Goodbye 2023, welcome 2024
As I sit here on this cold Thursday morning of December 28th, 2023, sipping my hot cup of coffee, I can’t help but reflect on the year that’s about to come to an end. 2023 has been quite a transformative year for me, full of ups and downs, twists and turns.
But you know what they say — change is the only constant. As I get ready to usher in 2024 in a few days, I’m filled with gratitude for the year gone by, as well as hope and excitement for the one ahead. Shall we take a stroll down memory lane?
Quitting My Day Job
One of the biggest highlights of 2023 was quitting my day job in the month of April. After slogging it out for two and a half years in the corporate world, I finally gathered the courage to leap of faith into full-time freelancing.
Though scary at first, it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. The freedom and flexibility that comes with working for yourself is unmatched. No more 9 to 5 grind for this guy.
Of course, it wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine in the beginning. Establishing a steady stream of work took time. But with perseverance and patience, things fell into place eventually. And I haven’t looked back since!
Reviving my Medium account
Another significant development was deciding to revive my long forgotten Medium account. I had created it years ago but never really used it much.
This year, I began writing consistently on Medium, sharing my thoughts on topics like personal growth, productivity, business, web development, and more. From having just 10 followers in March, my account grew to over 700 followers by the end of the year. Turns out I absolutely love writing.
And, realizing that felt so liberating.
I found my passion.
Connecting with readers through my writing has been incredibly rewarding.
My goal for 2024 is to continue creating valuable content and growing my audience. If you like what I write, be sure to follow me on Medium for more.
Moving to Nyahururu
In the middle of 2023, I decided to move from the busy streets of Nairobi to the peaceful countryside of Nyahururu. I wanted to be closer to my family. Living in lush green surroundings, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, has been rejuvenating, to say the least.
Spending quality time with family, long nature walks, and breathing clean air — I have thoroughly enjoyed slowing down and adopting a simpler lifestyle. This move helped me prioritize my mental health and find calm in the chaos. Undoubtedly, it is one of the wisest choices I’ve made recently.
Switching to freelancing
Once I quit my job, I immersed myself into the world of freelancing for the remainder of 2023. It was an exciting experience, ripe with learnings.
As a freelance web developer, I got to work on projects that genuinely excited me. The flexibility to choose my own work and clients was fantastic.
I got exposure to so many different industries as a freelancer. Though managing finances was tough initially without a fixed salary, things stabilized after some time.
Freelancing helped me become more disciplined, push my boundaries, and understand my worth.
Launched my web services business
Inspired by my freelancing journey, I launched a web services business called Paluhost Web Services towards the latter half of 2023. Our team provides web design, web hosting, and WordPress maintenance services.
I had been toying with starting my own venture for a while and finally bit the bullet this year. While the business is still in its nascent stage, I’m proud of the foundation we’ve laid.
Everything from conceptualizing the services, getting the legal paperwork done, designing the brand identity, and acquiring the first few clients has been a tremendous learning experience.
I’m looking forward to growing Paluhost in 2024.
Started a WordPress Newsletter
My love for WordPress led me to launch a newsletter called WP Corner in 2023. It covers the latest happenings in the WordPress ecosystem and digital marketing strategies for websites.
Curating informative and entertaining content for my newsletter subscribers has been great fun. In the new year, I aim to improve the design, increase the frequency, and grow my list of subscribers.
If you own a WordPress website, I recommend you subscribe to WP Corner for some awesome WordPress news, tips, and tricks.
Contributed to the WordPress Community
I made a conscious effort in 2023 to give back to the WordPress community that has given me so much over the years. I attended several local WordPress Meetups where I got to connect with fellow creators.
I also started contributing to the open source WordPress project regularly by reporting bugs, testing, and hosting meetups. Helping improve the most popular CMS in the world, even if in a small way, was deeply satisfying. Next year, I plan to speak at WordCamp events to share my knowledge. Giving back makes the community stronger.
