The Year 2020 In Review: Numb

I’ve spent the past few days trying to reflect on how 2020 was for me and I think it would be a good idea to share to help the future ME that would be here.

Coming into the year, I had a plan that would have been perfectly executed if everything had gone my way.

January — March

The year started early as I had to go back to school to start my SWEP program which was to last for a month before the new session starts fully. I promised myself to better my grades and take care of my well-being while in school. Welp, I didn’t get the chance to do any.

February

Results from the previous semester were rolling out and I couldn’t help but wonder if I was a ghost during the examination. I cried for a while but we move again as there wasn’t anything I could do to change the situation. I started to feel uninterested in school, and my attention started to drift towards Product Design.

March

A new session has started and ASUU equally decided to embark on a strike, quite a number of the departments in my faculty were not affected, so the classes continued.
I then applied for the PixelUp Mentorship which I had to complete an assessment before I could be considered. But, I f***** up. At this point, I learned the difference between inspiration and plagiarism. I had to make another case study which finally got me accepted.
The spread of COVID-19 made federal institutions close up and I had to go back home(which was against my plan) because my father insisted.

Lockdown

The COVID-19 cases continue to increase in Nigeria which made the government enforce a lockdown(in some states) for close to a month.

But in Ibadan, everything seemed normal and since I was home, I had to help out in my mum’s shop. All my 2020 plans were falling apart as I knew I could not do much if I got deprived of time and space. I could not bring myself to do a lot as I spent more time helping out at the family business. This has led to numerous fights and I have decided to wave the white flag for as long I’ll remain there.

I would later start a Design class with Pelumi Adeyemi. There I learned the rules, guidelines, and tools of design. I also learnt non-design related things as the class oozed with intellectuals.

I also took part in the HNG internship, but I couldn’t make it to the final round

My First Job

I applied for internship positions or free-working roles, I constantly got aired with/without a rejection mail. I kept applying until I lost the motivation to do so.

Early July, I got a message from Olamide Samuel and Abdulmateen Tairu asking if I would be willing to take a position at Neohaul Technologies as a UI/UX Designer, which I accepted. There I was getting my first appointment letter which would see me work on Broka.ng with other talented techies.
I left my job there around August because of numerous reasons which hindered me from working effectively.

Learning

From the beginning of the year, my PC started acting up with numerous issues ranging from broken hinges to a non-functional trackpad and many more. It hindered the little way I was learning and getting things done with the few hours I had to myself at night. I had to resort to reading ebooks and articles from my phone with less time designing.

While doing this, I left social media and decided it was best I kept myself. I felt like a Caged Bird and I wasn’t getting things done my way either, my 2020 plans had shattered and I constantly felt some sense of guilt that I had failed at doing something.

November — December

I was still wrapped up in my bubble of doubt when a friend called me to check my WhatsApp because they saw something that might be of interest to me. I reluctantly check and I saw it was a message concerning Enyata’s Project BuildUp where they would be sharing 50 Macbooks to techies.

Me: Have you applied?
Joshua: Yes, I have. You?
Me: I don’t think I would, I haven’t done much within the last 6 months and they’re only sharing 50 Macbooks. The probability I would get one is very low.

I eventually applied after I got my portfolio and LinkedIn in order so that it would be presentable so that I would be able to apply.
Fast-forward to December, my name got listed with 49 others that I will be an awardee for Project BuildUp and I have won myself a Macbook. I couldn’t contain myself as I had just been given another opportunity to improve myself as a Product Designer. I would be hoping to get the machine soon.

I didn’t achieve much in 2020 but I have it in mind to pursue my goals without trying to make excuses for myself as to why I failed.
Am I happy? No, but I am thankful for life and everything it is that I encounter as it would help make me the person I intend to be.
Yes, I discovered great artists and YouTubers like Kota the Friend, Masego, Korty🤩 to mention a few.

😘I am equally thankful to my friends who helped out in numerous ways as they were pivotal in making sure I didn’t lose myself.

Please, do not project your fears on me as I’m sharing this to help gauge my progress by the time I come back in another year to do this. Thank you🤝.