30 was a momentous year of life that came with maelstroms of change and adventure.
I saw a lot, lived a lot, stressed a lot, laughed a lot, and came out on the other end better than how I entered.
I spent half of it fully immersed in the NYC gig economy. During those 6 months I lived in 3 different apartments, did nearly 200 different gigs, got paid to eat cheese, and attempted to start a business teaching artists how to master the gig economy.
I spent the second half of 30 cruising around Brazil, bopping around Vietnam and Thailand, and starting a new J-O-B. AKA work that comes with healthcare and a nifty w2.
Mind you said J-O-B isn’t your typical 9-5. (No shock there…) Jeremy and I sell cruises onboard cruise ships. It’s a sweet gig! We get to travel and set our own hours with 2 (ish) months totally off in between each contracts.
Another lap around the sun means it’s my turn once again to take the hot seat and answer “the birthday questions.”
“The Birthday Questions” are 4 questions I ask everyone on their birthdays. It’s a fun way to prompt reflection and speculation. You can check out my answers for 27, 28, 29 and 30 if you feel inclined…..
Let’s dive in!
1.What Was the Best Part About This Past Year of Life?
Jermey and I spent 6 weeks traveling around Vietnam and Thailand. We rode on the back of motor bikes through the mountains of Ha Giang, trekked through rice paddies in Sapa, and got our scuba certs in Koh Tao. It was a total dream travel experience.
This seems like a cop out answer– of course spending 6 weeks eating mango sticky rice and exploring southeast Asia would be a highlight.
So I have a second answer to the question: I finally hosted a masterclass on how to master the gig economy. You see, I’ve had a vision of starting a business that involves coaching young artists on how to work in the gig economy to finance their passions.
I curated the content. Did the sales page. Poured hours into marketing on social media. Created a whole business plan.
And only 6 people fully bought into the masterclass.
The return on the time invested was miserably low. But the experience and process was astoundingly informative. I learned how to do all the logistics. I gained a whole new level of admiration for small business owners. And I finally did a big thing I always said I was going to do. I’ve always been obsessed with the process rather than the outcome. This project was no different. (Which is lucky for me, because the outcome was objectively not so good.)
(You can get the class HERE!)
2. What was the biggest thing you learned?
A theme of my late 20s was learning about myself. I dug through my psyche, pinpointing patterns and characteristics I was keen on fixing up in heroic quest for self improvement. The biggest thing I learned in my thirtieth year of life was that not everything needs fixing. Most things just need accepting.
3. What are you most looking forward to in the upcoming year?
Thirty was rewarding, but also hectic and exhausting– I worked a lot and was up against constant change and new stressors. I’m looking forward to more stability in 31. My J-O-B comes with work security and health insurance, which means more mental energy and time to devote to writing, reading, and thinking. It’s my year for leaning back into the things that fill my cup rather than my wallet.
Also elopement bells are ringing and a plane ticket to Europe has been purchased…. so there’s that to look forward to as well.
4. If there was one thing you could tell your 80 year old self to never forget, what would it be?
Don’t worry about rough patches. You’ll remember them for the better.
Cheers to another year!
Stay tuned for was 31 has in store. As always, I’m sure it’ll be anything but boring.
