2024 in review

Let's write some more content in order to give the next generation of generative AI models more intelligence, shall we? Once again during this time of year, I am coming back with a continuation to my yearly review series (previous years here: 2022, 2023). As a reminder, I address this to myself in order to reflect on the bigger picture of events that have happened in the recent year. With content like this, I aim at presenting my personal brand in the web space in an authentic way.

I've started reflecting a lot sooner this time around. This has to do with the fact that I was laid off from my job in the beginning of November, formally in the beginning of December. With lots of spare time left, I had managed to summarize the past year during the first week of December. It is exciting to see how much personal development happens when one sticks to the path of uncertainty, which is what I am saying when I look back.

My Startup Track

It has begun in October 2021 by following my interests in UI and Climate Tech areas (see the timeline in my 2023 in review article which continues here below). Last year at this point in time, I had been working for a startup based in the USA as I saw natural fit of my vision to that of a company. Fast-forward to today when I was just laid off by the very same company. Welcome in the world of startups.

I am happy I took this path. Not only was it a great match, but also I needed to make some buck, after 8 months of unemployment at the time, while I was trying to find a product-market fit for my idea that hasn't took off till this day. The idea called edi that I decided to pivot together with my colleague from a grand vision to a more realistic one.

  1. January 2024 - I've learned SwiftUI basics in order to build Joex. It solved my problem related to capturing thoughts for my paper journal when I am away from it.
  2. February 2024 - MVP for Joex is finished and I had started using it on my phone.
  3. April 2024 - edi closed alpha released to 27 testers. We struggled with over-engineering and gave up further development.
  4. May 2024 - 2nd pivot of edi where income generation was the top priority now that we had failed to make a buck for more than a year since the idea definition. This was due to the fact that we always favored the more complicated approach instead of solving the most immediate problem.
  5. June 2024 - 1st paying customer after 2nd pivot of edi, who booked us as an agency to cover their needs related to custom web development.
  6. October 2024 - Custom web development project delivery. Laid off without notice during my first ever vacation (not something I would see happening as I signed full-time offer a few days before, but it appears that can happen if your contract allows it). But hey, I am here for the risk, right? I am responsible for my decisions so learn from it, look ahead and move on (definitely easier said than done).
  7. November 2024 - Rebuilt Joex as a PWA in Ionic and open-sourced both codebases (iOS, PWA). Open-sourcing was part of "giving up" process that was happening inside me. I've decided to clean up my priority list after the layoff and start fresh from 0. My motivation behind building the PWA version was that I wanted to prioritize my web skills. SwiftUI is no longer on my learning path and building Joex for iOS as a native app was great for realizing what I want more of as a software developer. During November, I've also started building new version of my personal website but stay tuned for that in 2025.

Benefits of choosing the "more uncertain path"

As you can see, there has been a lot of experimentation going on since the start of my personal startup journey at the end of 2021. If you are not familiar, feel free to read my previous yearly reviews from 2022 and 2023. I own every decision. I wouldn't be where I am mentally without making all those decisions along the way that I've documented. The path that created the very me who is here today on the 9th of December at the time of writing this article.

I can see the golden thread clearly now between these decisions. What follows are thoughts that stood out this year.

Knowing my WHY

Answering the WHY is not possible by anything else other than work. By working towards the desired outcome, the WHY becomes clearer and there comes the opportunity to refine it. Thinking is insufficient. Hard work is the way towards the deep roots of my WHY.

Eat the frog

Doing the most difficult thing set for the day ahead as first thing in the morning is essential for the day to be successful. If done in opposite way, it is very hard to regain the momentum that was lost by choosing the easier things to do first.

Simple todo list on paper is enough to kick things off

How do I start projects nowadays? Believe it or not, but with just a pen and paper. No overthinking of where do I manage "this" or "that". I record the first things that can be done and are as specific as possible. New todos are uncovered once the first things on the list are dealt with.

External validation is not what I want

It took time for me to realize this but whenever I shared what I was working on with people that asked, my whole creative energy towards that project was sucked out of me. Nowadays, I make effort to speak about my projects in a more abstract way. It turns out most people are not even interested in the details and it is good to keep them private as long as possible. This preserves inner energy that can be used for developing the project further.

Every day counts

It is the small steps that matter. The ones that can be sustained for long period of time.

Trust the intuition

My inner voice usually tells me what is the right decision to make or thing to do. Do not supress it but clarify it. Automatic writing practice done inside journal helps. I would be better paying attention to it. External voices are important too but not as much as what is inside me.

Hard work leads to better decisions

Hard work means we are deeply invested in something. It lays the groundwork for making decisions that matter. Everything is useless without it which is why we need projects, specific tasks and execution. I've waited too long for my thoughts to come out. I need to create.

Small bets are necessary

Be willing to give up on an idea. Keep eyes open for the next one. Don't get stuck with the first one. Iterate over ideas to find the ultimate idea.

Thank you

If you've made it this far, congratulations! I hope the time you spent reading brought you something that is of value to you, personally. I would be interested in getting to know more about you. Let's connect via LinkedIn or an email if you are up for it.