2023 Recap | Manas J. Saloi

• Radical transparency on goal tracking: Set detailed goals across Body/Money/Adventure/Mastery, then honestly assessed wins (promoted to HOP, 110kg deadlift PR) and failures (lost 84K in poker, missed yoga/photography goals)
• Monthly breakdown with concrete metrics: Not vague "got healthier" but specific PRs, poker losses, travel days, and habit streaks
• Core philosophy: Optimize for "time well spent" over productivity or status—habits compound (food tracking led to working out, protein, water, running), consistency beats discipline
• Practical frameworks: "No double day misses" rule, 15-5-30 treadmill routine (15 incline, 5 km/hr, 30 mins), 12 months emergency savings, airfryer for healthy eating
• Life lessons from extreme self-tracking: "There's no budget for my health," "Ego helps achieve big things but stops you from making things right," "This is the youngest I will ever be"

This is a year-in-review from a senior product leader at Gojek who approaches life with the same rigor he applies to product metrics. The core thesis: radical honesty in goal-setting and tracking reveals what actually matters versus what you think matters. He set granular goals across six categories (Body, Money, Adventure, Mastery, Curiosity, Family) at year-start, then provides a brutally honest month-by-month assessment with specific numbers—deadlifted 110kg (up from 70kg bodyweight), ran 5K in 32.4 min (PR), lost 84K in poker over the year, got promoted to Head of Product for three divisions.

The substance comes from his frameworks for consistency: "no double day misses" (can skip one gym session but not two consecutive), "reduce scope but stick to schedule" (run 2K instead of 5K on bad days, but still run), tracking everything from water intake to expenses to poker variance. He shares specific tactics: 15-5-30 treadmill routine for calorie burn, getting a personal trainer for 10K/month as "one of the best investments," using an airfryer for healthy eating, maintaining 12 months of emergency expenses.

The philosophical insights emerge from extreme self-tracking: habits compound in unexpected ways (food tracking led to working out, which led to more protein, more water, running), traveling constantly for work is brutal in your 30s despite seeming glamorous, optimize for activities you can do when old and broke (working out, running), and "time well spent" matters more than productivity theater. His parting thoughts are refreshingly honest about family dynamics, ego management, and the reality that "we'll all grow old and die in some old age home"—so focus on experiences over appearances. The transparency about both wins (promotion, fitness PRs) and losses (poker downswings, failed goals) makes this a template for honest self-reflection rather than a highlight reel.