2021 Year in Review: 12 Insights Uncovered

Wow. It’s been such a year indeed. As we are gearing up towards 2022, it’s about time for a year’s worth of reflections and learnings. Personally, it’s been a wild ride in 2021, but one filled with self-awareness and learning to brave through the storms. And we’re still here. Standing strong.

As one of my mentors would say, this is not an easy ship to be on, if not, anyone would do it. Afterall, we chose to be on this crazy journey!

Here’s a little summary of the top 12 things I’ve learnt this year, as a senior design manager, as an aspiring leader, and as a continuous hustler in this evolving world that we now live in.

Be Ditto. Stay relevant.

The company is evolving. We are growing & everything around us is changing. How we envisioned things 5 years ago is unlikely to be relevant anymore today. Being able to upkeep the changes is to literally become ‘Ditto’. Learn from people around, absorb new information and knowledge that will aid you in your role. This will ensure you are relevant to the growing organisation, at any stage.

You WILL fail. It’s okay.

This is so important to emphasize, especially as we are scaling up. Failure is something that everyone needs to go through in order to pick themselves up stronger. If you’ve never allowed yourself to fail, you will always be stuck on a plateau growth trajectory. Moreover, you also need to allow your team to fail & learn from it. That way, everyone takes the fall together & grow from it. Take that risk, make that mistake. Learn from it & try again.

Be the rock. Don’t fight to be at the forefront

Being a manager & lead simply means letting your comrades take the charge forward. Stay behind & watch their backs, because they will still need you there to back them up as they charge & win the war.

Stay a sponge. Keep on learning new skills

Part of staying relevant is to continuously upgrade yourself. Take a new course, join a masterclass, do things that will constantly keep you motivated & help you contribute to a greater good in the company.

Literally echoing the main mantra - Keep on Learning, Keep on Growing.

You can’t take everything. Pick your battles.

This is a hard one for me personally this year, where multi-tasking has been one of my strengths. However, as you progress on in a company & stage of growth, it increasingly becomes harder to multitask, especially on a strategic level. Hence, pick the right battles, let others handle the rest. Hold back on taking on too much, before it takes a toll on you both mentally and psychologically. The battles you chose? Do it so well, 10x better than you think you could have ever done. This is a commitment for 2022 personally.

People are people. Don’t ever forget.

One of my key learnings this year especially handling our remote teams - People are people, not just a voice behind the screen. Taking the time to really understand, empathize & relate to each & everyone is something that we’ve all had to learn as the working model continues to remain in a hybrid situation. Putting yourself in our team members’ shoes will be a great starting point.

Create space. Let them shine.

Aside from being a rock for the team, creating the spaces for people to take the forefront is as crucial. This really means giving them new chances, opportunities & challenges that will allow them to stretch & grow into.

You’d be surprised at how much time you’d free up for yourself, and how much the team members can grow into.

Be a ninja. Be at places when they least expect you to.

I love this one.

One thing about us is having the flexibility to be part of items outside of your designated scope. One that I appreciate truly. Are you a designer, doing some partnerships, with a little of marketing operations, and also learning to build a brand, and managing teams? Yep, I still am til this date. As much as I’m learning to pick my battles, I’d still want to pick diverse battles that will create a dynamic in my learning.

Force yourself to be a Snorlax. Take that break.

This is one reminder that I’m admittedly not great at yet, but a reminder that I keep close to my heart & for my team. Taking a break, IS OKAY. There will be people to cover, to take over, so don’t feel obliged to not take it.

If you’re everywhere, you’re nowhere.

Again, another learning that I’m taking very seriously this year and forward. If you continue to take small pieces of the pie, you’ll never get the big piece no matter how much you try. So, take bigger chunks of the pie, and if you want to challenge yourself, take a few pieces. If you stretch yourself too thin, you will run the risk of not making an impact at all, & coming from experience, this is so true.

Take whatever comes, whether you’re ready or not.

As everyone always preaches, we will never truly be ready. The best we can do, is fake it till we make it. And again, opportunities are there for us to embrace, & when they do, take it with an open mind & a willing heart to feel the uneasiness but excitement. You will eventually get there anyway, if you choose to make it happen.

Once you’re comfortable, do something else.

This is an important one that I’ve learnt this year as well. Once you are comfortable in your daily work & routine, you will fall into a trap of ‘doing well’. Don’t let yourself get there just yet, especially if you’re still hungry to grow & learn. Get yourself out by talking to others, figure out a plan, action on your plan, & rock it!

Thanks for taking the time to read through my personal reflection, & I hope we will make it again in 2022, bigger, smarter, stronger & wiser. These serve as great reminders for myself & I hope they do to you too.

See you soon, 2022, I’m so ready.