Identities for 2021

2020 has been a unique year for everyone to say the least, it has been a long year. It has been hard for everyone in their own ways. For me It has been a hard year as well, where the days feel like chaos, where I have to learn to work and take care of a toddler at the same time and failing miserably. At work, I was given more responsibilities, given the extra challenge that I need to learn as I go. My stress level went up, manifested with my body and mental health. I've gained 10lbs and always feeling at a lost. The silver lining in all this is that I've spent valuable bonding time with my daughter and wife and I have the support of understanding coworkers and team members.

2021 I want to press the reset button, where I want to get back on track to being a better version of me. I've read listened to the book Atomic Habits, where the book describes to create an identity that you work towards to by implementing a system of small habits that you compound with existing habits. Those systems are to help work towards a determined identity. A good quote from the book that stuck with me was: "Winners and loser have the same goal."

With that in mind, for 2021 I won't work on goals, but on systems that align with identities.

Identity: Become a Better Developer

Every day, every month, every year there is room to improve your skills. Technology moves fast and you have to keep up with while strengthening the foundation layer of software development. For 2021 I want to focus on:

  • Continue to learn more about application architecture design through theory and synthesis
  • End to End (E2E) testing of Frontend applications
  • Building a large React Application
  • Learning Go for Backend applications

Get in Better Health

Being in good health makes other aspects of your life easier. This year I've run off the trajectory of good health habits. Part of my wellness was part of my daily commute and playing basketball. There was an adjustment that needed to be done since starting working from home that I didn't fully followed in 2020.

With health, I want to focus on:

  • Better diet: More greens, less carbs, less sugar
  • 16 hour fasts. I will be using the iOS App Zero to keep track of the time when I'm fasting.
  • Yoga
  • Meditate
  • Cardio
  • Better posture
  • Drink more water

Learn A Skill That's Not Work Related

I love music and I have always secretly wanted to be a music DJ. A few months ago I bought a Pioneer DDJ-400. For 2021 I want to keep practicing DJing and plan to broadcast mixing session on Twitch.

Who Am I?

My name is Omar Martinez. I’m a Lead Frontend Software Developer based out of Seattle. I've been a developer professionally for 16 years. I’ve been known as a “Jack of All Trades”. I work most of the time in JavaScript. This site is an attempt to share my thoughts and learnings. I love technology, music and video games. My dream job is to be a DJ 🖤🎧.

2022