Each year, I keep an ongoing list of achievements so that when I reach the end of the year, I can look back and see what I’ve done. It’s easy to forget about accomplishments and feel like you haven’t done a lot. Here are my notable activities and successes for 2024.
Leap Year GitHub repo
As 2024 is a leap year, I created a Leap Year repository for code that determines whether or not a given year is a leap year in many languages. A number of people contributed, and it was a nice way to start the year with a programming project.
Two record 𝕏 posts
In 2024, I made my two highest impression posts ever:
1.4 million. This one was about how Starbucks was removing seating from their stores.
2.5 million. A reply to a post that went super-viral, about a math joke.
These posts proved to me that you have no real direct control over viral posts. Just keep posting interesting, useful, and engaging content and eventually one or two of them will attract a lot of attention.
WordPress focus
In 2024, I decided to go all-in with WordPress, and really focus my business on becoming an expert in fewer things rather than being a tech generalist. I started working on my own projects, got a plugin launched on the WordPress Plugin repository, and signed on a few new clients. As a result, I reached a place where 95% of all my work revolves around WordPress.
Year Remaining WordPress Plugin
A few years ago, I wrote a Python script to calculate how much time is left in the year as a percentage. I automated it with Zapier, in addition to posting it to an account on 𝕏. Later, 𝕏 went on to restrict API access, so that process is now only semi-automated, but I decided to take it a step further and make it a WordPress plugin that developers could use on their websites.
I converted the Python code to PHP and built a WordPress plugin which is available to users worldwide. You can find the code on GitHub as well if you’d like to use or modify it outside of the repository.
Workbench construction
I completed my biggest woodworking project yet in the summer: A workbench for my garage. I really needed a place to store tools and a better workspace than the kitchen table or garage floor. I’m super happy with the result, and it’s become my go to space for building and repairing things.
This is also a milestone in my plan to diversify my skill set, learning how to do things outside of technology and coding. In the modern economy, nothing is certain or stable, and being competent in a number of areas makes one more valuable in any type of economy.
GitHub contributions
I made 143 contributions to GitHub repos this year, almost twice as many as 2023, and vastly greater than previous years. It’s still not nearly as much as I’d like, but I’m working at coding and sharing more, and hope to go even further in 2025.
Hacktoberfest
This year instead of chasing PRs, I decided to approach the event as a maintainer. I opened up my Leap Year repository, creating a list of Issues that contributors could work on. This brought the total number of languages up to 35, and the number of contributors to 18.
Most of all, I got to experience the open source process from the perspective of a maintainer. There are actually a lot of great features in GitHub for code reviews that is worth being familiar with.
Advent of Code
I ran another successful Advent of Code group this year, expanding participation by 35%. I also added a Discord server for players to communicate with each other, and used the Advent of Code API to include useful reporting metrics such as solve times to my daily updates.
Debt free Christmas
Even though 2024 was a challenging year, we always budget and save so the holidays never put us into debt. All gifts paid for 100% up front. I can’t recommend this enough. You’ll need to accept some real spending limits, but you’ll start the New Year without a ton of credit card bills to pay.
Walking
This year I started with the goal of walking 1000 kilometers. I didn’t achieve the goal, but I did reach 851kms. I start again on Jan 1, 2025, aiming once again for the 1000km goal.
Summary
In 2025, start tracking your achievements, both small and large. Add a page to your journal, or create a text document on your desktop. Just get started, and post your results on Dec 31, 2025.
What did you achieve in 2024? I’d love to hear more about what you’re working on. Find me on 𝕏, give me a follow, and send me a DM!
I’m available to work on your project or become part of your team. Please contact me today!