In 2013, I left Canada for a new life in Japan. I brought a laptop and a couple of pairs of clothes with me. I didn’t speak the language and had no job lined up. Because I had saved up some money, gotten my bachelor’s degree, and had the right work experience I was able to find a job.
It wasn’t a spontaneous decision to move to Japan. I loved Japan and had been planning most of my early 20’s on how to move there. I knew I needed a univeristy degree, so I got one. I also took some Japanese language classes along the way.
I am here today because I set goals for myself. I worked hard to achieve those goals and eventually was able to move to Japan. Having a strong goal can be a powerful thing and make you push to your limits.
Now that it’s 2020 I feel its time to start planning again much like I did in my early 20’s. I will set some new goals for myself. So, without further adieu.
On Writing
The people I look up to are all great writers. They knew how to write and share their ideas with the world through their words. Writing is powerful, I know that now and want to improve.
I feel my writing skills have always been weak. Over the years I’ve written a few articles but could never really establish a habit to level-up my writing.
This year I want to write one blog post each month to improve my writing skill. Eventually, someday, I would love to write a book.
On Reading
Going back to the people I admire, Bill Gates, who takes solo ‘think weeks’ in a cabin in the woods to consume books. Just like him I want to learn and apply knowledge from books to make real change in the world.
I plan to take my own ‘think week’ this year. I also plan to read at least 12 books by the end of 2020. I’ve setup goodreads reading list to track my progress.
Japanese
Someone I respect told me after 10 years of living in a foreign country if you still don’t speak the language you never will. This scares me. I’m seven years in to my life in Japan and not fluent yet.
My target for this year is to pass the JLPT N3 exam. I have passed N4 and N5 levels but it’s not conversational Japanese. The N3 is a big deal for me because it means I can hold my own when speaking Japanese. It’s really the point where I can say I can speak Japanese.
On My Health
Being healthier has loads of benefits. You sleep better, you feel better, and generally just have more energy to do awesome work.
I’m currently overweight and this is making me sleep worse which is degrading my life experience. This year I want to eat right and achieve a healthy target weight by the end of 2020.
On Being Human
The last decade I focused mostly on myself and my own ego. This year I want to help others and be more empathetic to other human beings. I also want to drop my ego.
So this year I will focus on making new friends and improving my existing relationships. As a leader of a team I want to mentor others and give everyone a chance to grow, beyond me.
Looking Forward
I think we all need some accountability if we want to acheive a goal. I definiately didn’t keep my Japan dream secret. I told everyone until a co-worker finally had enough and said “Why are you still here? Goto Japan already!". I left pretty quickly after that. I imagine if someone didn’t hold me accountable thought if I would of ever had the courage to make a leap.
For a little bit of accountability I wrote this article. I see it as a way to publically tell the world I am serious this time and I will accomplish the goals:
- To write one blog post a month
- To read one book once a month
- To take one ‘think week’ this year
- To live healthier (lose 8kg by end of 2020)
- To make new friendships and improve my current ones