2025 in Review - I Had Fun

Dec 31, 2025

Honestly, I don’t know where to start. But let’s take it one at time.

During the December 2024 break, I was working on my final-year project documentation (Chapters 1-3). It was time consuming, my friends can relate 🤣.

Entering 2025, the only goal I had in mind was to graduate with a first class.

Along the way, a lot of sub-goals popped up like building out Refreeg with my guys and simply making it to the next day, lol.

People

Contrary to popular opinion, January was short and moved fast. I spent a lot of time with family and friends this year. I met a lot of cool people and became friends with some of them. I hopped on long calls with friends and went on a lot of side quests (how did I end up at a boxing gym? 🤣).

I also reconnected with some friends from my childhood.

Some past friendships fizzled out. There was no bad blood but communication reduced. I realized I was often the one initiating and checking up, so If I didn’t, there was no communication. But hey, that’s just how it is. I’m sure I’ve been guilty of the same. We’re all on a journey, and we meet new characters at each stage. Some are meant for a season, while others follow you into the next.

I felt really good this year. A friend got me a big cake on my birthday, and another got me a white baseball cap with an Itachi design. A lot of friends celebrated with me on my graduation, birthday, Refreeg’s win and the tiny wins throughout the year. So yeah, I had fun. I appreciate all of you.

Startup Life

Refreeg was also my final-year project, so the urgency was there in building and launching it by April. Working on Refreeg this year was really impactful and improved my skills as a developer and as a person.

When you’re working towards something with people that have the same goal as you (to win), you get there faster. Community is important; you can’t do it alone.

We had a few setbacks, but we overcame them. We’re scaling upward. We currently have 2,000 registered users on Refreeg, and people have used it to raise money for their causes. It’s amazing to see something you built being used to help people.

We will do better in 2026. If you want to raise money, crowdfund on Refreeg!

School Life

This final year of university was something. It wasn’t hard as I had heard it would be. The finish line was in front of me, and I knew what I had to do to get there.

I did it afraid but I did it regardless.

Presentations back to back. Midterms back to back. Exams back to back. All went well.

Then graduation came. I had mixed feelings about that day, all happy and filled with gratitude. Four years is not easy at all. It was fun.

Books

I worked on reducing my screen time and saving my brain from rotting. What better way to do this than to read? Reading is an active-passive activity. You have to pay attention.

I read a few books this year:

How to be a Nigerian - Peter Enahoro

I was laughing throughout this book. I loved how the author uses sarcasm to convey his message. You quickly understand what he’s saying.
My Sister the Serial Killer - Oyinkan Braithwaite

I enjoyed this book, although the ending was a bit anticlimactic for me.
Rich People Problems - Kevin Kwan

I’m still reading this. If you’ve watched or read Crazy Rich Asians, you’ll love it. I read China Rich Girlfriend in 2024. It’s a very comedic trilogy.

Movies and Shows

I watched a few movies and shows this year, I didn’t watch as much anime as in previous years. Some of the honourable mentions:

The Blacklist: Raymond Reddington is that guy. Everything always seems to go his way.
Arrow: The making of Oliver Queen; being stranded on an Island for 5 years does something to you.
Prison Break: Scofielddddddd. I hadn’t seen an intelligent character in a while until Michael Scofield.
Supernatural: Fifteen seasons long. Took me two months to watch. Highly Recommend.
Superman & Lois: One of the best Superman adaptations in recent years.
Attack on Titan: Final Episode: AOT is one of those anime where both sides of the fandom make valid arguments for their causes.

Self

My confidence sky rocketed this year, probably because there was “proof of work” that I was getting things right. I also learned not to rely on external validation for confidence. You have to generate it from within. It might feel delusional at times but stay grounded in reality.

I realized I don’t have a single nonchalant bone in my body. I’m genuinely excited about things; new shows, new manga, receiving gifts. I’m quite chalant and that’s cool. A brand even sent me a controller to review on my CODM channel and it felt great to be seen for my work.

On Health

I ate so much shawarma this year that I became a regular at Ahmad’s Shawarma 🤣. Anytime I went there, they already knew my order.

I started going to the gym in September. It was hard at first but I got used to it quickly and have been improving since. I feel really good about myself. Consistency is the hardest part, but I went even on days I didn’t feel like it. Trying is not cringe. When I started at the gym, strangers who had been there long before me walked up to help and gave me tips.

On Respect

There’s this thing people do where they try to “humble” you, especially in front of others. Don’t let disrespect slide. If you do, they’ll think it’s okay and repeat it. Call it out early.

If you don’t call it out, resentment builds up, and one day you’ll explode. It’s like someone stepping on your toe for ten days. When you finally react, it looks like an overreaction; but it’s not. It’s accumulated resentment.

On Control

I learned to focus on what I can control and let go of what I can’t. That’s why I bet on myself. Consistent effort might not always get you exactly where you want to be but it will get you somewhere better.

Effort never betrays you. That’s why I aim high, even if I don’t get to where I want, I’ll still be far ahead of where I started.

Lessons for 2026

Prayer is necessary. Have a relationship with God.
Have Audacity. It opens doors. Act like you know what you are doing and learn along the way.
Be open to feedback and correction.
Trust your gut. If a situation feels uneasy, leave.
Kill your ego. It’s the enemy.
Learn to apologize. Make that call if you must. People remember how you made them feel.
Play with those who play with you and it’s not everybody you play with.
Know when to cut your losses. If an investment (time or money) has no prospect, walk away.
If you want something, work aggressively towards it.
Let go of the fear of being perceived. People don’t pay as much attention to you as you think.
Be kind. It lightens someone’s day and always comes back to you. Well that’s what works for me anyway.
Don’t do things because everyone is doing it, do them because you genuinely want to do it.
A lot of things depend on the context and situation.
A lot of things don’t matter in the grand scheme of things. In fact, they might not even matter tomorrow.

This year had quite a few plot twists; sometimes I couldn’t believe certain things happened to me. If 2025 taught me anything, it’s this: never think “It can’t happen to you.”

People usually say that about bad things but I’ve learned to apply it to the good.

A lot of good things happened to me in 2025. Good things can and will happen to you.

See you on the other side. Have an amazing 2026.