As we reflect on the year just gone, we look ahead to the new year with a sense of hope and excitement on what it can be. 2024 had its fair share of ups and downs, and I have learned a lot from both of them. Dwelling on the past too long is never ideal but looking back and acknowledging those highlights can be therapeutic too, because we sometimes get moored down and focused on the losses and neglect the fact that there were some good times. Life is all about problems and solving them and that is the game. A smooth ride would be boring, and if it were easy, it would be far less rewarding when you do win. The old cliché "if it were easy, everyone would be doing it" rings true. Anything worth achieving or doing is going to take a little blood, sweat and tears. That is all part of the journey, and in years gone by, you look at the hard moments as the stories to tell.

For this new year, I also have written down some broad strokes of goals to achieve. But I won’t share those with you here, as I believe it is better to show people the accomplished goal than tell people what it is you plan to achieve. Because everyone will have their opinion of how hard it is or stupid that is or the like, so it is better to write those goals down and keep them to yourself and just show the results, from my experience. A new year is the chance to start fresh and make new goals and improve on the year gone by. Shooting for the stars is the only way I know how because I know if I miss, I am much closer to the stars than having shot for the low-hanging fruit. It takes a lot to achieve success in life and I wouldn’t say I am jaded by the time I have put into this endeavor, but I am much more prepared for the future. I also have more and more, as I've matured, cared less about what others think, and I think that is a super power that any creative can harness. Block out the noise and put your head down and achieve your goals. 2025 can be a great year and can be whatever you want it to be, but it takes some hard work and some worthwhile goals to make it so! I wish you all the best in the new year!