A Year in Review: 2024

Hello friends, followers, and various people on the internet 👋 Happy New Year’s Eve! 🎊

2024 was such a wild ride. In the spirit of constantly improving, for the first time in my Yearly Review history, I’ve managed to get this published right on December 31st 🥳💪🏻 (1 day better than last year haha)

Table of Contents

1. Why Am I Writing This?
   1. My Tradition Since 2016
2. B.A.G. Format
3. What I’m Grateful For
   1. Health:
   2. Career/Projects:
   3. Finances:
   4. Spiritually:
   5. My Parents
   6. Siblings
   7. Aeden Pham
   8. Angela Wang
   9. Shasia Rangel
   10. Solomon from Podcast Place
   11. Blessie Panopio
   12. Koreos
   13. My littles: Yerson, Jade, Ariel, Rin, Lisa, Tia, Katrina
   14. My grand & great-grand littles
   15. Karaoke Crew
   16. KND – Season 2
4. Stats / Achievements
5. Memorable Moments:
   1. January
   2. February
   3. March
   4. April
   5. May
   6. June
   7. July
   8. August
   9. September
   10. October
   11. November
   12. December
6. General Thoughts on 2024
   1. Growth Despite Challenges
7. Goals for 2024
   1. Theme for 2024: Deep & Purposeful Connection
      1. Career / Projects
      2. Health / Fitness
      3. Comedy
      4. Dance
      5. Financial
8. Goals for 2025
   1. Theme for 2025: Purposeful Service
      1. Projects
      2. Health / Fitness
      3. Comedy
      4. Dance
      5. Financial
      6. Spiritual / Community
9. Themes, Lessons, and Insights of 2024
   1. Main Categories
   2. Thank you 2024

Why Am I Writing This?

This post allows me to simultaneously:

1. Self-reflect on my past year
2. Share personal highlights with those who are curious or interested

These year-end reviews give me the space to recap memorable events, express gratitude, compile my personal statistics, and examine how much progress I made on my personal goals.

My Tradition Since 2016

Since 2016, I’ve been doing these posts mainly for my own records. However, these reflections may also be beneficial to others, so I write them with the intention of a public audience reading them.

For those who don’t know, I do 3 other types of journal reflections: daily, weekly, and monthly. This yearly reflection is somewhat of a compilation of those reflections but formatted in a more digestible way for the public.

Past Years In Review:

• 2016
• 2017
• 2018
• 2019
• 2020
• 2021
• 2022
• 2023

In a separate post, I’ve compiled all of the 2024 Life Lessons I’ve learned this year. My hope is that sharing my own hard-earned lessons will benefit those who may encounter similar challenges. I also want to compile these into a book one day, since it’s my long-term dream to become a published author.

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B.A.G. Format

For my yearly reviews, I use the B.A.G. format. The acronym stands for:

B = Blessings
A = Achievements
G = Goals

The idea is that to keep yourself happy and centered, you have to reach into your “BAG” every so often. This helps me focus on gratitude looking back, celebrating wins, and then redirecting my focus to the future.

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What I’m Grateful For

Even though this section is mostly dedicated to WHO I’m grateful for, I also wanted to write out the things I’m currently grateful for, especially this past year in 2024:

Health:

• Losing 12lbs thanks to my fitness coach, having accountability, and improving my discipline when it comes to food
• Finding a new chiropractic office that combines spinal decompression treatments and muscle work. This has helped relieve my weekly, lower back pain
• Generally recovering from illness/seasonal sicknesses 2-3 times this year

Career/Projects:

• Being able to work from home, having an amazing team, great managers, and having a lot of autonomy
• My podcast One Thousand Gurus finally launching! I also thank all the S1 & S2 guests who were gracious enough to be on my show without a proof of concept.
• Finishing my Relationship Coaching certification and starting the process of building a website so I can open my practice.

Finances:

• Mostly hitting my financial goals this year, along with generally not having to worry about finances or small decisions based on money because I’m very disciplined about my finances

Spiritually:

• Being a member of an amazing church and having been able to go on campus more consistently. And the sermons are always what I need to hear in that moment

Special Individuals

My Parents

I say this every year but I wouldn’t be who I am without my parents. My mom always supports me in whatever I do and encourages me whenever I see her. My dad also makes time to hang out with me when I visit, and I love hearing his updates on what he’s up to. My stepmom is always so inspiring to me because she works so hard for her family but also makes time to love all of us.

Siblings

My parents and siblings are honestly the only people I ever visit when I go home haha. I’m glad to see my sister is finally hanging out with the family more, ever since disconnecting herself from everyone these past few years. My little bro Jacob is thriving in Hawaii and seems to be having a lot of fun! I’m excited to see what kind of person he becomes and what he does after college. My baby brother Daniel is the same, yet his voice is getting deeper because of puberty haha. But he’s just as active and all over the place as usual.

