Hello, friends. Happy new year! I’ve missed you so. (Without getting lost in the weeds of details, I’ll just say that the last few months have been a bit of a slog in my offline life.)

Though I’m filled with exciting potential plans for 2023, the last few months have taught me to be extra-cautious. Although I’m a huge fan of goal-setting, I’m also keenly aware that all of our best laid plans can be swept aside with curveballs that life throws our way.

I’ve been enjoying the year-in-review posts from so many of my favourite creators, so I wanted to take a moment to check in, take stock, evaluate the year behind us, and look forward to 2023 with both optimism and practicality. I don’t want to make promises about what’s to come in 2023. But I do want to share some of my hopes, goals, and aspirations, in hopes that it might inspire you, too.

What worked out well in 2022: things I’m grateful I was able to accomplish

  • I'm so grateful I invested time into learning more about search engine optimization (SEO) – I was pretty nervous that my traffic and sales would drop completely while I took a long break from social media, but I was shocked and delighted to see my traffic increase month after month nonetheless
  • Moving the Calmer Notes website from Carrd to PixieSet (Side note: I’m still an enormous fan of Carrd and plan to use it for other projects! Just got to the point where I needed to expand the Calmer Notes website a bit more.)
  • Moving the Calmer Notes course to the MemberVault platform + expanding the course content and materials
  • Updating the blog to the Tuuli theme by Biron Themes

What I’d hoped to accomplish in 2022 (but wasn’t in the cards)

  • Consistent blogging schedule across the year (ended up with peaks and valleys)
  • A regular rhythm of email newsletters (instead, the peaks and valleys again)
  • Further expansions to the Calmer Notes course (I’m happy with what I added, but had plans for more…)
  • Launching a second course (plenty of progress made on the course development, but didn’t get it launched as hoped!)

Creator tools and apps I loved in 2022

What I’m hoping to accomplish in 2023

  • Continue to expand the Calmer Notes course
  • Launch a second course
  • Find a sustainable rhythm/routine for blogging and email newsletters
  • Expand the Calmer Notes team
  • Invest in SEO learning + strategy to continue to grow the reach of the blog

Inspiring 2022 year in review posts from a handful of my favourite creators

I love reading year in review posts from my favourite indie hackers and online creators! Here are some of my favourites from 2022 that I found highly inspiring (I'll keep expanding this list as I come across more):

Wishing you a happy new year, and hope that your 2023 is off to a great start!