A Year In Review - 2021

I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve sat down to write a yearly review. I’ve got a chunk of time and felt compelled, so here we are.

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This will be both a professional and personal review of my 2021 year. TLDR: It was amazing, fulfilling, loving, eye-opening, character-building, stressful and hard work. All at the same time.

I accepted a full-time position

This might be the biggest news of all. I still feel like a freelancer because the position is fully remote, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t also itching for a way to get myself out of the house to be around some real, live people every now and then.

So, here we are: I’m now a full-time front-end developer.

I believe that It’s a great way to maximize all of the knowledge I've gained after years of being a freelance developer!

Life

My life has changed quite a lot this year and I’m changing as a person.

I don’t believe that you have to be the same person you always were. You can adapt to your circumstances and sometimes, quite simply change because you want to change.

As I’m always trying to better myself at work, I’m always trying to improve as a person.

In my continued quest for balance as a front-end developer, I owe a lot to my friends and parents as a whole.

I’m privileged to have their continued backing, guidance, and support. This year and in years gone by.

I made way more space for interests outside of work

One of my lifelong passions is music. I actually played in a band during my college years as the main guitarist, and playing guitar was a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember—until it wasn't.

This year I finally realized it was something I missed desperately, so I took action. I improved my classical guitar skills during quarantine days.

I moved to Izmir

I hate to say it, but when you live in a bigger city there are just more work opportunities, period. Events, meetings, networking, collaborations. Yes, I’ll have to pay more to live in a big city, but I’m hoping that what I get out of it will be worth it in the long run.

With so many more creatives living in Izmir, I’m hoping there will be a lot more opportunities to collaborate. In general, there is just so much more creative energy in Izmir — everything from the restaurants and shops and hotels to events taking place constantly. Everything in Izmir just buzzes with creativity.

Wrap Up

If people told me what I’d achieve in the last couple of years, back in 2017, I wouldn’t have believed them.

But primarily, life has never been so fulfilling.

Continual improvement is important to me. It’s something I’ll always strive for. I’m driven like that.

Nonetheless, I’ve found it’s also important to take on board perspective in equal measures.

Sometimes you can get so lost chasing the dream that you fail to remember you’re already living it.