My purpose is to help others learn and grow and achieve their goals in life.
That’s why I’m driven to be the best version of myself.
In 2022, I’ve had the massive opportunity to create content for the Chartered Accountants Association of Australia and New Zealand, coach and mentor startups and growing business owners, be invited to speak and deliver workshops about design thinking and innovation.
I feel like I’m living in the most exciting time of my life:
- I’m sharing valuable content and connecting with creators all over the world.
- Receiving requests to collaborate on projects.
- Building a community of passionate design thinkers, innovators and entrepreneurs.
My next company will be built on content and community.
And, the time to be start is now.
Today, I’m going to share with you:
- My reflection on 2022.
- My goals for 2023.
- Some things I’ve learnt along the way.
I’ll also give away my yearly planning template (you can grab it at the end).
P.S. You’ll find some links to recommended courses and books. Note, I am not an affiliate.
They are just that good, I wanted you to know about them.
My Year in Review
2022 was a major one for growth, experiences and connections. Here are some of the ones that are most important to me:
- My community of subscribers is close to 250! When I started writing, the ‘newsletter’ was a way for me to think. I’m so priviledged that others get value from my thinking. Thank you for being here.
- Took a road-trip through Central Otago with my oldest son and brother. You can’t choose your family and I’m glad that’s the case. We had great fun and laughs to remember. If you’re yet to visit Central Otago, it is amazing anytime of year.
- Growing my connections. Writing on LinkedIn has led to connecting with some impressive people like Katelyn Bourgoin, Chris Do, Jason Vana, Dan Go, Lars Behrendt, Luke Matthews, Lea Turner, Rob Hamblen to name a few. Looking forward to growing these in 2023.
- Launched Innovation by Design. Helping founders and leaders learn foundational design thinking skills to apply directly to their business in under 10 minutes a day.
- Guest speaker at startup programmes and corporate professional development days.
- Authored professional development content. I was invited to created several assets for the Chartered Accountants Association of Australia and New Zealand for their innovation and strategy training programmes.
- Completed three online courses. I’m a believer in learning from the best in their niche, so I upskilled myself with: Justin Welsh’s LinkedIn OS and Content OS. Matt Gray’s Audience OS. And, Dan Koe’s The 2-hour Writer.
- Staying connected. It brings me joy to regularly meet-up with some of my MBA colleagues, who are thriving and making an impact in the world.
- Made products available. I setup a Gumroad account for people to get some of my best stuff.
- Workshop delivery. I was invited to deliver a two-day innovation workshop for the Growth and Innovation Network from Malaysia.
- Nelson. Trip to Nelson with my family. Magnificent views.
- Habits. Meditating, exercising, writing daily and publishing on LinkedIn and Twitter, helping others, reading books, fresh air from morning walks, drinking less, nutritious food and time with family.
What I Learned in 2022
- Prioritise health. I know that I perform best when I am exercising and nurturing my body with good nutrients. That includes, taking breaks, getting outside and enjoying nature.
- Growth mindset. Focusing on getting 1% better every day by studying, applying and refining.
- Be yourself. Some of the most meaningful feedback and connections this year came from me being open and vulnerable.
- Audience matters. In a world where technology is democratised (just look at where AI is heading), it is the human stories that connect people and build relationships.
- Be laser focused. Effort counts twice. So, making sure I’m focusing on the right things, has made a big impact this year.
- Prioritise people. It’s the people in my life that lift me up and make the effort worthwhile. I’m committed to surrounding myself with the people that matter.
What to Improve in 2023
- Leverage. With the goals that I have, I will need exceptional people to help.
- Growth. Continuing to think big, take all the opportunities that come my way. And, work hard to create opportunities.
- Hone my craft. Design thinking, innovation and writing are the cornerstones of what I do. Mastering these will will be the best investment I can make.
- Connect more. I’ve connected with some amazing people, like: Jeremy Utley, Travis Lachner, Sherice Kral and Dave Geoghegan to name a few more. In 2023, I want to collaborate and partner.
Best Books I Read in 2022
- Get Real Innovation: Get real and forget about innovation – if you don‘t really mean it. Lars Behrendt.
- A New Way to Think. Roger Martin.
- The Invincible Company: How to Constantly Reinvent Your Organization with Inspiration From the World’s Best Business Models. Strategyzer.
- Ideaflow: The Only Business Metric That Matters. Jeremy Utley and Perry Klebahn.
Plans For 2023
2023 is a year of massive growth and mastery.
I’ve spent time explore interests, honed in on my Ikigai, enhanced skills and now it is about taking that compounding effect and pursuing entrepreneurial excellence.
The only way I can help people at scale is making this my one thing.
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs
I think that innovation in entrepreneurship will centre on three forces.
- Founders will lead branding with storytelling.
- Branding is built from organic content creation and distribution.
- Communities will become the growth engine for successful businesses.
The thing I notice, is the more that we advance from technology and become dis-connected from it’s use, the more important human connections become.
2023 Vision and Goals
I’m a big believer in one-page plans.
In-depth documents are largely a waste of time. And, they sit in drawers rather than being used on a daily basis.
What’s more, is that as you’re creating the future, data can only help to determine what has already happened. Data with insights is more useful.
My plan will keep evolving.
Here’s my 2023 strategy on a page:
As you see, I use three main themes:
- Connecting the plan to the ‘why’ with calling / purpose, values and foundation stones. My core belief is that success emerges from a deeper place.
- The strategy using the choice cascade method. This approach aligns with design thinking and allows for more discovery and learning the way forward emerges.
- Goals are also fluid. The more near-term, the more detailed in desired outcomes.
The one pager allows for agility while still providing focus.
2023 Intent
What I’ve learned is that the biggest barrier to growth is myself.
In 2023, I’ll be:
- Studying more.
- Researching more.
- Building more.
- Connecting more.
- Being more healthy.
- Having more good times.
It’s all about doing more of what I love and less of what I don’t.
Now, it’s about keeping up the momentum, compounding and capitalising on growth.
That’s it.
My year in review, plans for this year and some key insights.
As promised here’s my Master Planning Guide for you.
It’s a system that I’ve curated and refined from over 25 years in business and boiled-down to the essential components.
This is what will help you move the needle in 2023.
It usually takes me a few days to complete. But, it’s important to take time and really connect with what you want to achieve.
I get away from everything, get some fresh air, sunlight and go for a walk to then start making notes in my journal.
Then, I’ll take that inspiration and insight to my computer and complete deep work which is synthesised into the 1 Page Strategy.
If you’ve taken the time to reflect on your past year, or have made a plan for 2023, let me know on Twitter or LinkedIn and share with me. I’d love to hear from you.
That’s all.
Let’s achieve together.