Aeden Pham

2nd year in a row! I’m so grateful to have spent a lot of time and have had a lot of deep conversations with this dude. Not only are we on the same wavelength when it comes to our approach to efficiency and logic, but we also have similar humor. This makes hanging out always enjoyable. We can switch quickly from intellectually deep conversations to something so stupid and funny. I especially enjoy it when we film each other’s standup comedy sets, and we’re usually the only ones laughing at each other’s jokes (which perfectly encapsulates our dynamic lol). What I respect most about Aeden is he’s a man with the utmost integrity: he does what he says he’s going to do and keeps his word. He’s also excellent with communication and never disrespects you by ghosting you when you reach out. Surprisingly, this seems to be extremely rare nowadays, especially with a lot of people we both know. Which is why I consider him one of the highest-quality friends you can ask for.

Angela Wang

I’m happy that even outside of our relationship as (great-grand) Big & (great-grand) Little, it seems like we’ve gotten closer as friends which I’m super grateful for. I’ve admired her since before we officially became teammates/friends because of her work ethic, mindset, high standards, and leadership abilities. After joining our family, I was also happy to see she is just as loving and caring as the rest of us <3. Even though she’s been through a lot this year, I’m proud of her that she continues to push forward and work towards the best version of herself. She’s also one of the handful of people in my life who inspire me to be a better person. Her dedication to our team made me want to step up as a leader and find more ways I can contribute personally. I’m endlessly proud of her and will always be her advocate in whatever she does.

Shasia Rangel

I’ve always been a “fan” of Shasia, and seeing all of the work and love she’s put into our team has always made me admire her. And despite all of the personal challenges she’s faced, and all of the anxiety she has to overcome constantly, she’s still one of the most inspiring people I know. She is always trying to improve and cares deeply about those around her. This year, she was also kind enough to help me with social media/short-form content for my podcast, which has lifted a heavy burden for me personally. It’s nice to have someone you trust to be a second pair of eyes. For that, I’m extremely thankful.

Earlier this year we had like a 5ish-hour road trip weekend when we went to Playground retreat, then SFV for Tia’s birthday, and then Koreos social right after. Even though all the driving destroyed my lower back, it was nice to finally have a long and wide-ranging conversation with her after so long. It reminded me how much I enjoy talking to her as she’s probably one of the top people in my life I feel comfortable around. I know she’s going to try her best to understand me and not judge me, but also help me see things from other perspectives like her own. Honestly, that road trip and conversation with her was a top highlight for me this year and a memory I’ll cherish.

Solomon from Podcast Place

Even though he probably won’t see this, a special shout out to Solomon, the owner of Podcast Place in Long Beach where I record One Thousand Gurus. Even though we’re more “co-workers” than friends, I appreciate this guy so much for everything he does. His services not only allow me to not worry about the technical aspect of recording a podcast, but the quality of my podcast is exponentially better with his services. I always do my best to give him his kudos for having such a high-quality studio and set whenever I bring my guests in. I always appreciate his general guidance on podcasting, as well as the live engineering he does during my recordings. I can’t recommend him enough to anyone who wants to start their own podcast and is looking for an all-in-one service like his.

Blessie Panopio

Last but not least, special thanks to my lovely girlfriend. Every year we have our highs and lows (like every couple does), but I feel like things have been trending significantly upward this past year. I’m always grateful for her patience, love, and support in everything that I do. I’m also happy that she really seems to be finding her own friend groups in the K-pop dance community, and doing more of what she enjoys. And as much as I enjoy doing so many different things with my different groups of friends, she’s the person I feel the most comfortable with. Of all the people in my life, she’s the most consistent and trustworthy.

It’s such a blessing to have someone who loves and accepts you unconditionally as she does for me. It allows me to be the best version of myself. And for that, I love her deeply and endlessly ❤

I’m excited for each new year we get to spend together! As usual, I’m looking forward to finding new and fun things to experience with her 🙂

Groups of People

Koreos

Shout out to the team I’ve been on the longest. By the time this post is published, I will have been on the team for 6 full years! I just need to finish the 2025-2026 era (or at least 1 more calendar year) and I’ll have the record for the longest member on the team (and probably the longest LSHIP member?). We’ve had a lot of ups and downs on this team, especially trying to enact improvements on the team because cultural inertia is always a huge challenge. But I’m so proud of how much we’ve improved our team processes and culture. Although I don’t expect to get any (or much) kudos for the purposeful work I’ve done, I’m satisfied that a majority of the team is having a better experience compared to if we never tried to improve anything. My 4-year vision for the team was to create a safe and functional space to dance KPOP covers (inspired in large part by my littles from Lemon era). Koreos has taught me that the nature of true service to others requires you to detach yourself from seeking praise or rewards in the traditional sense. The real reward comes from knowing that you’ve left things better than you found them.

Koreos LSHIP

My favorite people on the team (besides my fam) because each and every one of them put their heart and soul into the team. They’re solely dedicated to extending themselves for the good of the team as they’re always the most engaged people. They’re also the hardest working and keep themselves accountable to the highest standards. Even if we can’t always trust the team to do what they say they’re gonna do, I can almost always rely on LSHIP to follow through on their promises. And the fact that we don’t always see eye to eye, makes me even more proud that we’re able to work cohesively together for the good of the team.

My littles: Yerson, Jade, Ariel, Rin, Lisa, Tia, Katrina

Most of my littles are “unalive” now (meaning not active on the team anymore 😢), but I’m still always happy to see them every so often. I make them take family photos almost every chance I get (sorry, not sorry 😜) but it’s just because I want to compile them for this blog post at the end of the year.

One of the biggest struggles I’ve had personally for the last few years is accepting the fact that my littles don’t and probably won’t ever love our fam as much as I do (an impossible feat regardless lol). It’s apparent when I hardly ever see them post our fam photos from filmings or our fam hangouts. Even though I know everyone uses social media differently, it sometimes makes me feel a certain way.

But that’s something that has been getting easier for me each year. It’s a lesson for me to detach from any unfair expectations I may be subconsciously placing on others. My job as a Big is to do my best to love unconditionally and not desire any reciprocation because that’s the type of person I want to be for them.

Yerson – My little bro has had his struggles this year, especially with people who he thought were his friends turning their back on him. Yet despite that, this man has been thriving with a full smile, which is nothing short of inspiring. Always happy to be around him and his energy, and excited to see what he does in the future.

Jade – This damn girl made me cry in front of the team when she saved her last goodbye for me, right before she moved back home to NorCal 😭. I was annoyed because I had to teach a dance workshop to Koreos right afterwards so I had to get myself back together real quick. But it was also a special moment for me because I love that girl so much and I’m happy she seems to feel the same about me. I’m glad she’s still able to visit and for some reason still doing covers despite living in NorCal, LOL. But one day I’ll see her in Sacramento because there’s apparently a OP restaurant/cafe up there haha.

Rin – I was sad that our plans to meet up while we were both in Korea failed, but I’m still thankful she was down until then (she got attacked by mosquitos the day before apparently). I also just remembered that I asked to film a dance cover with her in February, we filmed it in May, and as of this writing, it still hasn’t been published yet 💀 She likes going at her own pace it seems haha. But I’m happy that she seems to be doing well, and I’m excited to see her in our next fam hangout.

Ariel – Surprisingly I saw her much more than I expected this era. It’s always a happy surprise, and she seems to coincidentally arrive whenever we’re celebrating a fam birthday haha. Regardless, even though we’re not close, I’m always happy to randomly bump into her. I’m not sure what her plans are after she graduates this year, but my goal is to cherish each moment while she’s still here and always be present while we’re together.

Lisa – I’m grateful to see Lisa often, and happy to be able to support her filmings and events. Especially going to her birthday party in November, which is always a fun trip. Even though I had to drive three of our fam in a 4-hour roundtrip back home, I was still happy to do so. Very few things make me happier than our fam getting together to show up for and support each other. I’m thankful that she makes me feel like I’m doing something right as a Big, since she always expresses her appreciation for me ❤

Tia – Even though I don’t hang out with Tia, and since leaving the team I’ve seen her a lot less, I also really appreciate how much she makes me feel appreciated as her Big <3. Endlessly grateful to her. I always want to support her in whatever she does, and hopefully, she can come back for a few covers as an alumni here and there.

Katrina – The littlest of all my littles. The first quarter of the year was great, spending time and getting to know her, her dreams, and her future aspirations. The second quarter of the year was a bit rocky for her, mostly because of team stuff. It was really hard for me as her big to see her struggle through these challenges and feel powerless to help. But I know that as much as I want to solve her problems myself, all I can do most of the time is simply listen and let her figure it out on her own. The start of summer was a lot more fun together, but since August she’s been away studying abroad. I’m happy that her experience has been amazing so far, and hopefully, she’ll be able to cherish those memories in the coming years. When this is published, she’ll finally be back in the States! I’m excited to see her again and hear all about her abroad experience 🙂

My grand & great-grand littles

Our fam is growing, so this past quarter I’ve gotten a new grandbaby haha.

Tory – Tory couldn’t rejoin this year due to school, but happy that she still makes time to hang out with us for our family get-togethers <3. And thankful she took the lead in organizing our last fam celebration as it gets very difficult when I feel like I have to do it alone 😅

Alex – Alex, on the other hand, miraculously rejoined the team. Needless to say, it’s nice to have a carpool buddy again every so often. I admire her ability to face her personal challenges head-on, while also trying to grow and improve herself every single day. She’s such a kind and generous soul (both her and Lisa), and she sometimes buys me the best matcha drinks because she’s so thoughtful. I’m so proud when I hear about her ambitions, and I look forward to seeing her work hard to manifest all her goals into reality. Because if anyone can do it, she can.

Maddie – Our newest addition to the family, Madeline aka Maddie is such a sweetheart! I don’t know her that well, but in the short time she’s been on the team and in our family, she always makes an effort to bring good vibes to the group. She’s very caring like her sisters and her mom, and I’m excited to see her grow more on the team.

Angela – Not much else to say about Angela, but I’m pretty adamant about reminding her to do her best and get into grad school at UCLA (or at least close by) so that she can stay on the team another year haha. Because…..the team needs her very badly lmao. Also, I want as many of my family members to stay for as long as possible 😭

Dana – Sadly Dana also left at the end of Strawberry era, but it was nice to see her at our last fam hangout in the fall. Hopefully, she can make it out in the next one. I’m honestly not sure what she’s up to, but I have hope that if she has more time next era, she might rejoin? We’ll see…

Karaoke Crew

I’m always grateful to have Karaoke Crew as one of my most consistent friend groups who always make time to hang out and support each other. Not only are they some of the most compassionate people I know, but it’s always laughter and good times when we hang out. This is all you can really ask for in an amazing friend group like this 🙂 We’ve recently been doing this “Wednesday Waffle” idea we saw on IG where we each give weekly 1-2 minute video updates in our group chat about what we’ve been up to the prior week. It’s been super fun and a game-changer as we can stay updated and connected with each other’s lives regularly.

KND – Season 2

Grateful to KND Season 2 peeps. We grew to 19 people and even had a Vegas trip in the summer which was super fun! It’s always a good time with them as nobody parties harder lol. We even had a workout crew going on for several months which was fun yet productive. Even though I don’t have the time to do dance projects with them anymore, I’m glad that they seem to be active and still pursuing what they’re passionate about, as a group and individually.

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Stats / Achievements

Books read: 24

Movies watched in theaters: 56 (via AMC A-List + others)

TV Shows & Anime watched: 12

• Handyman Saitou
• Solo Leveling
• Assassination Classroom
• Chained Soldier
• KonoSuba
• Ranking of Kings
• Classroom of the Elite
• Rent-A-Girlfriend
• Shikimori’s Not Just A Cutie
• Date A Live
• Tales of Wedding Rings
• Buddy Daddies

Made it into a K-Artist MV: “Fresh” by Daniel Jikal

Big Screen debut for Enhypen’s documentary: Fanmade (2024) + J&B reaction (IG)

Reindeer Family hangouts: 5

• 4/13 – Dual birthday dinner + karaoke (10)
• 7/20 – Escape room + Night Market (4)
• 8/10 – Katrina’s going away dinner (2)
• 10/19 – Boiling Crab + paint scratch activity (8)
• 12/1 – Triple birthday celebration @Shabu + 7L + Round1 (6)

Days I saw Blessie: 15,12,18,18,16,13,16,18,11,6,18,19 = 180 times

• 21,26,45,24,24,17,27,53,25,23,52,56 = 393

Blood donations: 4

• 2/22
• 6/26
• 9/23
• 12/12

Average steps per day: 12,881

Total steps taken: 4,714,442

Flights / Trips: 9 / 4

• NorCal 3/1 – 3/2
• NorCal 7/4 – 7/5
• Japan & Korea 8/31 – 9/5 – 9/10
• NorCal 11/28 – 11/29

Dance Teams / Projects: 5

• Koreos Strawberry & Birthday Cake Eras
• Untitled
• KND Season 2
• Playground
• P&D

Gym workouts: 15,14,16,15,18,15,17,18,17,15,16,17 = 193 sessions

KPOP covers/performances: 16

1. Look – Got7 (Koreos) [1/10]
2. Crush – Seventeen (Untitled) [2/11]
3. Sweet Venom – Enhypen (Koreos) [2/11]
4. Offstage performance (KND) [3/3]
5. Easy – Le Sserafim (Koreos) [3/10]
6. K-Factor set 2024 (KND) [4/21]
7. K-Factor exhibition set (Koreos) [4/21]
8. Otis performance (KND) [4/27]
9. Ready to Love – Seventeen (Koreos) [6/2]
10. Smoothie – NCT Dream (P&D) [6/14]
11. Smoothie – NCT Dream (Koreos) [7/19]
12. Standing Next to You – Jungkook (Newbeat collab) [7/28]
13. Impossible – Riize (Koreos) [11/10]
14. Boom Boom Bass – Riize (Koreos) [11/30]
15. Lullaby – Got7 (Koreos) [12/5]
16. Impossible – Riize (Koreos) 10th Anniversary performance [12/7]

Dance filmings/performances supported: 56

• Jan (3) – Maniac, New Dance (P&D), Crazy Form
• Feb (5) – Batter Up, Dash (Shero), Tippy Toes, Wife, Untouchable
• Mar (3) – Plot Twist, Movie Star, Smart
• Apr (5) – Super Lady, Blessed Cursed, Luna, Magnetic, We Don’t Stop
• May (9) – P&D performance, Not For Sale, Only One, Midas Touch, Lucky Girl, Off The Record, I’ll See You There Tomorrow, Nonstop, Cake
• June (6) – Midas Touch (Shero), New Jeans, Magnetic (KBM), How Sweet (KBM), How Sweet, Armageddon (Shero)
• July (3) – Shero performance @BP, Maestro (Untitled), Sticky
• Aug (4) – Cosmic, XO, Forever, KPoppalooza (Koreos, Shero, Playground)
• Sept (5) – Crazy, I Do I Do (P&D), Touch, Westwood Block Party/Touch performance, Cosmic (Shero)
• Oct (4) – Sad Song, Girl’s Never Die (P&D), How You Like That, One Spark
• Nov (6) – Debut, Igloo, Supernatural, Cherish, TWS, TTYL,
• Dec (3) – Walk, Badtitude, Gotoe performance @TheSource (Koreos, Shero)

Visits to the bowling alley: 43

Arcade Basketball high score: 102

OTG Podcast episodes recorded: 21

OTG Podcast episodes published: 13

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Memorable Moments:

