London in the Fall of 2008 to begin work, I was setting out for the first time completely on my own and in full control of my life. I was responsible for every decision from then on. I really began to realize that and I wanted to start focusing on creating a better life for myself. Many people over the years have made comments that I am more in touch with my own life and living than most people. Life is precious. I want to do well in it.
Now that a New Year has arrived, it is time to consider where my life is for 2013 and how I will approach it. The past years are as follows:
2009: The Year of Growth. I focused on trying to make myself better every single day than I was the day before. I wanted to be a better me.
2010: The Year To Do Whatever It Takes To Get Into Yale // The Big Change. After being in London for two years, I was beginning to feel the affect it had had on me. I felt like I had been there long enough, and it was time to focus on my ultimate goal, Yale. I needed a big point boost on my resume, and ended up moving to Germany to get it.
2011: The Year of Self-Education. After being in Germany for a few months, I realized how bad my German was and how quickly I was going to have to learn. My class was far too slow. It was going to be up to me to learn German and I was very determined. On top of German, it was time to relearn top-notch English and Mathematics. I was going to take the GRE and I was going to get Ivy-League scores. And I did.
2012: The Year of The Run. In 2011 I began to run farther than I had ever in the past. Without a social life, I had lots of time to run too. I initially thought of the year as in doing my runs wherever I traveled to and ultimately running a marathon. For the record, I did a 10k run while on holiday in Italy, London and Texas. It was great! 2012 was The Year of The Run in a different way though... I felt as though the entire year was one sprint after another in my life. Everything was on hyper-speed in the past year. I felt as though I spent the year running around Europe and America at a frantic pace just trying to survive. It was more a figurative run than a literal one. It was a rush nonetheless.
So what will this new year be about? Many of the people in my studio have made the comments that a great reason to be at Yale are the connections we will make. To me, this is vital. I have an opportunity to meet the people of the "Cradle of Presidents." I didn't socialize much with my studio. In order to save time and money, I almost always brought my own lunch and skipped out on most nights out. I was a bore. I focused on course work instead of friendships. I still made some friends in the process, but it could have been better. I've been reading some books on management and people skills. The past few weeks have taken me farther and farther away from being connected with other people. My iPhone broke. Then I lost my backup phone. Suddenly for the first time since high school I didn't have a phone anymore. But it didn't matter. I rarely use it anymore. Then Christmas break came. Everyone left New Haven. I stayed. In the past 2 weeks, except for some running, I've only left the house twice. Once to goto the store and once to the school. This all changes starting next Thursday. This year, I focus on creating friendships, connections and meeting people. I will concentrate on not arguing or disputing people anymore. I will be likable. Creating a social network here will be one of the most valuable networks for the rest of my life. I have my family network, a little bit of a Rayburn network, a UH network, a European network...and now to create a new network in my life...
2013: The Year of Connecting.
soundtrack to entry:
Now that a New Year has arrived, it is time to consider where my life is for 2013 and how I will approach it. The past years are as follows:
2009: The Year of Growth. I focused on trying to make myself better every single day than I was the day before. I wanted to be a better me.
2010: The Year To Do Whatever It Takes To Get Into Yale // The Big Change. After being in London for two years, I was beginning to feel the affect it had had on me. I felt like I had been there long enough, and it was time to focus on my ultimate goal, Yale. I needed a big point boost on my resume, and ended up moving to Germany to get it.
2011: The Year of Self-Education. After being in Germany for a few months, I realized how bad my German was and how quickly I was going to have to learn. My class was far too slow. It was going to be up to me to learn German and I was very determined. On top of German, it was time to relearn top-notch English and Mathematics. I was going to take the GRE and I was going to get Ivy-League scores. And I did.
2012: The Year of The Run. In 2011 I began to run farther than I had ever in the past. Without a social life, I had lots of time to run too. I initially thought of the year as in doing my runs wherever I traveled to and ultimately running a marathon. For the record, I did a 10k run while on holiday in Italy, London and Texas. It was great! 2012 was The Year of The Run in a different way though... I felt as though the entire year was one sprint after another in my life. Everything was on hyper-speed in the past year. I felt as though I spent the year running around Europe and America at a frantic pace just trying to survive. It was more a figurative run than a literal one. It was a rush nonetheless.
So what will this new year be about? Many of the people in my studio have made the comments that a great reason to be at Yale are the connections we will make. To me, this is vital. I have an opportunity to meet the people of the "Cradle of Presidents." I didn't socialize much with my studio. In order to save time and money, I almost always brought my own lunch and skipped out on most nights out. I was a bore. I focused on course work instead of friendships. I still made some friends in the process, but it could have been better. I've been reading some books on management and people skills. The past few weeks have taken me farther and farther away from being connected with other people. My iPhone broke. Then I lost my backup phone. Suddenly for the first time since high school I didn't have a phone anymore. But it didn't matter. I rarely use it anymore. Then Christmas break came. Everyone left New Haven. I stayed. In the past 2 weeks, except for some running, I've only left the house twice. Once to goto the store and once to the school. This all changes starting next Thursday. This year, I focus on creating friendships, connections and meeting people. I will concentrate on not arguing or disputing people anymore. I will be likable. Creating a social network here will be one of the most valuable networks for the rest of my life. I have my family network, a little bit of a Rayburn network, a UH network, a European network...and now to create a new network in my life...
2013: The Year of Connecting.
soundtrack to entry: