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In what has turn out to be a practice, I’m sharing my year-end evaluation (per week late albeit). For a decade Alyssa and I’ve sat down on the finish of a 12 months to recap the highs and lows.
As a follow, it offers me a ton of gratitude. It’s simple to overlook about all the good issues that occur in a given 12 months.
We have now a concentrate on the dangerous, however there’s nearly all the time extra good than dangerous.
I additionally like to learn different individuals’s year-end opinions. When you have a 12 months evaluation to share I’d like to learn it within the feedback!
So, with out additional ado. Right here’s my 2023 Yr in Evaluate.
Issues That Went Properly in 2023
Visiting Japan
Japan sat on the prime of our bucket checklist for years. This 12 months we lastly pulled the set off. TBH, the value of the airplane tickets stung a bit. Let’s simply say it got here all the way down to touring to Japan or constructing a brand new deck on the again of our home (and the again of our home remains to be deckless).
I’m not mad although. We made recollections. We camped subsequent to Mount Fuji. We sang karaoke in Tokyo. We tried meals we’d by no means had earlier than and met some fantastic individuals.
Additionally, we camped in a 16ft RV for 2 weeks with our two younger children and lived to inform the story (Survivor has nothing on us).
So sure, touring to Japan was a win (the video above is one in every of a number of from our journey).
Our Acquisition of RV Inspiration
We had no concept what we had been in for after we purchased our first web site final December. All we knew was that we wanted to start out recouping our money move after promoting all our companies.
Because it seems, shopping for a enterprise is far simpler than beginning one. (Extreme understatement.)
Regardless of not engaged on the enterprise for a number of months at a time whereas touring, we grew income by 65% this 12 months and may have the enterprise paid off in Q1 or Q2 of subsequent 12 months. So that’s cool.
All credit score goes to Alyssa and our group of superior writers and editors. This can proceed to be Alyssa’s focus in 2023 as she’s cherished engaged on it and studying methods to make it thrive.
Perhaps we are going to purchase one other enterprise or two in 2024…
You’ll be able to learn a few of our enterprise updates under:
Roadtripping throughout UK
This summer season we took my dad and mom to Wales and England. Earlier than this journey they’d by no means actually left the US (Sorry, Canada simply doesn’t actually matter). We booked an RV for them and spent an unimaginable two weeks road-tripping across the UK countryside.
One spotlight from the journey was visiting the city of Wrexham in Wales. I’m an enormous Welcome to Wrexham fan and attending to see the Racecourse and purchase a jersey was superior. It was a visit I’ll all the time cherish. (We ate SO a lot pub meals!).
Signed up for Boundless Life Program (3 months of “world education” in Portugal)
This fall we spent 3 months in Portugal enrolled in a program known as Boundless Life. It is a startup firm centered on creating world education alternatives for households. They supply a Montessori-style college, coworking area, and lodging in a handful of cities around the globe.
We signed up as an experiment. We’ve all the time cherished the thought of spending an prolonged interval in Europe. Nonetheless, with children, it provides a contact of logistics. With Boundless, we felt that it could possibly be a extra sustainable approach to journey. The youngsters may make associates in a faculty setting and we’d have a while to work ourselves. Plus, we’d be in a brand new place to discover for 3 months.
Total, it was a constructive expertise. I really feel I may write a large quantity in regards to the highs and lows of our expertise with Boundless. On the finish of the day, the children thrived and we met a variety of superb individuals who I imagine we’ll have a continued relationship with. It’s one thing we’d attempt once more sooner or later if our visa restrictions/journey plans enable us.
Plus, I bought to check out browsing for the primary time and found a brand new sport (Padel!) that I cherished.
What Didn’t Go Properly in 2023
Youtube
This 12 months we launched greater than 50 YouTube movies from our RV journeys around the globe (New Zealand, Japan, UK). It was by no means supposed to be a enterprise or a approach to make some huge cash, however we’d hoped to see extra curiosity than we did.
As we sat all the way down to mirror on the 12 months, each Alyssa and I spotted that YouTube wasn’t a match for us transferring ahead. (One thing we truly realized in August, however we had commitments and a set runway to commit a full 12 months to Youtube.)
Whereas it was due partially to not getting a variety of traction in viewership, we additionally simply didn’t love the act of filming our travels. Hauling digicam gear together with hauling two children simply added a bunch of stress to our travels. The thought of having the ability to discover new locations with out filming sounded good to us. (Can’t emphasize sufficient that the digicam gear weighed greater than carrying one in every of our youngsters. And Eli is HUGE.)