January

• 1/4 – 4th anniversary celebration trip to Temecula

• 1/9 – Winter Audition workshops + Katrina’s cake

• 1/10 – [Koreos filming] Got7 – Look

• 1/12 – Koreos Winter Audition
• 1/14 – [Koreos filming] Maniac @SMPier + Orientation

• 1/27 – Koreos theme park trip @Knotts

• 1/28 – Koreos Sunday practice

February

• 2/3 – [Koreos filming] Batter Up

• 2/10 – [Shero filming] Dash
• 2/11 – [Untitled filming] Crush @TheSource

• 2/11 – [Koreos filming] Sweet Venom

• 2/13 – [Koreos filming] Tippy Toes

• 2/14 – V-Day escape room @Unlocked

• 2/16 – Dinner w/ Karaoke Crew

• 2/17-19 – Koreos Photoshoot + Retreat

• 2/24 – Kat’s birthday party

• 2/25 – [Koreos filming] Wife + Untouchable

• 2/26 – MV filming w/ Daniel Jikal

• 2/27 – Bao’s birthday hangout

March

• 3/1-2 – NorCal trip
• 3/9 – [Koreos filming] Movie Star
• 3/10 – [Koreos filming] Smart + Easy

• 3/11 – Yerson’s class @KPC: Lucifer

• 3/16 – Dinner w/ Ed @GoPocha

• 3/22 – Koreos karaoke @IdolKaraoke

• 3/23 – Date day: Railbikes

• 3/24 – SpadeA RPD + KND hangout @IdolKaraoke

• 3/26 – Saki’s class @S1L: Panorama

• 3/30 – Dan’s party

April

• 4/4 – Birthday lunch w/ Dorothy

• 4/6 – [Koreos filming] Super Lady

• 4/6 – Birthday celebration @AMC @Round1

• 4/7 – [Koreos filming] Blessed Cursed + Sunday practice cake

• 4/8 – Birthday Benihana dinner w/ Blessie

• 4/12 – [Koreos filming] Luna @TheSource

• 4/12 – Karaoke Crew hangout (escape room, Thai food, DV)

• 4/13 – Reindeer fam dual birthday hangout @PixiuMalaHongtang @AkkoKaraoke

• 4/14 – [Koreos filming] Magnetic + Angela birthday cake

• 4/17 – KND April babies birthday surprise

• 4/20 – Enhypen documentary filming

• 4/21 – K-Factor + Koreos afterparty + KND afterparty

• 4/26 – Catchup dinner w/ Rani
• 4/27 – Otis performance w/ KND

• 4/28 – [Koreos filming] We Don’t Stop

May

• 5/2 – Open mic + dinner + KPOP x EDM clubbing event

• 5/3-4 – Mom visit + [Koreos filming] Not For Sale

• 5/5 – Kickback w/ KND @Aeden’s place

• 5/6 – Yerson’s class @KPC: Impossible

• 5/10 – Jae’s birthday celebration (Puesto, R1, In-N-Out)

• 5/11 – [Koreos filming] Only One + Ray’s grad show @Otis + [Koreos filming] Midas Touch

• 5/12 – Sunday practice

• 5/16 – Cherry’s Airbnb birthday party

• 5/17 – Date day: Seoul Bap, VR Universe

• 5/18 – P&D performance, gym, Koko’s, kickback @Aeden’s

• 5/19 – [Koreos filming] Lucky Girl + Off The Record

• 5/22 – [Koreos filming] I’ll See You There Tomorrow + Ray’s birthday dinner @KillerNoodle

• 5/23 – Blessie’s recording session @RJ’s + KBBQ

• 5/24 – Honors Alumni panel coffee hour

• 5/25 – Koreos Beach Day social @HB + BCD

• 5/26 – [Koreos filming] Nonstop

• 5/31 – [Koreos filming] Cake

June

• 6/1 – Koreos Banquet @UniversalCityWalk + afterparty @Kat’s

• 6/2 – [Koreos filming] Ready to Love + last practice RPD

• 6/7 – Karaoke Crew hangout @DV

• 6/7 – KND celebration (StarBBQ, Summerfield, R1)

• 6/8 – [Shero filming] Midas Touch @VeniceBeach

• 6/9 – [Koreos filming] New Jeans + [KBM filming] Magnetic x HowSweet

• 6/14 – [P&D filming] Smoothie @CSULA + KPOPxEDM event @Apt503 w/ KND & P&D

• 6/15 – [Koreos filming] How Sweet + Janie hangout

• 6/21-23 – KND Vegas Trip (EddieWorld, PlanetFitness, FremontStreet, OP Cafe, SAWEscapeRoom, OmniaNightclub, TacoBellCantina, BrokenYolk, TeaMaison, HonoluluCookie)

• 6/26 – AMC: Inside Out 2 w/ Kat & Aeden

• 6/28 – Hao’s birthday celebration (Rodeo39, TheSpoon, DDDKaraoke)

• 6/30 – [Shero filming] Armageddon

July

• 7/4-5 – NorCal trip

• 7/5 – Karaoke bar w/ Karaoke Crew @AlasToxicas

• 7/6 – Date day: K-Spa + BCD

• 7/8 – [Untitled filming] Maestro + IHOP

• 7/9 – Lunch w/ bible study group
• 7/12 – Shasia’s birthday bonfire @DockweilerBeach

