People

During my pursuit of happyness I’ve been thinking a lot about what actually makes me happy. When I feel good, I’ve been taking note and it’s made it very clear what makes me happy.

People.

In 2015 I spent a huge amount of time with other people. Lots of existing friends, but I also met new people and made new friends.

I made 3 significant trips last year that brought me together with lots of people.

In March I spent a week in New Orleans with the team I work with at Automattic. Being people I work with everyday it was great to spend a few days in close proximity getting to know each other better. When I got back home I missed them but it made our online interaction so much richer, and that goes a long way.

Fast forward to October and another great work meetup. This time it was the grand meetup. A well deserved name. With over 400 people now working at Automattic, this year’s GM was full of new people to get to know. By the end of the meetup I’d met 25% of those 400 Automatticians – that’s a whole bunch of great conversations/karting/drinking/Resistance/dancing with exciting and fun people.

In early December I returned to the US, to Philadelphia, for WordCamp US. With over 50 Automatticians there, I got to meet even more of my co-workers which was of course awesome. I also had the opportunity to meet with developers at agencies and companies I work with every day, including some folks I’ve not seen in a while.

Back home I made a conscious effort to spend more time with my closest friends – even if it’s just the odd pint down the pub – and I’ve spent more time with family. Just this weekend, I spent the weekend with my Mom, sisters and their families (which was noisy, given my 6 nieces and nephews!).

What I’ve noticed while spending time with all these people, and meeting so many new people is how fantastic I feel during and after. I’ve never been a social butterfly, and used to often struggle to be sociable, but the feeling I get from being surrounded by others, finding out about them, sharing in experiences and making new memories lifts me up no end.

I’m very lucky to have the opportunity to spend time with so many great people and form new relationships. There are two more people that I love spending time with, and that’s my children. While I’m having to fight again to see my youngest, my times with my little man are the most wonderful and happiest times. We have such a close and wonderful relationship, and he never fails to make me feel on top of the world.