New year, big changes
At the start of a new year, it’s almost a ritual for people to seek some form of self-renewal or change. It often begins with a social media post announcing our resolutions, with a list of bad habits to break, or new goals to pursue. Some aspire to lose weight, some to pick up a new language, others look for career advancements.
But how do you know the goals that you set for yourself will bring you what you genuinely want?
Years ago, I had visiting Cuba down as one of my goals. The Caribbean archipelago, I was told, had preserved the alternate beauty of decay from its distorted building structures, faded paints, rugged facades and broken-down doors that made it one of the last frontiers on the wish list of many intrepid travellers. Vintage cars and handrolled cigars simply make the country all the more alluring.
So, as travel restrictions loosened, I gave myself a week-long trip to Havana last month. My friend and I set off into unknown with a down-for-anything attitude and trusted that the beauty of the place – at least from our impressions – would trump any challenges.
We were soon proven wrong.
As charming as it is, the Cuban capital can be a place that tests your patience. On a half-hour walk, we were approached by no less then 10 strangers trying to sell us cigars and currency exchange services. Some of them even tried to get us to divulge where we came from, and where we were staying.
All this came on top of my credit cards getting mysteriously blocked, and my friend picking up a bad stomach flu on the day of our departure. Half of the time we spent there was with feelings of impotence and despair.
But since there was no going back, we gave ourselves an exercise – to treat negative emotions by being positive. Magically, the unpleasant feelings went away much faster than expected, making more room for more enjoyable experiences – the nice long dinner I had with my friend at a lovely Havana square; the inspiring conversation with a tobacco plant owner; the “happy cappuccino” treated with Baileys and cinnamon; and the thrill of overcoming our challenges together.
So back to my question – how do we know our New Year’s resolutions or goals are truly what we want?
We don’t. But identifying your resolutions or goals is a necessary step when you decide to explore new things or to change things up.
And change is happening here at Home Journal. This year, we bid farewell to a traditional publishing model and we welcome an exciting new one – one that is more relevant and value-added – as we open our arms to an integrated transformation that will see a stronger digital and event presence in 2023.
In sync with current reading behaviour, from this year on we will be delivering interior designs, lifestyle and art inspirations – which remain paramount to our business – in a hybrid format. First, we are bringing our monthly magazine online, along with other stories, through our website, social media and e-newsletters.
Meanwhile, the print edition of Home Journal is shifting to a quarterly frequency, launching in February, May, August and November with enriched editorial content and an increased page count that will offer you more valuable design insights and inspirations.
Scaling down our regular physical editions doesn’t mean we are ready to give up on print. Instead, it comes as a two-pronged approach to bring you more value-added content, as a greater number of special print editions are in the pipeline.
They include the Home Journal Top 50 – a curated list of best interior design talents in the city; an upgraded version of Home Solutions; and a brand-new directory that looks at home products from a more holistic approach.
On the event front, a more engaging and busier schedule is already underway. Apart from the annual Home Journal Awards, and all-year cross-over initiatives between interior designers and lifestyle brands, we will also introduce more networking events and campaigns that aim to bring the industry even closer together.
As shown by my Cuba trip, embracing change can lead to positive experiences. Here at Home Journal we are excited by what the future holds – and confident our print/digital shake-up will pave the way for a more interactive, immersive reading experience for our loyal readers.
All in all, we are excited to see what the future holds. Please, enjoy the issue.
每當踏入新一年，我們總希望為自己作出某種改變。不少人在社交平台宣佈自己的新年願望，列出想要改掉的壞習慣、想要實現的目標等。這些目標或大或小，有人希望減肥成功，有人打算學習一門外語，有人計劃在事業上更上一層樓。
但我們如何確定，訂立的目標都是自己真正追求的？
數年前，我也為自己擬定了一個願望——到古巴旅行。據說這個加勒比群島的景色風情萬種，街道上破舊的樓房、剝落的牆漆和日久失修的門窗，自然而然地拼湊出一種與別不同的缺陷美。古巴的魅力當然還有色彩紛呈的老爺車及手捲雪茄，吸引了不少熱愛冒險的旅人慕名而來，希望親身感受這個神秘國度所帶來的別樣體驗。
適逢防疫限制進一步放寬，上月我便決定花一星期的時間走一趟夏灣拿，是圓夢，也是對自己的挑戰。我與友人抱著放膽一試的心態向未知出發，相信這個地方的美，足以抵消所有難關與挑戰。但我們都錯了。
夏灣拿的景色的確千嬌百媚，但遊走這裡的大街小巷，實在是對耐性的一大考驗。在半小時的行逛中，有至少十名陌生人上前向我們兜售雪茄及外幣兌換服務。有些甚至試圖與我們攀談，並問及我們從哪裡來、住哪一間酒店。
而且到埗後，我才發現我的信用卡在當地不能使用、友人在回程當天亦得了嚴重的腸胃炎，令一星期的旅程，充滿了失望與無奈。
但人已在古巴，我們只好嘗試靠自己消化壞情緒。這才發現，原來情緒一樣會新陳代謝。越早學會接納失望與無奈感，這些壞情緒便越快被消化、排走。這個去舊換新的過程，能讓我們騰出更多空間感受美好事物——與友人在哈瓦那廣場的一頓愉快晚餐、與煙草園老闆的一席話、混合Baileys甜酒和肉桂製作的「Happy Cappuccino」，以及一起克服難關的成功感等。
現在回到我的提問——我們如何確定為自己擬定的願望，都是我們真正追求的？
答案是，我們不能確定。但我們也不必確定，因為訂立目標是尋找答案的第一步，那怕過程困難重重。
因此，今年《美好家居》也訂下全新方向，以更多元化的出版模式為大家帶來更貼近生活的閱讀體驗。我們將更與時並進，務求在數碼內容以至活動的層面上，都比去年更加豐富、更有價值。
為配合現今閱讀潮流，我們決定把《美好家居》印刷版數碼化，透過網頁、社交媒體及電子報出版，繼續把設計、生活及藝術靈感，以更貼近大眾閱讀習慣的方式呈現。
與此同時，《美好家居》印刷版將由月刊變成季刊，分別於2月、5月、8月和11月出版。季刊內容將更加豐富，頁數亦將大幅增加，為讀者帶來更有價值的設計洞見及靈感。
把內容數碼化，並不代表我們否定實體書的價值。相反，我們將推出更多實體版特別號，包括最佳室內設計師名單《Home Journal Top 50》、加碼版家居裝飾指南《Home Solutions》，以及更全面的家具指南，線上與線下雙管齊下，為內容增值。
活動方面，今年《美好家居》將迎來更豐富、精彩的節目陣容。除了一年一度的頒獎典禮、品牌與室內設計師的聯乘合作，我們亦會舉辦更多聯誼、分享等活動，以加深品牌、室內設計師與讀者之間的連繫。
就像古巴之行一樣，尋求改變與進步從來不易。但《美好家居》相信，惟有改變，才能讓我們走得更遠。一連串的數碼轉型，相信能為讀者帶來更互動、更全面的閱讀體驗。希望你喜歡。