Blink:

I do not make New Year’s resolutions. Candidly I never know where to start. According to research, New Year’s resolutions remain popular, with three quarters of people globally planning to set a goal for 2022. 77% of people think 2022 will be better than 2021 (source: World Economic Forum).

Read On:

Ipsos, a leading global market research company, surveyed over 22,000 adults in 33 countries to give their personal predictions for 2022. A majority were optimistic and indicated 2022 would be a better year than 2021. Reasons for their optimistic outlook:

• Progress in the fight against Covid-19, specifically improved vaccination rates.
• In regards to the environment, 60% of the respondents believe there will be more extreme weather events in 2022 caused by global warming, but expressed more optimism about the readiness of people to take action to halt it.
• Approximately one-third of the people believe their immediate society will become more tolerant driven by city centers once again becoming vibrant hubs.
• Interesting economic dichotomy – people are optimistic the economy is rebounding. They believe the stock market will stabilize, yet three quarters of people expect prices in their countries to rise faster than incomes.
• The survey also drilled down on what people were most concerned about in the year ahead – a natural disaster affecting a city in their country (39%), hackers from a foreign power bringing down their IT systems (38%), nuclear weapons being used (34%). Note: Interesting, outside of optimism related to the progress in Covid-19 vaccination rates 2022, the survey did not provide any insight about what percentage of people were worried/anxious about the pandemic. Was the question even asked?

My thoughts regarding 2022? I am neither optimistic or pessimistic. I am pragmatic. We all live in a topsy turvy Covid disrupted world, as evident by the Omicron variant racing through here in the European region at a record-breaking pace. Consequently, as a result of writing this post, I gave thought about setting 2022 goals. Again, like the start of every other year, I did not know where to begin. I concluded during these turbulent times the best I can do is to stay focused andnot squander, as in waste, any time as I further adapt to my new home. “Je suis content!”

Bonne Année!