2022: A Belated Year-in Review

So it's 2023 now. It's not been a habit of mine to write year-in reviews but COVID has made me somewhat unstoppable these days so here goes:

2022 has been a year of many things. I started this year in the hope that I may be something more than a translator, hopefully, a community manager and a managing professional. The world has never ceased to surprise me, however, as I ended 2022 more than a translator: I am now an English content writer, a data analyst, and of course, an MTI supervisor which is just an elevated version of translator. I am also deep in the Web3 industry now.

The Bad

Half of my 2022 wouldn't have happened were it not for the bad things this year. One of my long-term translation projects (at least I thought it was long-term) was slowly dying so I started looking for new clients. Little did I know that this little search for new clients ended up being an adventure that spanned several months and yielded unexpected results.

That project died in 4 months, during which time I tried all sorts of channels (at least channels that I could think of and considered worthy of my time) but had little response. I lost a full-time job to my inconsiderate and their lack of knowledge in English. I thought it could be my dream job, an overseas operation manager at a game developer and distributor. I turned down a full-time copywriter position at AliExpress after several days' of tossing and turning. I loved the way they recognized my writing skills but was somewhat not okay with the fact that it was a contractor position even with their reassurance that they would never treat contractors any different, which I believed, but turned it down anyway. It was the beginning of September, the hardest month for me in 2022.

I thought my dream job would be an overseas operation manager even though I loved writing (otherwise I wouldn't be doing this right now). I embarked on a misled journey of seeking jobs of this ilk but failed most of them. It was a frustrating month, full of stress and self-doubt. I was lucky enough to still have some residue tasks from other projects but would be running low on cash pretty soon because my house was still under renovation.

It was at the end of September that I was turned down by another would-be dream job of mine and discovered the vast world of Web3 remote positions. I started looking in this area and soon went into interviews with 2 of them, one full-time data analyst at a major exchange and one part-time content editor at a somewhat famous wallet app. It felt even more bizarre when both of them fell through for no reason. The exchange said I lacked experience even though I made it to the final round. The wallet app cut our agreed rate by 80% with no explanation. Little did I know, they were both blessings in disguise.

Apart from my eventful job-seeking experience, 2022 also saw me twice in the emergency room in just a week. The latter was more ridiculous: I choked on a piece of beef and went through a 4-hour labour to get it out (or push it in, to be precise).

I also lost over $100 to the Luna collapse in May. Not much, but it still stung for a little while.

The Good

I started 2022 looking strong. I was highlighted at an event in Hangzhou and later talked for the first time on a podcast. I was interviewed by a group of researchers as part of China's film translation history. I also finished my first film translation with proper credits (it's officially in the cinemas now: Hidden Blade/无名). I finished a game translation project with full control. It accumulated over 100K downloads on Google Play and later became one of the cornerstones that landed me my job.

I reached out to several clients but got little response. That changed at the end of 2022, however, as I was almost swarmed by various projects and had little time for other businesses.

I also found out about SeeDAO in September through a friend and now I am a reviewer at their translation guild.

Remember those 2 job interviews that fell through? That crypto exchange is now laying off nearly half of its employees with no severance package. Even if you weren't laid off, you will still have to work day and night just to make the managers happy. That wallet app company also proved troublesome, as a friend of mine who had been working there for over a year was laid off with no severance (wow that's almost unheard of).

It was 3 days after I was screwed by the wallet app that I found out my current employer was hiring content writers. I had my online resume and portfolio (my xLog) ready and got a test just hours after my submission. I submitted my test (an article, of course) and got into an interview very soon after that. The next day, they gave me an offer and I gladly took on it. Now I am a proud 3rd place winner of our Christmas crypto quiz.

I also found a part-time data analyst gig at a Web3 start-up, though I haven't done much data analysis yet. I was actively looking for data analyst positions partly because I wanted to have some experience in this area, partly because I realised how important safety nets were after my arduous job-hunting journey.

Apart from these money-making endeavours, I also tried several new things that did not make any money (at least for now). I took Ali Abdaal's PTYA for free (courtesy of a friend) and learned a lot about shooting videos and running YouTube channels. I started this blog (because I found Mirror hideous and clunky) and even shot several videos for my channel.

The Future

My 2023 plan should be relatively simple as it has already been laid out by multiple projects I'm currently working on. Other than those money-making projects, I plan to grow my presence on online video platforms and blogs. I will also be making changes regarding personal finance. I will be trying to build other systems that incorporate reading, exercising (moderately, of course), and various side projects back into my life.

2023 will likely not be a bullish year for crypto but such time is always ideal for builders and hodlers. I will try to hodl as much as I can afford and try to be part of building something exciting.

I hope 2023 treats everyone well, wherever you are and however 2022 may have treated you.