For years, Warren Buffett has been writing an annual letter to the shareholders.
This idea of a ‘letter to the shareholders’ resonated with me. Writing such a letter forces you to evaluate your performance objectively. It holds one to high standards. It builds accountability.
This year, instead of doing an ‘annual review’, I am writing a letter to my ‘shareholders.’ The shareholders are my mentors, family, and friends, who have invested their time in me. Please consider this as a progress update report.
Contents:
To shareowners:
This year, I finished 10 core projects; ran 450 miles; lost 25 pounds; read 3 books; wrote 45 weekly essays, 57 strategy posts, 16 daily posts; recorded 54 videos; read 5 long-form articles; recorded 52 podcasts; and graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in Computer Science.
As COVID dramatically escalated, I managed to be consistent, show-up, and adapt to the week-by-week changing dynamics of work, studies, and life.
We overestimate what we can do in a day and underestimate what we can do in a year. Reflecting on 2020, it sure feels like I have done a lot, but it was far from what I experienced at the beginning of the year. Let's take a look.
The first case of COVID-19 in the US was in January. I did not realize the potential impact of COVID until February. It seemed unlikely that colleges would turn to remote education to limit COVID’s spread. On March 10, though, Chancellor of UC Berkeley messaged the community (see here). Below is the relevant excerpt:
Beginning Tuesday, March 10, we will be suspending most in-person classes and will be offering ALL lecture courses (including discussion sections), seminar instruction and examination through alternative modalities (e.g., Zoom, course capture, etc.) through Spring Break.... These changes are effective starting Tuesday, March 10, and will remain in place through Spring Break, which ends March 29.
Since my mentor was in the Bay Area, it seemed rational to visit him. COVID was spreading fast. On March 11, I visited him, to assist him with corporate work and learn. I assumed I'll be back in Berkeley by March 29. This was when restrictions were supposed to end.
Soon, the 3-week restrictions extended to the rest of the semester. The planned trip to Bali with friends was cancelled. College had abruptly ended on an uneventful note. Online education had begun in full swing. Since I was working, I had to manage work and studies, a tricky balance especially with technical courses like Neural Networks, Machine Learning, and Linguistic Science.
During this period, I created a database of the latest research on COVID (see here). In it, I summarized research papers and shared actionable advice. Many found this project useful and shared it with friends and family. I don't have accurate data, but given the feedback, I estimate 1,000 unique page views.
Before moving on with Q2 and my projects, I want to share the main highlight with you. This came in Q3.
I am proud to have graduated 9 months before the expected graduation date (ie May 2021.) This was helpful because I was able to make up for 2 gap years from 2015 to 2017. By graduating in 3 years, I was now at the stage of entering a 4-year institution in 2016. Yet, this was not easy, especially after a stressful semester in the Spring.