It's 2024 and time to be honest with ourselves
Thoughts on yet another chance to make things happen.
It's 2024 and I have the feeling it's going to be a get-sh*t-done year. 💪
Like most of us, I spent the last few weeks relaxing and unwinding. Loads of family and sleep.
No Linkedin. Rare Instagram. No news.
In my case, with capuccio and cornetto. And delicious Italian food.
And finally some mental quiet time to digest all that made 2023 feel like a sling shot—for AI, geopolitics, millionaire disillusionment (nod to Elon and X).
Last year way crazy, but not surprising, really.
I had the sense that there was a lot of gradual aha… going on. Not a sudden eureka moment, but more like many little slowly unfolding realizations.
Many conversations revolved around simplifying complex ideas; doing more with less, maybe the resources available, instead of taking on many new things; moving forward slowly, thoughtfully.
I didn’t experience the unbriddled (re-)actionism I observed during 2019 or 2020—or during most of the 2010s for that matter (the decade of exponential possibility due to technology becoming widely accessible, leading to very big business aspirations).
Will 2024 be about connecting the dots and making things happen?
I didn't compile a yearly prediction* because, in many ways, it feels like it's just a continuation of last. What I mean is that last year saw so many fascinating developments, I needed to take a minute to not only digest, but also thoughtfully translate it into something coherent: Connect the dots and try to make sense of it for my work, my everyday life, my aspirations for the future.
(*Also because there are so many good and informative ones going around already.)
So here are a few things I'll be keeping my eye on this year:
Very curious to how the many conversations around AI and GenAI will continue, from an ethical, economic, business and collaborative perspective.
Generally speaking, the shift from brand identity and vision as key differentiator to brand contribution as loyalty driver has been popping up on the fringes of the marketing industry. Will this year see more businesses translate intentions into real, felt impact—be it social, environmental, or responsibly economic?
How marketers will (finally) build stronger and smarter setups within their organizations, blending creative, CX, data intelligence and cultural relevance.
And of course: EU elections in early summer and US elections in late fall (this year's netflix-esque real world picture, most likely).
Those are just a few, and I invite you leave a comment and add to my little list.
Now, for a more individualistic perspective.
Some clarity is only spotted through the rear-view mirror.
2023 was my year of critical reflection; And social media received a big part of my attention.
Social media has gone through so many evolutions. I feel like it went from a great medium to build a reputation and business, a creative accelerator, to hustling culture that amplified the loudest voices, to a place of overwhelm and questionable dynamics (cancel culture, scams, bots and the like).
In retrospect, and on a personal note, it was time to take a critical look at how I wanted to show up in the digital space.
How, or if at all, did I want to use the different platforms? How would that help me achieve my long-term goals? How had those shifted or changed?
What would I want to contribute and where were the people I wanted to connect with?
As you can see, it was a deep year for me 😊
If you follow me on Linkedin or Instagram, or if you take a peak at my website once in a while, you may have noticed that I experimented with various forms and moved through different stages of this. Even this newsletter saw some new ideas sprout, like a few new episodes of my podcast mini-series.
We never speak of this process of evolving professionally, and its messiness.
But chaos is necessary for transformation. (Geez, that sounds douchy 🫣. Please read it with a mix of irony and candor, ok?)
I learned a lot about myself, what I want to contribute, and it affects the goals I am setting moving forward.
Not surpringly, it also had an affect on my work: I realized that my feeling of being sick of the way things are being done was echoed by some marketers and executives in the realm of business, with their brands. And by peers I rely on for a reality check.
I think there’s something to be said for that. And this brings me full circle to the headline of being honest with ourselves.
I believe we have to begin critically questioning why and how things are done on a more regular basis.
Business practices and growth. Professional networking. Social media behavior. Real-life behavior. Personal goal-setting. Basically: everything that feels it isn’t really working that well anymore.
Exploration and experimentation are important tools. But so is radical honesty and reflection about what we stand for, as businesses and individuals. That requires introspection. And courage.
I hope we find that courage to look deeper and broader, and examine critically, and strategically, how we want to show up every day. And 2024 might just be one of those thoughtfully productive, changed-for-the-better years.
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As always, curious to your thoughts: What are your observations? What are you keeping your eye on this year? I invite you to share and leave a comment.