Created content on blogs and YouTube
This year, I produced a ton of content, both written and video. I wrote high-quality blog posts for my personal blogs as well as client websites.
My passion project was creating YouTube videos related to WordPress and the Divi theme. Researching, articulating complex concepts, and promoting the videos — content creation was one of my biggest focus areas in 2023.
The learning curve was steep but rewarding. Content allows you to share your unique perspective with the world.
In 2024, I intend to hone my content skills further and create multimedia content, not just written formats. Variety is the spice of life.
Celebrated my daughters’ birthdays
On a personal front, 2023 marked the 1st and 4th birthdays of my darling daughters Stephannie and Mercy.
Watching the two most special girls grow up so quickly really tugged at my heartstrings this year. Mercy’s first steps, Stephannie’s non-stop babbling — every little milestone made me tear up with joy and nostalgia.
Being a dad is by far the most fulfilling role of my life.
I’m looking forward to showering them with love and making more magical memories in 2024. My girls are my guiding light, inspiring me to be my best version of myself.
Forayed into content writing
Towards the last quarter of 2023, I decided to dip my toes into professional content writing.
I began taking on clients who wanted regular website and blog content. This allowed me to expand my freelancing services beyond just web development.
It was refreshing to exercise my writing skills on a variety of topics. Seeing my work go live and bring value to clients was deeply gratifying.
I plan to take on more content writing projects in 2024 and grow this vertical. I hope to make content writing a steady source of income. Fingers crossed!
My goals for 2024
While 2023 was fantastic in many ways, I’m even more stoked about 2024! The new year brings with it new possibilities and a clean slate. Here are some of the things I intend to do:
Publish on Medium daily
My #1 goal is to publish one story on Medium every day for the next 300 days. Yes, you read that right — one piece of content daily! Building a consistent writing habit is key to improving my skills.
Interacting with readers daily will help grow my audience. Even if I have a crazy busy day, I plan to take 30–50 minutes to write something meaningful: small steps, big milestones.
Focus on content development
I love both content writing and creation. I want to double down on producing high-quality, valuable content across formats next year, be it blog posts, videos, or a podcast.
Content allows you to direct people’s attention to what you think matters. In 2024, I hope to find my distinct voice and style as a content creator. The plan is to turn content creation into a full-time career eventually.
Let’s see where this content journey takes me.
Start a podcast
Having a podcast has been on my bucket list forever. 2024 is the year I finally start one. My goal is to share practical tips for website owners through conversations.
The tentative name is “Let’s Talk Websites”. I’m nervous and excited. Look out for my show on your favorite podcast app soon. Any topic or guest recommendations? Let me know!
One YouTube video per week
I want to maintain consistency with my YouTube channel in 2024. The plan is to publish at least one video per week for the entire year. This requires planning, strategizing, and having ample content.
But I’m determined to make it happen through discipline. YouTube presents an opportunity to reach millions in a personal yet scalable way.
Frequent, high-quality videos will be the focus, instead of obsessed with fancy gear or millions of subscribers.
Baby steps.
Spend more time with family
Among my non-work goals, I want to devote more time to my family in 2024. Be it simple activities like having dinner together every night, going for a walk, or playing board games — I cherish small moments of bonding.
My daughters will be in crucial growing years, so I’d like to be a more involved father.
Work-life balance can be challenging, but family provides that emotional anchor.
They are and will always be my top priority.
In conclusion…
As 2023 makes a graceful exit, I’m a more experienced and wise person, thanks to the year gone by. The future is unpredictable, but I welcome 2024 with open arms.
Change will happen, problems will arise, but staying optimistic through the ups and downs is key. I’m proud of the progress made so far and hopeful for the future.
If you made it all the way to the end, thanks for reading.
I would love to hear your key highlights from 2023 and what your goals are for the next year.
Here’s wishing you a fabulous 2024.
Go out there, dream big, work hard, spread love. The world is your oyster.
