My year in review 2025

This year is coming to an end, and I’ve learned a lot this year about being consistent with my writing. I’ve published 3 posts every single week for The Hotpot, and I didn’t miss a single one.

This has resulted in 156 new posts in the last year, and I can’t help but being a bit proud of it. Much of the writing comes natural to me—I just love to write so much, and it’s incredible to see some of the responses I’ve received to my publications.

Also training yourself to produce something valuable three times a week, and actually making it happen is a skill that needs to be practiced. It is definitely less easy than it sounds.

2025 was also the year in which we expanded the reach of the Tiny Bookclub. 5000 people tuned in on Instagram which is so much more than I thought it would be. Your responses and reactions have filled me up with so much joy at times, so thank you. Here is a selection of your responses:

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We opened my first shop in alignment with the bookclub. My sister and I have been working on the very first product—which is the totebag. My sister made the artwork for it and it’s just incredible to have something physical to share with you. Something you can touch and wear and that’s personally crafted.

Then 2025 was also the year I transitioned a little bit into nonprofit work. We made our first donation with the earnings from this platform. I made the pledge to the Malala Fund as promised, and I’ll continue coming year to donate 10% of my earnings here to the fund.

We also reached the first 1000th subscriber to the Tiny Bits Newsletter—in large part due to all of you referring the newsletter to a friend. Like a snowball that slowly started to move. We also went from a monthly newsletter to a biweekly newsletter. It’s a pleasure to continue to share all of these recommendations with you.

And aside from these accomplishments I’ve spent a great deal on the motorbike this year. One of the trips I made was to London and Oman, and I improved my Spanish as well. I also tried Apam Balik, a Malaysian dessert, for the first time. Apam balik is one of Malaysia’s most popular street food desserts that is commonly found in night markets and food stalls. It’s also known as the turnover pancake, and it looks beautiful.

If there is one thing I’ve learned about life this year, it’s that once you commit yourself to passion work—the rest will become so much easier. Robert Greene writes in Mastery that we learn more deeply when we are motivated. If a subject excites us, if it stirs our deepest curiosity, or if we have to learn because the stakes are high, we pay much more attention. What we absorb sinks in.

In other words, our level of focus will determine the depth of our learning. It´s evident to me that drive and passion will show up in the work, and more specifically: in the details. People feel it – it becomes noticeable.

Not only do I believe passion can turn into expertise, or mastery (I prefer that term), I believe it is absolutely essential. To not follow your passion in life is a recipe for failure and unhappiness. Most often people choose career paths that diverge from what really interests them because of pressure from parents and peers, or motivated by the desire for money. What ends up happening is that in our twenties and maybe even in our thirties, we can do pretty well in our work, even though it is not a passionate interest. We are young and have energy; we get satisfaction mostly outside work. But eventually our lack of deep connection to the field catches up with us, often in our forties.

We often fail to grasp that we have everything needed inside of us needed in order to fulfill our dream or our goal. We just have to believe for ourselves and our vision, with everything inside of us. What if Rowling believed them and never published it.

In many ways I think we as writers and creator have to accept that we enter an arena where you will find people who are able to see what you have envisioned in your mind which has not fully come to life yet or to convince them where you are heading towards. On the other end you will find people who are not able or willing to see what you have imagined.

This year has taught me that we should not wait or pay too much attention towards what other people think is valuable and then start doing it. Do it and know why you do it, and then trust yourself while doing it.

More about me:

I hope you have a meaningful start to 2026. This is my forth year in review. If you want to read more personal insights and recommendations, sign up for my monthly newsletter or check out the archive of upcoming annual reviews, which will give you a taste of how this labour of love continues.

Lisanneswart.com was born in the winter of 2020, as a destination to share my thoughts on books I found worth reading. I created this Bookshelf and started to write down my book notes – thoughts or ideas that I took from reading the book.

Books have guided me, inspired me and encouraged me throughout my whole life, and besides the act of reading it also gives me tremendous joy to share my reading experience with more people than my friends and relatives. Everyone connects with different parts of the story and I’ve found myself so many times listening to other people’s stories and fascinating life experiences.

Above all things, it gave me the opportunity to talk with strangers about books and to hear their stories.

the process of mastery by the way people transition from being a student learning all the hidden cues, to the practitioner. The master rewrites the rules he or she has learned and bring in their individuality.