2022 Year In Review

(Originally published January 3, 2023)

Alright, so I'll be the first to admit that I'm not very good at this sort of thing. I've also been in the midst of a difficult depressive episode (not to be confused with a Depressive episode, which would be a tv show about Depressive Hacks). So, in an effort to try to summarize & lift my spirits, I'm going to discuss 2022 in a very open manner and hopefully get some closure on the year.

Nobody needs to be told that 2020 was a difficult year. 2021 was also a residual difficult year as the world figured out a way to wrap existence around the existence of Covid-19. I'd say that 2022 has really been the most "normal" year since 2019, which we should all be grateful for. I wouldn't say 2022 was particularly enthralling personally, but I am very grateful it felt more typical than the previous two years and that things have improved on the pandemic front.

Now, what to talk about. So I started a new day job in 2021. 2022 I spent the whole year at this job. I'll be honest - I tend to get bored pretty easily, so spending the whole calendar year at this job I see as an accomplishment. The first half of the year went solid when the economy was doing better. The second half left a lot to be desired. I work a job with commission, so obviously Q1 and Q2 were a lot more fun getting that pay check.

My second job is entirely commission, unlike my day job which does have a base + commission. Things at my second job this year went really well. So well, in fact, that I got to learn about quarterly estimated taxes and knock out a good chunk of money I had set aside to pay the government. I earned a personal record amount freelancing as well (the bar before was pretty low, but still worth celebrating). Next year, tax planning will be better as I now know what to expect, but let this be a lesson for all of you internet income earners. Nobody is there saying "oh, here's what you need to know if you start making more than a few hundred dollars on the side" when you're working. I work some other side things that can help sometimes, but those are the three areas I'd really like to focus on most.

Now, what happened with this money? Obviously, I had to use some of it for existing. Things got expensive with inflation and so more than anticipated went to regular things, rather that's an evening out for a date or groceries or even presents for the holidays.

A good portion went to investing. I do all my own investing and this year was one to forget. I even tax loss harvested to try to lower my income tax. It was pretty easy to do because I was down sizably.

I will not sit here and tell you "everything is going amazing" when it isn't. I'm a big proponent of buying and holding, so my time horizons aren't really in question yet, but it would be a lie to say that this year went well. As someone who is risk tolerant and has long timelines, I was and still am pretty heavy on SPACs and crypto. If you know anything about how the year has gone, that hasn't been a particularly fun trade. I will say that some pluses occurred in my Fundrise portfolio, which held up quite well compared to my stocks. The diversification into that alternative was good and I see why I did it after a year like 2022.

I went through my first IPO with private stock I held in the beginning of 2022. I also purchased some additional private stock, invested in wine with Vinovest, and dove into the world of NFTs.

Ah, yes, the part where I discuss what NFT world has been like. As someone that has been investing since 2020, I can hardly tell you that I'm SUPER experienced, but NFTs are so different than most other markets. I have really ate it on a few projects that aren't looking spectacular this moment (I won't throw any under the bus, but have you really invested in an NFT project if you haven't gotten rugged?).

What's most interesting to me is that each project is so unique. Some are basically IP investments, which is an area I've learned a lot about and found you can also invest in outside the NFT space with sites like Royalty Exchange (which I'd love to use someday when I can afford to). The confidence in whomever founded the project to maximize the IP is really why you'd stay, unless you have a plan for monetizing the IP yourself (or if you just like the art & don't care about the money).

Others are basically investments in startup businesses. It's so interesting to me to get to speak directly with visionaries trying to kickstart their dreams through a new method of raising funds. Still, others are social or utility driven with holders benefiting from different perks the project promises. Many companies who existed prior to NFTs use this model to enter the space and offer some type of benefit to their real life entity that's associated with their NFT project.

No, I haven't made money there either. This whole year was a huge learning experience in investing. It's hard to make money in a down market, especially when you're not a super active trader. Instead, I'm going to focus on some other highlights from joining this area of investment.

I was brought on to community manage for Birdie Golf. Now, if you know anything about me as a person, you'd think "why would Depressive be hired as a Community Manager where talking to people is a part of the job?". I'd normally agree with you, but I work every day to overcome my terrible social anxiety that seemingly has just gotten worse since Covid-19 started in 2020. Coming up with different ways to work on the project, add value to Birdie, and engage others has really helped me to learn a lot about the space and I look forward to where Birdie can go in 2023.

Another major highlight was launching this website. Sure, right now it's just a blog where I ramble on about stuff and yeah, there's a little portion where you can find what I, the creator of Depressive Hacks, would list on my resume and work I've done both in an organized job and on my own. However, I feel that getting started was a big step and am excited for what could be in store for 2023. I will also share that I invested my very first money into this site (beyond the $10 for a domain name). I have invested for two years in all kinds of other people, projects, companies, entities, and ideas. This is the very first time I've put money into one of my own concepts and I am excited to see where it goes. 

Along the way, I've met countless people. I am grateful to know so many people who are working on developing different things. I was even so inspired that I majorly upgraded my work station and now am working away on multiple screens with all kinds of gadgets and tools to help grow all areas of work that I participate in. In a weird way, web3 has turned into my social outlet since I have such a difficult time trying to engage in real life anymore. I hope to work on that in 2023 but I appreciate so many of you helping me get through 2022. It was a hard year.

Work stress. Money stress. Relationship stress. 2022 was the culmination of a lot of stress. It's cliche but I hope to improve my quality of life in 2023. One major thing that I will share openly that I'm so happy about is that I was able to go back into therapy in 2022. That has made a major difference and is likely the reason that I'm still able to sit here and type about such a hard year in the midst of such a hard depressive episode. Winter is here. More depressive episodes will come. This blog will be here for me when they do. Not that I want to turn this into my therapist because I pay my actual therapist too much to do that, but it's been nice to focus my attention and efforts here in times of distress and have an outlet for my creativity, whimsy, curiosity, and learning.

Now: 2023 goals. I hope to grow this site. I want to be able to make more connections and collaborate to bring better reasons to visit depressivehacks.com beyond just listening to my ramblings. I appreciate every person who takes the time to read my content, but I'll be honest, it's not a ton of people. Creative new ways to engage and grow the brand, the site, and everything that this stands for since I launched it in early 2022 excites me.

I want to make real progress with my work. When I say that, I'm excluding the site for now. I want to figure out if my day job is where I want to stay. I want to continue to grow in my second job and hope to see even half the jump in success I saw from 2021 to 2022 during the course of this upcoming year. I want to continue to invest in things that fascinate me and that I believe in, as well as hopefully make some money. Cash flow was a HUGE problem in 2022 and I hope to correct that a bit this year. I want to continue to work on Birdie and help grow that year over year. I want to capitalize on opportunities that come my way. My sibling just did a vision board for 2023 and despite teasing them about it, I honestly don't hate the idea. I've never been a good planner and struggle in being concrete with my goals. I prefer to under promise and over deliver.

Anyways, I really appreciate it if you made it this far in the post. I'd hardly say that this encompasses everything that happened last year, but it seems like a good enough wrap-up, so we're going to call it. Please don't forget that I'm actively accepting resume applications to have your resume (anon or not) listed on depressivehacks.com FOR FREE so I can try to connect you with others who may benefit from your skills. Always open to ideas, collaborations, brainstorming, whatever. Just look for the pink Awkward Astronaut (#9179) across platforms; that is the face of Depressive Hacks and branding is important, so it's consistent (homeostasis). Thank you for your viewership; I hope to bring you even better stuff to scroll through on the toilet in 2023.