A recap of 2019
Tags: freelance, recap
Published: 2019-12-19 11:24:48

Hi all, this I Adi. 2019 has been a wonderful year for me, so I just wanted to take a moment to reflect and document what's changed for me since 2018. In this post, I wanted to talk about how various aspect of my life has seen a change and also note some goals for the upcoming year. 

### Freelancing
This year, I have had the chance to meet a lot of new people, of who a few of them turned into my clients. I’ve worked on 7 new projects and are in talks with a bunch more. I finally have gotten around to printing my business card, I would have never known that a simple thing like a business card could take one's professionalism a little higher, I would suggest you have one even if you’re just starting out, it will make a difference.

I did have a few bitter experiences when I had to drop 2 projects. 1 was due to a client not cooperating well and the other because, I worked on this project for 3 months straight and was exhausted after a point, so I had to hand it over to another developer to maintain my sanity. At the end of the day, we are all just humans, when you see an issue looming at a distance, you should talk this over with your clients, you’ll be surprised to know how many of them offer their support, especially when you’re a freelancer.

All in all, I have enjoyed working on all of these projects. I worked on the largest project for me yet, it was for [Uzhavarbumi](https://uzhavarbumi.com/), I was responsible for their 2 apps, the API, the admin portal, their website, and their business intelligence setup. Fortunately, I had the necessary assets, time and most of all, the support of a best friend (You are AWESOME [Mercy](https://mercywrites.in)).

You can know more about my recent [projects here](https://simplestweb.in/projects).

### Side Projects
Some of you might know that last year, around the same time, I launched my side project [Laravel Collections](https://laravelcollections.com). I worked on it till April and got thousands of visitors every month. This was taking up a lot of my time from work, so I decided to sell it and the people who acquired it have great plans for it in the future.

Since then I have been concentrating on my freelance projects, no time for side projects. I do have a few ideas that I want to explore to see what works. I have planned to work on them in 2020. So, stay tuned for those updates.

### Personal Life


This year, I have made time for a lot of travel. I have made it a routine for me to retreat to someplace every other week, this has been very helpful, time away from a monitor screen is the best way I have found to recharge myself.

I started reading 7 books but could only complete 3 from cover to cover. I need to work on this habit.

It was one of my goals from last year, to watch one film a day, at least an average of one film a day. With the help of 4 streaming services, I have been able to cross my expectations and watch 372 films so far this year, add a bunch more by the year-end.

I have also kept myself busy by taking up a few hobbies origami and chess. I try to make at least one origami craft every day and also practice chess daily, though I don't have time for a full game, I try all the daily puzzles on [Chess.com](http://Chess.com)

I have been writing blog posts more frequently these days. I have been publishing at least one post a month. Writing mostly about Laravel related stuff.

Best of all, I have spent a lot of time catching up with a lot of my old friends and some new ones. Especially 2 of whom I spend a lot of time with. Personal life's been generally positive and a lot more fulfilling and meaningful because of the newfound friendships.

### Goals for 2020

I have a few goals for myself for the next year. I would not call them goals, more like things I want to do.

 - Find time to work on a Laravel side project (will be announced soon)
 - Launch a digital product, I have a few ideas will be testing later next year
 - Watch a film every day, this is quite possible since I have done it this year
 - Organize a meetup for developers from my locale
 - More travel
 - Move time with friends

### Conclusion

This is an overview of how I been over the last year. It’s been a pleasant ride, hoping for the same next year around.

Let me know how your year was, will be glad to hear it.

**Thank you for reading.**

> That’s all for now, this has been Adi.  
> If you are looking for a Freelance Web Developer you can [contact me](https://simplestweb.in/contact-me?utm_campaign=LaravelActionsTutorial)