• 7/17 – Shero performance @BP
• 7/19 – [Koreos filming] Smoothie @FDStudio + Chili’s

• 7/20 – Reindeer fam hangout (60out escape room, DS Night Market)

• 7/21 – [Koreos filming] Sticky + Issa’s surprise party w/ KND

• 7/23 – Lunch chat w/ Ray (JusPoke & BobaHi)

• 7/28 – NewBeat collab @KCON + MrBossam & HHD

• 7/29 – AMC: Deadpool & Wolverine w/ Kat & Aeden + dinner @BWW

• 7/31 – Dinner catchup w/ Dorothy (Kin + SweetHoneyDessert)

August

• 8/1 – Fam dinner @TheSource

• 8/3 – [Koreos filming] Cosmic @EchoPark + lunch @Yuchun; LSHIP hangout @Kat’s

• 8/4 – LA hangout w/ fam (BeverlyHills, RodeoDrive, Sawtelle, CenturyCity) + BINI Wishbus performance

• 8/10 – [Koreos filming] XO + fam dinner w/ Angela & Katrina (Blossom & MatchaMaiko)

• 8/11 – OTG recording #1 w/ Rani

• 8/16 – House of Seoul KPOP x EDM clubbing @ArenaOC

• 8/17 – Date day: Home Baking Day

• 8/18 – [Koreos filming] Forever

• 8/18 – OTG recording #2 w/ Austyn

• 8/24 – OTG recording #3 w/ Catherine

• 8/24 – 626 Night Market KPoppalooza + RPD

• 8/25 – OTG recording #4 w/ Yerson; #5 w/ Dorothy

• 8/28 – OTG recording #6 w/ Linden

September

• 8/31-9/4 – EF Trip to Japan

• 9/5-9/10 – EF Trip to South Korea

• 9/13 – Karaoke Crew hangout (DawaKitchen, Mycha, DDDKaraoke)

• 9/14 – [Koreos filming] Crazy

• 9/15 – [P&D filming] I Do I Do

• 9/19 – Fam dinner w/ Lisa & Alex (Katsumura & 7Miles)

• 9/20 – OTG recording #7 w/ Jessica

• 9/21 – [Koreos filming] Touch

• 9/21 – OTG recording #8 w/ Shirley

• 9/22 – LSHIP bonding; Westwood Block Party performance

• 9/23 – OTG recording #9 w/ Yuki

• 9/26 – Koreos community RPD

• 9/27 – Koreos audition workshop + fam dinner @Daikokuya

• 9/28 – [Shero filming] Cosmic @LACMA

October

• 10/4-6 – Koreos Fall Auditions, LSHIP deliberations, Orientation

• 10/8 – Yerson’s class @ML: Impossible (dance break)

• 10/9 – AMC: Joker 2 w/ Aeden & Kat

• 10/11 – OTG recording #10 w/ Poh

• 10/11 – [Koreos filming] Sad Song

• 10/12 – OTG recording #11 w/ Duy

• 10/15 – Jennie performance @JimmyKimmel

• 10/16 – OTG recording #12 w/ Lex

• 10/18 – Koreos hangout: AMC: Piece by Piece, RamenNagi, Teaspoon, Maze Room Escape Games

• 10/19 – Reindeer fam hangout (Boiling Crab, Junbi, PaintScratch @Angela’s) + ArenaOC clubbing event

• 10/20 – Oreos w/ Xinyan

• 10/23 – OTG recording #13 w/ Ryan

• 10/25-26 – Playground retreat

• 10/26 – Tia’s birthday celebration (escape room @TheBasement + dinner @BJs) + Koreos Halloween social @Kat’s

• 10/27 – [Koreos filming] HYLT @Venice + Sunday practice: Halloween theme

• 10/29 – [Koreos filming] One Spark @LACMA

• 10/30 – Dinner catchup w/ Julie

November

• 11/1 – Oreos w/ Caitlin + HHN w/ Koreos

• 11/2 – [Koreos filming] Debut

• 11/2 – OTG recording #14 w/ June

• 11/3 – [Koreos filming] Igloo + Supernatural

• 11/5 – Oreos w/ Chelsea + Nova birthday hangout (BCD, PotoBox, Sul&Beans)

• 11/10 – [Koreos filming] Impossible + Cherish + big/little reveal (+Maddie)

• 11/11 – [Koreos filming] TWS

• 11/13 – Oreos w/ Phoebe

• 11/15 – OTG recording #15 w/ Blessie

• 11/16 – Blessie’s birthday lunch w/ Karaoke Crew (INI & DV)

• 11/16 – OTG recording #17 w/ Aeden + DDDKaraoke & Mycha

• 11/17 – Oreos w/ Evangeline; Lisa’s birthday cake

• 11/20 – Blessie’s Benihana birthday dinner

• 11/23 – [Koreos filming] TTYL + Lisa’s birthday party

• 11/23 – OTG recording #17 w/ John

• 11/24 – Sunday practice + Alex’s birthday cake

• 11/28-29 – NorCal Thanksgiving trip

• 11/30 – OTG recording #18 w Andy

• 11/30 – [Koreos filming] BBB

December

• 12/1 – Reindeer fam triple birthday hangout (BrothShabu, 7L, R1)

