Year in Review: 2019

Writing yearly reviews like this is a great way to analyse:

• How did I fare this year.
• What worked for me and didn't work.
• My wins and losses.

I started writing yearly reviews in 2017 and continue the tradition in 2018. Now, this is 2019 and I feel it's important I don't break the cycle. While this doesn't reflect the whole part of my life, it's also a huge part of me as it reflects the person I am and want to be.

This year couldn't have started any better for me, I got a job and not just any job, a software development job. Heck yeah! I started work at Bubble mid-January after an interviewing process that took longer than I expected. During my time at Bubble, I got to work on amazing products using Vue (best part of the Job) and also got to work with awesome teammates who remain good friends till date.

I worked at Bubble for six months and I can honestly say it was a great experience as it pushed me out of my comfort zone. I got to learn new things and I'm grateful for that.

I also started my NYSC, finally!! I thought I was never gonna go for service but it finally happened. The 3 weeks cmping experience was great, I can't even lie about it. It was one of my best experiences this year. The fact that I did some crazy stuff beyond my imagination is worthy enough to qualify it so. From participating in a drama for the first time to singing in a choral group also for the first time all in front of an audience was nerve-racking and exciting. I also discovered meeting new people was something I enjoy a lot and I did a lot of that during this period.

I became 24 this year. Damn! I'm old already.

Personal Development

• Coding: I grew a lot thanks to my work experience. I also learned new technologies such as Nuxt, Typescript(this didn't go well) and most importantly React(I just couldn't avoid this anymore). I also tried to dabble with new programming languages like Golang and Python. Golang, I did not enjoy, Python, well I'll be spending more time with it in the future.
• Reading: I failed miserably at reading. Nothing more to say :(

Blogging

I failed at this too. I guess no one ever tells you how hard is it to sit down and write. Well, I'm telling you now. It's freaking hard and makes me uncomfortable just thinking about doing it.

2020?

• Getting a job. Need I say more?
• I'd love to create a community and become involved in community building.
• I'd also love to speak at a meetup or a conference. I need to get over my impostor syndrome and start applying.
• Blogging, yes, I still want to attempt this. Don't look at me. I will get it right this time, I promise. I also want to start a newsletter to engage readers on my blog if any
• Learn in public. I want to be intentional about a lot of things. I want to become more engaged on twitter, tweet things I learn, join in the conversations. Hopefully, a lot of things I'll be doing is to help build a personal brand and try to create an image for myself in the developer's community both online and offline. You can learn about the concept here.

My goals for 2020 is to be relentlessly consistent, irrespective of whether or not I'm motivated.

Conclusion

Overall, it's been an exciting year but not without its challenges. To be honest, I'm not proud of how it went, maybe I'm being too hard on myself but regardless, we move!

To everyone that has been a part of the journey, thank you so much.

I'm optimistic for 2020. I want to be better, do better and become better. I want to be deliberate with my goals and progress. Try and build systems around my good habits and be meticulous in keeping tracks of my goals.

Here’s to a much better year ahead. 🍻