2021 Wins and 2022 Plans

Photo of the author standing on a sidewalk, smiling
Photo by Jessica Scheuer

New Year’s Eve has always been one of my favorite holidays. The changing of the calendar year is a perfect time to reflect on what has been and set my sights on what could be.

I don’t know about you, but 2021 was a tough year for me. It feels like a blur, or a continuation of the weird time-warp that began in March 2020. I spent much of this year just doing my best to make it through one day at a time. But looking back at the year in the aggregate, here are some of the things I accomplished in 2021:

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The Saving Strategies that Work for Me

Close-up of twenty-dollar bills

Not all that long ago, I had quite a bit of debt and virtually no savings, aside from a couple of meager retirement accounts. Now, my net worth has flipped solidly positive, I’m debt-free aside from my mortgage, and I’m stashing away a lot of money for my future. Below, I discuss some of the saving strategies I used to get to where I am today.

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Some Upsides of Social Distancing, Part III

While practicing social distancing, the author's toddler looks at a goose from a few feet away

An important reminder: “We are all in the same boat. We are not all in the same storm.”

This is a continuation of my series on the silver linings of self-isolating. (Click for Part I and Part II.)

  • I’m using up things in my pantry. Limiting grocery shopping trips to once a week has encouraged me to be more creative and resourceful with the food I have. I’m turning excess fruits and veggies into smoothies, using flour and other staples to make baked goods and pancakes, and finding a purpose for random canned goods that have been sitting around for months or longer. I’m reducing food waste while also decluttering my cabinets
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Imagining the Ideal Life

Black and white photo of a wooden bridge in the woods

Yesterday I had the pleasure of conducting mock interviews of law students in preparation for the upcoming interview season.  They were eager and well-prepared, looking out at the endless possibilities that lay ahead if them.  I asked them where they saw themselves five years after graduation, and I answered their questions about my job, including what had led me to it, what I loved about it, and what, if anything, I might change.

When I was in their position ten years ago, I hated the “where do you see yourself in x years?” question.  I had no real vision for my future.  I guess I figured if I followed all the recommended steps — work hard, get good grades, network, get a good job at a big firm — everything would fall into place and I’d end up with the life I was supposed to have, whatever that was.  I really didn’t know enough about the world or myself to know what I wanted my life to look like.  I could recite answers to interview questions, but the visions I described were really other peoples’ ideas of what a good life and career looked like.

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