Reflecting 2020

It's the time for reflection on 2020. Instead of going through the typical retro format, I like to attempt to answer the following powerful questions. 

What is the most important lesson you learned this year?

Ability to live with less. Life needs just sufficient food and a place to live. Everything else is optional for reasonable good living. 

What challenges did you overcome?

Adapt to remote working. Improved Communication. I am now open to sharing more details with colleagues and strangers. My perspective on WFH changed a lot, and I no longer feel guilty about working from home or taking a break during work hours. 

Too many calls (mostly video calls) drained me physically. I started questioning the need for my participation more diligently and delegated as many as possible to either peer or my team. 

Deadline wise delivery is a thing of the past. We encounter people's availability changing daily. So continuous planning and adapting to the changes has become a core part of leadership roles.

I am a bit more organized compared to the last year due to the scarcity of many resources. 

We entangle with a lot of chores. The priority and the need for these chores are highly magnified being at home. I yet to find a cleaner handle on this. 

What new skills did you acquire?

Learn to educate kids: Volunteer as an assistant teacher for a local nonprofit school on educating kids with foreign languages.

What did you do for your career growth?

Leading a team with multiple workstreams in this ever-changing crisis is a fabulous experience. Remote working broke many logistical barriers with senior management, and I could gain insights on my strength and opportunities for embarking on technical leadership. 

How did you have fun?

Spending time with the kids on their remote education and playing with them in the evening hours has been a fantastic experience. I also took post-lunch breaks every now and a while and went out for a walk. 

Lucky to gift me with excellent homemade food and sound sleep of more than 8 hours a day. 

On many weekends, we either hiked or walked and had brunch picnics in the parks. We also enjoyed the drive-in movie shows from the Township.

What were the most useful resources you had?

Zoom

What did you leave unfinished?

My spouse sacrificed a lot to enable kids remote learning as she could not get on with their next level in career roadmap. 

My kids missed New York City rides.

What was the best compliment you received?

Unattributed feedback from my direct reports called me - an empathetic, inclusive, strong technology leader. I am proud of standing by my core values, especially during this pandemic year. 

If you were to talk about this year like a story, how would you write it?

2020 is a showcase of war-like uncertainty in a milder way. 

How do you describe this year in 3 to 5 keywords?

2020 reminded us of our mortal nature. Expecting the change anytime on anything and positively adapting to it is the real insurance one can have for a promising future. 

What advice would you give your last-year self?

Too many short term ambitious goals go meaningless in a spectrum of broad timeframe. Try to focus on skills and long term goals. 

We do so many things unconsciously that are nothing more than entertainment. With little awareness, I can try and even efficiently overcome the urge to fall back on old bad habits. 

Right outputs happen only with the right inputs. Intentions may influence a starting point, but only perseverance will take you to the end.