5 things I learnt in 2024

With 2024 quickly coming to an end, I wanted to share five life lessons I learnt over the last 12 months.

This is the ninth year I have written a “lessons learnt” post. If you want to go back in time, you can read posts from over the years:

2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023.

One thing that has remained consistent over the last nine years is that I still want to put all these lessons into a book. Maybe one day. 😉

1. You will get fired

Note: I know that fired is a strong word, and some prefer “let go” but to me, the outcome is the same so I tend to use them interchangeably.

Similar to how your partner can wake up one day and tell you they don’t love you anymore, I learnt that your job can do that too. Prior to this year, I’d never been fired.

It took me months to truly get over it.

I was confused: was I not performing? But I have a link of everything I ship in a week: videos with correct aspect ratios, technical blog posts, plugins, community initiatives tracked with UTM parameters after UTM parameters.

I cared too much: my brain, gut, heart and soul was sold into this start-up. I’d say a solid chunk of my thoughts for almost three years were thinking of ways to contribute.

I was a walking poster, pitching our products to people I’d run into that worked in tech some way or another. That’s how I reeled in prospects that ended up Closed Won after I’d left.

It got to the point where there were bad times in the company, but I was so mentally prepared to go down with the ship even if it sailed astray from Kieler Hafen.

The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. – Steve Jobs (who, ironically, was once fired from Apple)

The hard truth is companies will have your back, until they don’t.

Business is business no matter how many times you skipped meals to meet deadlines or travelled every week to new cities, depleted of energy but you still showed up with a wide, energetic smile saying, “Hi, it’s Pauline from…”

I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. – Steve Jobs, Stanford Commencement Speech, 2005

Now I’m no Steve Jobs, but I did find comfort revisiting his story.

After being pushed out of Apple—despite being the founder and driving force behind the brand—he entered a new era building NeXT Computer and Pixar. His eventual comeback proved even more inspiring. He emerged as a stronger leader who, I’m certain, wouldn’t take shit from anyone.

I’ll be honest.

There are still days I think back to that little ship with ideas coming out of my ears to make the things I built there BETTER—to raise the bar, if you will. Especially as my new gig has equipped me with what feels like 2 years of lessons in just 6 months.

…But then I find some peace knowing that I’ve stepped onto a new ship. One that is actually a spaceship destined for the moon. Now, it’s on me to not “do it all over again” but move on up to that Next(js) level.

Learn from this experience and stay prepared—the reality is that most people will face being fired at least once in their career.

2. Water your digital garden

When the news of the layoff broke out, my friend Katie offered any introductions with anyone in her network. She added, “in case you need it, because I know you water your digital garden.” Since then, the term “digital garden” stuck with me. 🌻

As for the rest of my community, they showed up for me in full force—my social media quite literally blew up. I had endless comments, calls lined up full of opportunities, and referrals I hadn’t even asked for. The energy was overwhelming in the best way.

It was a small reminder that the seeds we plant every day can grow into something great when nurtured well. All the times I invested time blocks to reply to every message I’ve ever gotten, set up coffee chats, made the effort to stay connected with people I’d met in-person, shared others wins, and hyped up others work—it all mattered.

Eventually, when I turned to the digital garden I’ve been nurturing for years, I realised it was full of flowers guiding me the right direction. By the time I announced my next gig, I had 63 companies that were eager to work with me. All from my community.

Thank you. 💜

I became very aware that watering my digital garden was just part of who I am as a child of the internet and a very front-facing community person; not everyone had that as part of their day-to-day or even necessarily want to have this.

So for a month before starting my new gig, helping former colleagues land gigs became my sole mission.

We even created our own little alumni community, a space for venting, cheering, and of course, job hunting.

“Networking” isn’t just about the next job.

It’s about people. It’s about actually giving a shit. When you water your garden, you’re not just planting opportunities for yourself—you’re planting hope for others. So, start talking to people. Show up for them. And if you’re wondering whether to send that “Hey, I saw this and thought of you” message, just do it.

Every interaction counts.

3. Refuse the business of misery

Ὁ θυμὸς ἄνθρωπον φθείρει.

When people talked about how our environment affects us, I used to roll my eyes. I didn’t think it would make much difference—I believed that with strong will and clear values, others couldn’t influence you.

But I learned “the hard way” after spending too much time with someone who complained about everything. And that’s coming from a British person, where complaining is part of our culture! 🤷‍♀️

It wasn’t just grumbling about coffee quality, restaurant food or slow drivers in Athenian roads—it ran deeper. They were simply a miserable, pessimistic person who thrived in their black hole of negativity, and unfortunately, I got sucked in. A positive outlook seemed impossible for them.

As an optimistic person, whenever I’d share something upbeat, they’d respond by insulting my outlook, criticizing my choices, or giving unsolicited “I told you so” type lessons.

I’d share my excitement about a new personal best at the gym, and they’d reply, “Why do you do this exercise? What’s the point? Who cares?” or a win at work where they’d spend time taking a part everything I did wrong first before uttering a compliment.

It was disheartening, but the real danger came when I started adopting their mindset. Before I knew it, I was nitpicking everything about my life, other people’s lives, and the world around me. I became someone I didn’t like.

I couldn’t take it anymore—Taylor Swift said it best:

I’d rather burn my whole life down than listen to one more second of all this bitchin’ and moanin’

I’m not advocating for only focusing on good vibes (i.e. toxic positivity)—that’s the other extreme. Life is full of challenges. The truth is you are the sum of the people you let into your life. Be selective. Surround yourself with humans who make you feel alive, inspired, and supported—not like there’s a constant rain cloud over your head.

I slowly started to realise that I could actually not fix him, as he was my smallest man to ever live.

4. Embrace who you are

A fun “project” I took on was to grow out my natural curls. This was a huge deal to me because I’d been chemically straightening my hair for 10~ years.

This journey wasn’t just about my hair—it was about embracing who I am and reconnecting with my Filipino roots, particularly my late grandmother, who shared the same beautiful texture as mine today.

For years, I had tried to tame my hair, much like I’d tried to tame parts of myself. But this process reminded me that I didn’t need to be perfect, polished, or controlled. I let go of the ‘mask’ of fitting in and the fear of being seen as ‘too much.’

…Real talk though, I kinda am. 🤣

5. Own your timeline

If there’s one thing society loves, it’s a timeline. Graduate by 23. Get married by 30. Have a house, a kid, a dog, and a retirement plan all sorted by…what? 35? 2024 was the year I finally decided to unsubscribe from this altogether.

Everyone’s life moves at a different pace. Yet somehow, we’re all racing toward these arbitrary checkpoints, trying to keep up with milestones that might not even align with what we truly want.

As best as I could, I stopped asking myself, “Am I behind? Should I be doing more? Am I where I’m supposed to be?“

Instead, I started asking, “Am I happy with where I am?”

The answer hits differently when it’s your own voice answering—not society’s.

Owning your timeline isn’t easy. It means tuning out the noise, the unsolicited opinions, and the endless comparisons. It means giving yourself permission to just move. Move sideways, backward, or stay still if that’s what feels right. It’s your life—you get to decide what progress looks like.

✨ YOU HAVE FREEWILL ✨

This graph pops up on my feed from time to time, and it’s another perfect reminder of this lesson.

Stop running someone else’s race. Create your own. Take the scenic route. Hell, take detours. Because ultimately, the only timeline that matters is yours.

The more you spend time alone in the future, I hope you look back and think “fuck yeah, that was quite the route. That was quite the life.”

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What are the five things you’ve learnt this year? Let me know 😄

I wish you all a wonderful holiday season!