022: The Best of 2023

January 03, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 17 minutes

howdy folks,

a big happy new year to you 🥳

i am sending you all the best wishes to you. I hope that 2024 is filled with health, happiness, joy and fulfilment for you.

a friend sent over a great question/intention to me that I want to share with you

“How can 2024 be the best year so far”

so whoever you are, wherever you are in the world. I really do hope that 2024 will be the best one yet.

as for me, I’ve been spending the past week reflecting, writing and creating for the year ahead.

i think the past week is always a weird one. It’s busy and a bit aimless as everyone is in take it easy mode.

but this year I Christmas + New Years alone which was oddly i great experience in the end.

i wouldn’t recommend it or would I choose to do it again.

but it’s been really good to get clear about things over the past week.

it’s easiest to hear yourself when it’s quiet around you - you know?

well anyways, i’m super excited for 2024 I am also hoping it will be the best one yet

i’ve got clear ideas of what I want to do, be and create.

and I hope to share it all with you too as a big part of what I want 2024 to be is

how can I turn up and be the best version of me while helping as many other people as I can do the same thing

that’s why I finally got finished building the life design check-in quiz!  But I’ll tell you about that at the end if you’re interested

for now, i thought it’d be fun to create a 2023 unwrapped

here are all the things that I loved the most over the year which i've broken down into my 12 life areas.

feel free to grab anything that looks interesting for you

here’s a blank list for you too if you’d like to do this little fun reflection activity for yourself

(i threw in links to specific things where possible - these are sometimes affiliate links. costs you the same or less if i find a deal or partnership . but helps support free content if you get anything 🫶)

The best of 2023

🏃‍♂️ Body

  1. 🏋️‍♂️ Workout: 60min daily walk on treadmil

  2. 🍎 Food: grass-fed steak, organic rice & local organic veggies

  3. 🚴‍♀️ Health upgrade: intermittent fasting daily

  4. 🧘‍♀️ Relaxation: chamomile tea before bed

  5. 🏆 Goal: 15kg lost

  • free - open window to reduce CO2 levels

  • $10 - natural mineral water weekly

  • $50 - air fryer

  • $100 - weekly organic/grass-fed food

  • $500 - 6 month gym/wellness budget

  • $1000+ - choosing to live in SE Asia

🧠 Mind

  1. 📚 Book that made you think: history of ancient Egypt

  2. 🧠 Mental challenge: write 1000 daily

  3. 🧩 Puzzle or game: Baldurs Gate 3

  4. 🎧 Educational person: Daniel Priestly: Key Person of Influence

  5. 🔬 Discovery: the ability to write even with dyslexia

🙏 Spirit

  1. 🌿 Spiritual practice: writing ‘letters’ to feel and let go

  2. 🙏 Moment of peace: mediation

  3. 📿 Meditation experience: guided hypnosis

  4. 🌄 Nature experience: beach in Bali

  5. 🎵 Inspirational song: mansur brown - touch

🤝 Friends

  1. 🎉 Best gathering: Justin’s wedding in Edinburgh

  2. 🤝 Supportive moment: walk & chats with James

  3. 📱 Group chat: lads from home

  4. 🎭 Shared experience: Justin’s Edinburgh stag

  5. 🏕️ Group trip: Techno night in London

  • free - voice messages, video calls, in-person meetup, Warzone

  • $10 - paying for a drink/meal for a friend

  • $50 - a night out in London

  • $500 - Justins Wedding

  • $1000+ - Flights to visit people

❤️ Love

  1. 💖 Romantic moment: Paris trip

  2. 💌 Love message: NYE call

  3. 🌹 Special date: Vaidile’s Bday in London

  4. 💑 Relationship milestone: Longest time apart

  5. 🎁 Gift given or received: Vivobarefoot’s

  • free - chats with a morning coffee

  • $10 - a cinema date

  • $50 - a date day in Paris

  • $100 - weekend trip. ubud, KL, UK trips

  • $500 - gifts over the year

  • $1000+ - investing in ourselves as individuals

🏠 Family

  1. 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family event: Ballyclare fam get together

  2. 🍽️ Family meal: Brothers restaurant meal

  3. 📸 Family moment: Family sing-a-long at Andrews

  4. 📖 Story or tradition: calling nephew & nieces “my mates”

