Feel Good Friday - Adult Accomplishments!

[Amanda Barber]

It's Friday in Sydney!

I often hate those ice breaker type questions, especially when I don't get any time to plan ahead for my response. I stumbled upon one recently that gave me some warm fuzzies and thought I'd present it to the community.

What is something you have accomplished as an adult that your younger self would be proud of?

For me, I think my younger self (only 6 years ago) would be immensely proud of all I've learned and accomplished since completely changing careers. My MUCH younger self might be proud/jealous of me traveling to France and Japan.

So, community, share it - what is something (or a few things) you have accomplished as an adult that your younger self would be proud of?

[James O_Connor]

I love this one @Amanda Barber! I think my younger self would be proud of the fact that I moved to the other side of the world. When I was young, I couldn't imagine ever living anywhere except London - near my family, near all my friends, where everything was familiar. I was a shy and quiet boy and moving somewhere new where I had to make all new friends honestly scared me to death. When the opportunity arose and I gave it a go, I found that while it was hard, it was nowhere near as scary as I thought it was going to be, and now I have an amazing life in a beautiful sunny country. Taking the chance and stepping out of my comfort zone had a huge impact on my life, so now it's something that I try to do as often as possible.

[Amanda Barber]

Wow, love this!! Kudos to you for taking that brave first step, @James O_Connor

[Dave Liao]

My younger self might be impressed that I actually mentor others now (outside of Community!).

And maybe happy that I'm actually doing some coding in my career? ⚙️ ⚡️ 

But let's be real, my younger self would be busy playing Nintendo. 😉 

[Amanda Barber]

LOL, I hope you still give yourself some time to play Nintendo, @Dave Liao 🎮

[Dave Liao]

I barely have time for Pokemon Go these days! 😂 

[Kai Krause]

HI,

I think that my younger self would find it impressive that I am now much more Having the courage to leave comfort zones and start fresh.

BR
Kai

[Amanda Barber]

I can relate! It always feels impossible when you're younger, but I think there's a shift that happens that makes some of that courage feel a bit easier!

[Barbara Szczesniak]

Ooh, this is one to think about, @Amanda Barber. 

I think my younger self would be proud that I have moved on my own to live and work in 2 other countries. My first was originally for a 3-month stint, which made it easier to convince myself to go, though I ended up being there for almost 2 years.

She'd also be proud that I have bought 2 houses on my own.

[Amanda Barber]

Definitely reasons to be proud! 🥹 So cool, @Barbara Szczesniak! I'm always fascinated by your stories about living and working abroad. Thanks for sharing! 

[Barbara Szczesniak]

Thanks, Amanda. You did make me also think about how my teenage self would be shocked that I don't have a husband and 5 kids, but life goes how it goes.

[Jimmy Seddon]

At Grade 8 Graduation, my mom was embarrassed that my future goal was:  "To make a lot of money doing very little work."

I believe that 13 year old version of myself would be disappointed/exhausted at how much work I end up doing in a day. 

However, he'd be very impressed with how much I have been able to expand my gaming setup because of it ;)

[Amanda Barber]

Hahaha, love that perspective, @Jimmy Seddon!  👾

[Barbara Szczesniak]

I think I had a similar view as you, @Jimmy Seddon. I always said I wanted a job where I started at 10am, took a 2-hour lunch, and left at 2pm. 

[Tomislav Tobijas]

I've mentioned this after my last ACE, but my younger self would definitely be impressed by my presentation skills and ability to speak in front of a crowd. I remember being in elementary and high school and having enormous stage fright; even saying a few words felt terrifying back then.

These days, I can’t seem to stop talking when I’m presenting 😄
But honestly, I think it’s because I truly love what I do and could talk about it for hours.

During that last ACE, someone even told me it’s inspiring to listen to someone so enthusiastic about their work. :)
But, as @Dave Liao mentioned, little young me would probably be gaming and not caring about that at all 😅

[Amanda Barber]

Your accomplishments in the online space are also inspiring to many, @Tomislav Tobijas! Thank you for sharing! 

[Monique vdB]

I've spent a few days trying to decide which younger self I wanted to channel, and I'm going to go for 2012 me. The me who was cobbling together a living doing adjunct teaching and editing would never have believed a career like online community management even existed. I'm sure she'd be proud I had such an awesome job and was managing an incredible team. YOU'RE WELCOME, PAST ME. 

(That past me also had a tiny baby and this job allowed us to send her to private elementary school, which was really important for her social-emotional development. Lots of doors unlocked with that.) 

[Amanda Barber]

Ooooh, I love that added layer. Going to keep that in mind when I do this with my team! 2012 you is definitely amazed by you! 2025 me is pretty impressed, too. 🤪