2024 Wrapped

Kicking off the new year with a review! For the first time, I'm posting my annual review right on Jan 1st. This tradition, which I started way back in 2019, marks its fifth year - we're halfway through to a decade of annual reflections!

Community

Friends of Figma Hong Kong had its biggest year yet, with our events bringing together more designers in Hong Kong than ever before. Thanks again to my amazing fellow moderators (Michelle, Arthur and Joey), we have organised 4 all in-person events with record-breaking 200+ attendees in total, half of which joined our biggest CONFIG Watch Party at Soho House in June this year.

On the side, I have accumulated 500 minutes of mentoring session on ADPList with people around the world! It’s truly felt wonderful to witness people secure new job offers. It's a reminder of the power of community and knowledge sharing in our field.

Career

It's almost surreal to look back the past year, I would describe it as one of the most challenging years in my career: launching a crypto Earn product from scratch, shipping countless visual and functional revamps, inheriting a new squad with limited resources, saying goodbyes and meeting new friends.

As I reflect on this chapter, I'm filled with gratitude for the journey, lessons learned, and most importantly, the relationships bonded. While new adventures may come, the growth and memories from this year will always be a cherished part of my professional journey.

Mindfulness & Journaling

2024 was also a year I started the journey of reflection and mindfulness in the latter part of the year. Starting a journaling practice, has been transformative (with physical pen and paper), especially for someone as digital-savvy as myself.

It helped me seek balance in both my personal and professional life, leading to clearer thinking and better decision-making. I’m looking forward to the day when my notebook is filled, serving as a record of my growth and experiences. Knowing this practice would integrate into my life and shape my perspective forward excites me the most stepping into 2025.

Stepping out of comfort zone

This year was all about embracing new challenges. Whether it was perfecting my latte art, advancing in tennis, or volunteering at work and at my wife’s social enterprise Agewhale. (Read the recap here!) These experiences pushed me to develop new skills and perspectives, engaging my mind and body in ways that a desk job and staying in my comfort zone never could. By placing myself in the position of a learner regularly, I've gained fresh perspectives that enhance my approach to design and life.

Looking ahead to 2025

As I set my sights on 2025, I'm focused on three key aspects to improve and to be better with active logging and reflecting:

1. Deep Work and Clear Thinking

In 2025, I'm committed to carving out dedicated time for uninterrupted work, monthly reflection, and journaling. As Paul Graham noted, the world will be divided into "writes and write-nots." I aim to cultivate my writing skills as a crucial part of my thinking process, cutting through noise and distractions to achieve deeper focus and clarity in my work and personal growth.

The result will be a world divided into writes and write-nots. There will still be some people who can write. Some of us like it. But the middle ground between those who are good at writing and those who can't write at all will disappear. Instead of good writers, ok writers, and people who can't write, there will just be good writers and people who can't write.

2. Authenticity

In a world where AI and LLMs have dramatically reduced the cost of content creation, authenticity becomes more valuable than ever. I believe people are still seeking genuine voices and perspectives. My goal is to cultivate and express my authentic self in my work and design, striving to create content and experiences that resonate on a deeper, more personal level with designers and builders alike.

3. Build More

Few fun projects I’ve built this year like Conversion Funnel Visualiser , that can generate proportionate SVG to be used on Figma or Figma Slides, or Better Deal on Raycast, a unit cost calculator on a launcher app. 2025 will be a year of filled with experimentations and creation creation. I'm committed to turning more ideas into tangible realities, leveraging AI to enhance my productivity and creativity.

Ending with my favorite photo taken this year at Miho Museum, Japan. The cover image was also taken there as well!

Read more

2023 Life Review

Welcome to 2024! As I embark on this new year, I find it important to take a moment to reflect on the past and the things that have brought me joy and fulf

2022 In Review & Life Update

As we bid farewell to the tumultuous year of 2022, it was a rollercoaster ride of both planned and unanticipated events. Amidst the ups and downs, I've set