  5. 🏠 Home improvement: helped spring clean mum's house

💰 Money

  1. 💸 Smart financial move: reduced business expenses

  2. 🛍️ Best purchase: Muji notebook

  3. 💰 Investment: bitcoin on crypto.com

  4. 👛 Budgeting technique: clear monthly expenses & runways

  5. 🤑 Money-saving hack: auto-invest in crypto/index funds interactive brokers

  • free - reduced expenses, time reflecting + budgeting

  • $10 - X subscription

  • $100 - monthly software costs

  • $500 - Rev Ultra

  • $1000+ - investments

🧑‍🚀 Work

  1. 💼 work achievement: still in online business 7+ years now

  2. 🤝  network: new connection on socials

  3. 🎯 Project completed: metalabs launch

  4. 📈 Skill development: public communication. Writing, videos

  5. 🏆 Award or recognition: 100,000 products sold 19,000+ this year

  • free - online self-education

  • $10 - running a ghost blog monthly

  • $50 - cost of 1 software

  • $500 - Futur Pro group

  • $1000+ - invested in freelancers

😊 Emotions

  1. 😊 Happiest moment: seeing Bonono live DJ set in Bali

  2. 🤔 Thought-provoking experience: writing has helped me be ‘more authentically me’

  3. 😢 Emotional challenge: being alone in Bali

  4. 🎢 Rollercoaster day: first few weeks of Bali alone.

  5. 😌 Calming experience: Sunday massages

  • free - daily writing 1000 words + duolingo

  • $10 - monthly audible subscription

  • $50 - Baldurs Gate 3

  • $500 - steam deck

  • $1000+ - flights/living cost in Bali

🌟 Character

  1. 🌱 Personal growth: being good with being on my own

  2. 📖 Life lesson: time by myself is the best thing I can have for me & others

  3. 💪 Challenge overcome: fear of sharing content online

  4. 🧭 Value or belief strengthened: self-belief that comes through turning up everyday even when it’s tough

  5. 🤗 Act of kindness: intentional time spent with fam. Giving what I can.

  • free - daily journal + creative writing 1000 words

  • $10 - ghost blog monthly subscription

  • $1000+ - investment in content production. camera gear, video editing, software.

🏝️ Lifestyle

  1. 🏡  lifestyle change: created my ‘man space’ in Bali

  2. 🚗 Transportation choice: bike

  3. 🍲 Cooking/food habit: air fryer

  4. 🌍 Travel experience: living in France for a month

  5. 🎨 Hobby or pastime: gaming on steam deck

  • free - time spent daily on me

  • $10 - weekly massage

  • $1000+ - cost to live in Asia

✨ Dream

  1. 💭 Dream envisioned: Building in Bali

  2. 🛠️ Step toward a goal: 1000+ new followers across socials

  3. 🏰 Dream destination visited: Paris

  4. 🚀 Aspiration pursued: 62+ videos shared

  5. 🌟 Wish fulfilled: 30/12/23 was ‘working/creating’ until 2am realised that i am having so much fun

my 3 takeaways from 2023

1. It doesn’t cost a lot to live the life I love

it costs on average around £1-2k per month just living. most of my expenses are flights and the increased cost of moving countries. (it is cheaper to live in 1 place long term as you learn how to budget better). but this nomadic lifestyle costs about the same as if i lived back in Ireland.

2. It is free to start anything.

i wanted to add in the things I do for free in this list. money doesn't have to be a factor why not to start. i also wanted to give a range to show that there is no limit. you can start from free all the way up to £1000+.

3. money shows where you value

i don’t spend much on myself - #minimalism. I spend most money back into the business - boring i know. but it is the vehicle that keeps me living the way i do.

when it comes to buying things. if i value something i’m normally happy to pay the price. like a new MacBook, AirPods, more for organic food etc. other than that my life is pretty simple day to day.

i do spend a good portion of what i earn things like visiting family, friends etc. but i’m happy that this is a mindful decision & worth it if i can afford it.

that's a wrap

well that has been a fun thing to do. i’ll keep this list and revisit it next year to see how I compare.

i’ve been finding looking back and reflecting as a great way to think more positively about the future.

it’s easy to get caught up in the constant race for the future. Do more, be more, have more.

so it’s nice to take a minute to look back and celebrate the life we have lived and in a way I feel like this makes the present day and future easier.

just because we can give ourselves a little break from ourselves. to be able to go “you know what - those parts of the year were pretty cool”.

it’s easy to have a negative head about ourselves so let’s design in some positive reflection time.

here’s a link to download a blank template of this list again. it's a simple text file that you should be able to copy and paste where you like.

you don’t have to fill it all out and feel free to remove or add to it. but if you think I’d be fun you can use this list to get you started.

