It’s been a while since I last did one of these—last year’s end was so busy that I never got the chance. So, as this year winds down, I want to take some time to reflect on 2024 and plan for 2025.

Per tradition, I’ll start with the most significant event of this year: learning how to drive and getting my own ride. The agency this has given me to move around was more than I ever expected. I live in Lagos, Nigeria, a city notorious for heavy traffic, which affects the cost of car-hailing services. Having my own ride—and not having to worry about booking a ride—has seriously been a huge relief.

Work

As mentioned, in the last year end review I did, full-time freelancing has been my thing for a while now, and it has been incredibly rewarding in terms of opportunities it has offered, and gratefully, it has become relatively easier financially as well, I hope to continue this run of form into the new year as well.

I mentioned last time that I got into Toptal. While I’ve had the chance to work with some fantastic clients there, it hasn’t turned into long-term partnerships the way I hoped. Interestingly, Upwork has been my biggest force multiplier, letting me cultivate long-term relationships that keep me busy. I’m truly grateful for that.

On the learning front, I started exploring Kubernetes. I intended to take a certification exam, but time got away from me, so I’ll make a better effort next year—which is practically tomorrow, lol.

I also learnt Flutter - I'm not sure learnt is the right word, let me rephrase, I worked on a project using Flutter, and I really enjoyed how expressive and declarative it is—an interesting contrast to the JavaScript ecosystem.

I had planned to branch out into building apps for desktop, but didn’t come across the right opportunity. I plan on starting a project next year, which would hopefully nudges me in that direction, Fingers crossed!

Relationships

This year, I made some amazing friends when I stepped out of my comfort zone and worked at co-working hubs—shout out to Cafe-One, which was a random decision that really paid off. I plan on continuing this next year to expand and deepen those relationships.

I also attended an event here in Lagos, YPIT, where I met some incredible people. Interestingly, I got to meet the author of a newsletter I read daily, which was a pretty illuminating experience.

Health

As I always hoped, I finally got on track with my workout routine, and it really helped me. Everything seemed to fall into place. Here’s to keeping that momentum going in 2025.

I also plan on taking swimming lessons next year, and once I’m proficient, I’d love to include swimming in my regular workout routine. Fingers crossed on that. Another big goal is to take my health more seriously overall—regular checkups are definitely on the agenda.

Learnings

In terms of learning things, besides my initial Kubernetes journey, I’m still eager to dive deeper. Hopefully, next year brings a project that lets me do just that.

Another goal for next year is to complete reading the book, "Designing Data-Intensive Applications", I have always wanted to read this, but seeing the book with a friend of mine motivated me to get mine, so fingers crossed, Amazon delivers this successfully, and I get to start on it, really excited for the learnings and mindset changes I get from the book.

Another thing I enjoyed this year was discovering interesting newsletters: one of my favorite was the Payments Engineer Playbook (https://news.alvaroduran.com), the behind-the-scenes look at payment systems was super insightful. I’m looking forward to finding more gems like that in the coming year.

Looking back

Reflecting on 2024, I’m so grateful for all the amazing people I’ve had the opportunity to work with—they’ve really been the highlight of my year. I can’t wait to continue working with them in 2025.

2025

A new year is like a fresh slate. Last year, I set some goals, and thankfully, I achieved them:

• Achieved an Amazon Cloud Developer Certification
• Got my own ride
• Started working out
• Continued writing
• Hit some financial milestones in my savings

For next year, here’s what I’m aiming for:

• Re-certify my certificates, especially my expiring Google Cloud and Stripe certification
• Take my Kubernetes certification
• Travel out of my country, Nigeria: I have never done this, and I hope to do this
• Reach another financial milestone in my savings journey
• Become proficient at swimming

Towards a better year

I don’t have too many over-the-top goals this time; the biggest stretch is traveling abroad. Otherwise, I plan on sticking to my current path and doubling down on what’s been working.

Here’s to hoping 2025 is amazing for all of us. Happy New Year in advance!