We dedicated to a 12 months of creating movies and I’m proud that we accomplished that aim. On the finish of the day, we nonetheless had fairly a couple of individuals tune in to our movies (in the event you had been one in every of them, thanks!). Plus, we’ve some superb household journey movies I’ll all the time cherish.
However for now, the brand new recollections will go into my iPhone folder and never be uploaded to Youtube :).
Lack of Motion on Our Weblog (aka this web site)
We printed a handful of recent articles on HeathandAlyssa.com, however general we didn’t do a lot with our website. It’s not like issues went poorly with this website, however I don’t like having issues simply be stagnant. Movement is nice.
One drawback we’ve had with Heath and Alyssa is struggling to determine the route of what we wish this web site to be about. For a very long time, it mirrored our journeys in enterprise, life, and journey.
That is effective, however our lives have taken some twists and turns. Because it seems, it’s exhausting to maintain up with a private weblog once you don’t know what you’re doing along with your life.
Someday we’re documenting a campground construct. The following we’re touring with children. Subsequent, we’re shopping for a weblog on renovating RVs.
These pivots could make it exhausting to remain constant on a weblog matter.
So, transferring ahead, we’ve determined to dedicate HeathandAlyssa.com to simply ONE of the MANY pursuits we’ve.
Trying forward, HeathandAlyssa.com will probably be a useful resource for individuals planning RV journeys around the globe.
We’ll be publishing extra articles like:
Of all of the subjects we’ve lined, we really feel like serving to individuals make recollections by means of street journeys is one thing we received’t tire of. Plus, we’ve realized by means of RV Inspiration the ability of specializing in a single matter.
When you’ve loved articles like these or wish to journey to among the locations we write about, we’d like to have you ever stick round.
When you’re extra involved in our private journey, we’ll nonetheless be sending these forms of updates to our e-mail checklist (simply not publishing them on this web site).
Trying Forward to 2024
We’re nonetheless determining what we wish our 2024 to appear like, however we do have some plans trying ahead. Listed below are a couple of private and enterprise goals that we’ve.
Proceed touring as a household.
This summer season we’re planning one other journey to Europe. A number of months in the past I used to be having breakfast with some associates after they casually talked about they’d additional tickets to see Taylor Swift in Vienna.
With out hesitation, I supplied to purchase them (with out speaking to Alyssa). As an enormous Swiftie, Alyssa was bummed she didn’t get to go see her within the US. After I advised her I discovered us 4 tickets to Vienna, she was ecstatic.
After I advised my good friend I’d purchase the tickets he requested, “Are you planning to be in Austria subsequent summer season?”
“I’m now,” I replied.
We’ve 100% gone to nations for much less of a motive than to see Taylor Swift.
All this to say, we invited a few our closest associates and are going to make an enormous journey out of it. Earlier than and after we haven’t booked something however are tentatively contemplating UK in the summertime and Spain within the fall.
Ellie and Eli nonetheless aren’t school-age but, so whereas we’ve a window to be extra cellular we’re going to soak it up.
I’m using the Tuscany Path (once more)
In 2022 I rode a motorbike throughout Italy with a gaggle of associates. I cherished it. It not solely was a bodily problem, however an unimaginable approach to discover rural Tuscany. I biked by means of citadel cities (even one night time slept in citadel ruins), ate the most effective meals of my life, and met some unimaginable individuals.
We biked over 300 miles and in addition the equal in elevation acquire of Mount Everest. Final time we did it in 6 days and with a help van and my aim this 12 months is to do it unsupported and in 4 days (70 miles per day). PS When you really feel like becoming a member of me, there are nonetheless a couple of spots left however they’re nearly full!
Under is a video our associates Kara & Nate did from our time on the path.
Writing my first (actual) ebook.
On my to-do checklist yearly since I can keep in mind is to jot down a ebook.
One idea that I’ve thought probably the most about for years has been the thought of runway (particularly, emotional runway). I’ve even given a few talks on runway at startup occasions. Folks appear to latch on to the thought.
When you’ve ever listened to the RVE podcast or learn different articles on this website, you’ve most likely heard me speak about this idea.
The thought of an emotional runway is one thing that helped a ton whereas constructing Campground Reserving. I hit burnout exhausting and needed to give up a bunch of instances. Determining methods to keep within the sport lengthy sufficient and benefit from the course of by extending my runway was enormous in finally seeing an acquisition by means of.
I’m early within the writing course of however my aim is to publish a ebook this fall (saying this out loud for accountability). I hope to assist different people who find themselves working to deal with huge initiatives or startups themselves.
Your 2024 Objectives & Initiatives
When you made it this far within the put up, I’d love to listen to what you might have within the works for this 12 months. What are you most enthusiastic about? What are you constructing or engaged on? The place are you touring? Can’t wait to listen to from you.
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