I hope you got some interesting thoughts or ideas from my 2023 list.

I’m excited about 2024 and I hope you are too.

But as always, thank you for reading if you’ve got this far.

I’ll chat to you next week

Stay awesome

Matt

🫶

let me share some dope things that have been happening the past week

1. life design check-in soft launch 🥳

one more thing - this one is a fun one!

so you know the way I’m on this new open mission 👇

⭐

"i help people sell online, so that they can design lives they love to live"

― Matt Lok, the thing i do and share every day

well it’s probably no secret that in 2024 I’m going to commit as much time, energy, effort and resources into making this happen.

the first thing on my to-do list was to create a free self-assessment quiz. I’m calling it the life design check-in

here’s what it is and why I think it would be helpful for you, me and anyone else who is serious about consciously trying to make 2024 the best year of their life so far.

What it is

It’s an online quiz. You answer 60 questions which takes less that 10min. All the questions are about different areas in life - body, mind, family etc.

once you’ve answered you’ll instantly get a personalised report back.

it will show you an overall life fulfilment score and even scores for each of the 12 areas of life.

even better than that it will give you your strong and weak areas and even some suggested tips to help you focus on your areas where you’d like to improve.

it’s all completely free.

this is something I’ve wanted to create for years but just didn’t have the knowledge, confidence or time and space to put together.

but I spent time over the holidays and I am super happy that I was able to put something together which i think would be genuinely useful for people who want to design happier, joyful and more fulfilling lives.

Why is it helpful?

in order to design a life you love. You first got to know what you want.

but life can feel so complicated and confusing.

most of the time we just get stuck with a feeling - sadness, anxiety, stress, frustration. But we have no idea why and how to help move from it.

so the idea is you need to first get clear about where you are now and then plan a vision for the future.

this tool is just here to help you get clear of where you are now compared to where you’d like to go or be.

it gives you real quantified data.

instead of I feel unhappy about my body.

you can say I am 43/100 about my body. 43 is where I am at currently compared to the 100 where I want to be.

just by having a number -  43. You can start designing and planning steps to help yourself.

then you can come back to the check-in and measure again. That way you might realise that you went from 43 to 63 in 2024.

you have successfully designed your life and you have your own personal quantifiable data to back that up.

this is the essence of life design and how I believe it’s possible to design a life that you love to living.

it’s all based on your own personal goals, dreams and wishes.

you work on your life in the way that you want to as well.

if you want get a picture of where you are in life you can check the the life design check in here.

i’ll end this week on an idea on life design.

planning a wedding

if you have planned a wedding, been to a wedding or just seen a movie about it.

people can spend a year or more to plan out the details of their special day.

what to wear, where will it be held, how much to spend, what’s the food, who sits beside who.

this list could go on and on.

but what happens normally is that. The couple have a dream and vision of what they would like their day to be.

then they mindfully start designing and planning to make that a reality.

this is the essence of what life design is.

you get clear on what you want and then you mindfully start designing and planning to make that a reality.

now a wedding is important it’s one of the most special days of your life that’s why you care about the details.

the question id like to put out there is. Is our own life happiness and fulfilment not just as important if not more?

what if we put the same level of thinking, planning and designing into living a life that we love to live.

and we did this every year. we thought about it, we wrote about it, we planned it out and created steps.

would that not lead us to a place where we could be genuinely feeling better about the life we live.

That’s what I choose to believe but let me know what you think

Regardless of what way you choose I want to wish you the best for 2024. I hope that it is filled with health, happiness, joy and fulfilment.

well that's it for this weeks newsletter folks

wishing you a great week ahead.

let's chat soon

Matt

🫶

Stay awesome  ❤️

P.s  feel free to drop me feedback on the quiz. i'd love to hear what you think and if you felt if it was helpful or not. i really do value your thoughts & ideas and it could help shape this to help more people too :) x