• 12/1 – [Koreos filming] Walk

• 12/5 – [Koreos filming] Lullaby

• 12/7 – Koreos 10th Anniversary event + afterparty @Dan’s

• 12/8 – [Koreos filming] Badtitude + Oreos w/ Steph

• 12/8 – 5th anniversary celebration: Pirates Dinner Adventure

• 12/11 – Fox Holiday Party

• 12/13 – KM K10 Classmas

• 12/14 – OTG recording #19 w/ Alex

• 12/14 – Koreos Friendsmas + Secret Santa @Kat’s

• 12/20 – OTG recording #21 w/ Arnel

• 12/21 – Karaoke Crew Christmas brunch + Secret Santa

• 12/21 – OTG recording #20 w/ Julie (random show)

• 12/25 – Christmas dinner w/ Blessie’s fam @FSB

• 12/28 – Karaoke Crew hangout (Gerry’s Grill, Cafe 86, PangPang Karaoke)

• 12/28 – Blessie’s recording session @RJ’s

• 12/31 – NYE celebration w/ Blessie

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General Thoughts on 2024

Growth Despite Challenges

Even though this year had its challenges (physical pain, having to navigate people/drama), I feel like it’s been overall very positive. I’ve grown a lot as I continue to push myself physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

Physically, I can say I’m in the best shape of my life minus my chronic lower back pain. Even though my chiropractic treatments haven’t solved the problem or made a significant difference, I do feel like my back has been more resilient to all the dancing I do.

Mentally, I’ve learned a lot, especially now that my podcast has launched. I’m learning how to be a better listener and ask the right questions, how to create podcast content, how to deal with scheduling challenges, and how to delegate tasks.

Emotionally has been tough as there has been a lot of drama and interpersonal challenges caused by people, their egos, and their inability to listen or empathize. This has forced me to learn how to prioritize my own peace by letting go of the things I cannot control. But I think this is just a constant challenge in life. I’m thankful to have grown a bit from having to handle these challenges from different angles. I’m also grateful to the people who I can ask for advice, who will listen to my venting, who will stand up for me when I’m not there, and who continue to support me and my goals.

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Goals for 2024

Theme for 2024: Deep & Purposeful Connection

It’s interesting because while I’ve definitely aligned with my theme this year and connected deeply with a lot of people (both old and new connections), I’ve also simultaneously had to let go of ties with some people who I thought were good friends. I think the lesson learned is that part of life is being aware when some connections are meant to be cut out of your life and letting go when all the signs are there.

My past self would have tried (and has tried) to hold onto these connections because I thought it was the right thing to do. I’ve since learned that some people are only meant to be in your life for a period of time. Since I want to optimize for peace and happiness in my life, I’ve begun to see clearly when a person doesn’t align with that or does not have the same values I do.

Moreover, unlike my past self, I’m not afraid to let go of someone I once considered a friend. Especially if I’ve discovered they’re either toxic, egocentric, unable to navigate conflicts effectively, or lacking integrity. It becomes easier to spot people who lack integrity when I pay attention to the discrepancy between what they say (words) and what they actually do (actions).

Therefore, I’m actually blessed to have filtered out some of those people and simultaneously leaned into the relationships with people whom I feel are worth my energy.

Lesson: Not everyone is worth your time, so choosing who you spend time with is very important.

Career / Projects

• Goal: Finish Relationship Coaching certification program + get first 3 clients (free or paid)
  • Strategy / Action steps: Finish certification program by end of February, follow marketing program to get first few clients/testimonials
  • Semi-achieved – I finished my coaching certification, but haven’t started looking for clients yet. This is because I wanted to hire someone to build out my coaching website and IG page as a sort of professional “storefront.” I want this for people to see before they decide to hire me, as opposed to just hiring me based on my word. That will be the next focus of mine in 2025 now that my podcast launch is finished.

• Goal: Launch podcast, publish first 12 episodes
  • Strategy / Action steps: Hire podcast launch specialist, hire assistant to help manage/publish content
  • (Over)Achieved – Getting a podcast launch coach, as well as finding Podcast Place as an all-in-one service was integral in helping me finally launch. I was actually ahead of schedule and will have 13 episodes published by the time this post goes live, and I have about 2 months worth of episodes already edited and scheduled ahead of time. This will allow me to not stress out about getting behind on my schedule, as well as allowing me to go “off the grid” if I ever want to just take a break.

Health / Fitness

• Goal: 10-12% body fat
  • Strategy / Action steps: Continue fitness coaching, regulate sleep schedule (7-8hrs per night), cut down on sugar & caffeine intake
  • Semi-achieved – Coaching + self-discipline really helped me a lot this year to drop down about 12 lbs in a short period (particularly right before my Japan & SK trip). I’m probably hovering around 16% body fat, which isn’t bad. But I think I need to shed maybe 5-8 more pounds (from 143lbs to 138ish) to get down to my desired definition.

