The year that was 2014.
Today I say goodbye to being 25 and the year 2014. Being born on the second last day of the year means I use my birthday as my end of year reflection.
I look back at 2014 with a happy heart. If I was to reflect on 2014 solely based on the media then I’d conclude that the wider world was filled with lots of unexplainable pain and unthinkable disasters. But it’s important to remember that we always have control of our own world. We have the power to create a world where we are surrounded by inspiring people, work on amazing projects & create memories and experiences that will last a life time. We all have the power to make a decision today that will create a positive change for yourself and others in the future.
I was reflecting earlier today with a close friend and mentor of mine about the year that was. He mentioned how far I’ve come in the previous 18 months, sometimes it takes someone else to reflect on your life for you to to actually take a step back and smell the roses.
Looking back I’ve realised that I’ve been extremely lucky to be able to split my time between a great full time job that constantly challenges me and allows me to grow in my role, to be able to work so closely with the amazing team at Spur Projects and see the real impact that our work has on people’s lives whilst also finding time to fit in my family, friends, fitness (new trend for 2014), football and travel.
2014 has also reinforced for me the importance of identifying what you value in life and prioritising it. Luxury is defined as a state of comfort, especially when involving great expense. I beg to differ, I don’t think that you need to spend large amounts of money to find luxury in your life, based on where you place your value.
Luxury to me isn’t living in a fancy apartment or driving a German car. They only fulfil short term material needs. Luxury to me is having control of my time, doing work that challenges me and contributing to something bigger than myself.
Luxury to me isn’t an apartment full of stuff. I value experiences over possessions, meeting new people instead of new things. Asia was no longer a layover to Europe but was the destination in itself. Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Japan all called my name in 2014.
I look forward to my next journey, which will commence in less than 20 minutes, where I’ll be reunited with my housemates from London in Dubai. I land on the stroke of midnight as I turn 26 and I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate. I’ll then be on a a journey through Sri Lanka, Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong before returning home.
As 2014 comes to a close I look back with a smile on my face and can say that I’ve had a great year where I’ve been true to myself. Bring on 2015.
Damon Klotz 
3 Responses to “The year that was 2014.”
Love the reflection champ. Well done on 25. Happy 26 year and enjoy
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Happy Birthday my friend. It was good to spend a piece of the year with you again.
Great reflections and thoughts Damon, sounds like quite a year. I think 2014 also showed me that true luxury is having the time to do the things I love – and being true to your own journey and having great/challenging/interesting conversations and experiences often comes at no or little cost. Hope that you have a great trip and I hope our paths cross again in 2015.