Comedy

• Goal: Perform at shows 2+ times/month
  • Strategy / Action steps: Weekly writing sessions, find new open mics, sign up for shows, film sets for potential video submission shows
  • Semi-achieved – We’ve actually been averaging about once per month, give or take, this past year. Each show is very fun and fulfilling, but Aeden and I both have a lot of other priorities so it’s hard to find a timeslot to squeeze a show in. I think once per month next year is a reasonable goal unless we really prioritize it. However, I don’t really see that happening with our busy schedules.

Dance

• Goal: Find, mentor, and foster new LSHIP for Koreos
  • Strategy / Action steps: Observe the strengths of individuals on the team, encourage engagement, and inspire new leadership through personal example of giving back
  • Achieved – I think our Birthday Cake era of Koreos has a solid LSHIP that has been able to build off of the great work done by Strawberry and Choco LSHIP. Even though we have a majority of current LSHIP graduating/leaving by the end of this year, I think we have a solid foundation for new leaders to step up the following year.

Financial

• Goal: Find investment real estate property with positive cashflow, continue to save for property down payment
  • Strategy / Action steps: continue looking for good deals in CA, and start looking for out-of-state properties that are cashflow positive
  • Not achieved – I think finding a property and investing are not my immediate goals as of now. I’m still building up my down payment, and it’s much larger than before. This means when I do find myself actively in the market, I’ll be in a better financial position. It’ll open up my options since I’ll have more money saved up.

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Goals for 2025

Theme for 2025: Purposeful Service

After taking a look at my goals for this upcoming year, I realized that I can connect them all through the theme of purposeful service. I was inspired by my podcast interview with Arnel Calvario where he explained that he doesn’t do passion projects because those are for people in their 20s with boundless energy. He says he only does “purpose projects,” which are things that are aligned with his higher purpose because he’s more protective of his time the older he gets.

After taking his words into consideration, I want to make sure everything I do has a deeper purpose. Moreover, I feel like I want to lean into service this year as a reminder to myself that it’s not all about me. If I can tie my larger goals this year to a purpose that also serves others, it’ll be more meaningful for me. Not only that, but it’ll help me with commitment and follow-through.

This year, I’ve added a “purpose” section to each of my goals to make sure each of them aligns with my theme of SERVICE this year.

Projects

• Goal: Finish building out my coaching website; have 5-8 paid clients
• Purpose: Coaching people 1:1 to help improve their relationships will improve their quality of life in the long run
  • Strategy / Action steps: Work with a branding specialist to finish building my website & IG, then reach out to networks.

• Goal: Publish 50 episodes
• Purpose: Consistently building out this brand/platform the way I envision will hopefully inspire other people to pursue their own goals and dreams
  • Strategy / Action steps: Stay on track with my weekly release schedule and continuously book guests from my networks & referrals. Possibly hire a scheduling assistant to deal with booking communication with guests as this is my biggest pain point at the moment.

Health / Fitness

• Goal: 10-12% body fat (continued from 2024)
• Purpose: Continuously pursuing the healthiest and most energetic version of myself will allow me to do my best work for the longest time
  • Strategy / Action steps: Continue fitness coaching, regulate sleep schedule (7-8hrs per night), cut down on sugar & caffeine intake, mitigate overeating

Comedy

• Goal: Perform at shows 1+ times/month
• Purpose: Improving my ability to make people laugh in this art form will bring joy to others through laughter
  • Strategy / Action steps: I think we just need to schedule weekly productivity sessions, and every other week we’ll do an open mic after that session. And also maybe scope out other open mics in the area.

Dance

• Goal: Freestyle Fridays / session & film (1/week)
• Purpose: Freestyle dancing is the type of dancing that gives me the most fulfillment and allows me to fully express myself. I feel like authentic self-expression is the best way to inspire others to do the same
  • Strategy / Action steps: I need to find a group of dancers who want to freestyle consistently (create one or join an existing one), and have some accountability for me to do this consistently.

Financial

• Goal: Donate $5k total to causes that matter to me
• Purpose: Financial contributions are a direct form of service towards causes that matter to me
  • Strategy / Action steps: Continue my current recurring donations to my church and various charities, but also be on the lookout for other opportunities where my financial contributions can make a meaningful impact

Spiritual / Community

• Goal: Volunteer consistently at church
• Purpose: The most direct form of service but within my spiritual community
  • Strategy / Action steps: Sign up for one of the volunteer ministries at Saddleback Anaheim campus (probably the Welcome team), and try to do the morning shift
    • This one is a stretch goal for me because I usually have too many random Sunday filmings and obligations that interrupt any sort of regularity I try to maintain. However, if I can sleep early on Saturdays, it might be feasible to wake up early for the 10am shifts.

Themes, Lessons, and Insights of 2024

I’ve created a separate addendum to this main post. It covers my lessons learned throughout 2024. Click on the header above to be redirected to that post.

Below are the main categories that encompass the list of insights I’ve compiled for the year.

Main Categories

• Love & Relationships
• Success & Happiness
• Health & Well-Being

Thank you 2024

It’s been such a great year of progress, I’m so thankful for it all. And to all those who may be reading this and have been a big part of my year, I’m so thankful to have you all in my life. All of these memories and photos are ones I’ve chosen to highlight for this year because I want my future self to cherish them for the rest of my life.