My Year in Review – 2020
Here’s a brief look back on my 2020. It’s mainly for my own reference, but perhaps there’s something here that will inspire you to do something different in 2021.
Lowdown
From January-June I took part in the Propel pre-accelerator with Lowdown. I’m so happy I decided to give it a shot. I learnt more in 6 months than I have in years, making dozens of new friends and connections in the process. Unfortunately, the experience was affected by the pandemic, shifting to full-time remote halfway through, but in the end, that opened up new opportunities too. If you ever get the itch to start something, I’d highly recommend Propel.
Lowdown started 2020 with the goal of reaching $10k MRR by year-end. The first product we launched got to $150 MRR in 6 months before we decided to shut it. We realised we weren’t building a product that solved a painful enough problem. So we pivoted to launch Lowdown 2 in November. It’s the missing email digest for Slack. So far we’re at $50 MRR in 6 weeks.
Regardless of if Lowdown works out or not, everything about this year of focus on it feels worthwhile. Without a doubt, I’m now better tooled to decide what’s worth working on, and how to make something successful.
Bikepacking
I love to travel, but 2020 meant that wasn’t happening off-island. Inspired by Phil Sturgeon, I decided to try my hand at bikepacking. In April I bought a bike and started to do day trips around the country. Previously I’d never cycled more than 50k, but I worked that up to 120k, and then decided to try a short multi-day trip.
For that, I cycled the Causeway Coast and back. Belfast > Ballycastle > Coleraine > Belfast.
My ultimate goal was to spend August cycling the entire Wild Atlantic Way of Ireland with my camera and tripod, shooting landscapes. In the end, work and willpower got in the way and that was shortened to a week cycling the first 800km of it. From Kinsale to Dingle. Grey Irish weather also resulting in very few landscapes.
Travelling by bike is an awesome way to actually take in the landscape around you. Things don’t fly past you, and you’re more willing to stop and explore at a moments notice. If you want to experience a slower way to travel and get fitter in the process, you should give it a shot.
Other highlights from 2020
- Didn’t fly anywhere in a calendar year for the first time in a long time (I doubt this will be the same in 2021)
- Sold AirCare
- NI Creative Community grew to 750+ designers in Northern Ireland
- Impact Makers grew to 1,050+ techies who want to help with the climate crisis
- Climbed Carrauntoohil — the tallest mountain in Ireland
- Created and hosted the “Drink-and-draw” for designers Stranger Briefs with Tim Davidson
- Launched a product in a couple of hours - Meetfromhome
- Co-hosted Indie Hackers Belfast with Kyle Gawley
- Hosting an online NI Design Chat meetup for 40+ designers
- Won Propel Bootstrapper of the Year
2021 — The path ahead
In 2021 Lowdown is being relegated to a side-project, and my focus will instead be on Stora — the Shopify for self storage. I’ve been helping the CEO, and self storage automation king Gavin Shields get the first version live over the last few months. I think he’s really onto something, so I’ve decided to join him as a co-founder and CPO.
Beyond that, I’m setting less lofty goals in 2021, at least until things start to settle down with the pandemic.
I’d like to travel again when it’s safe to do so. Perhaps another bikepacking trip. It currently feels a bit pointless, attempting to plan anything, a little like life is on pause.
Despite this pause, I met hundreds of people in 2020 (mainly on Zoom), far more than I ever have before. As an introvert, this was a big success for me. However, it made me appreciate how meaningful in-real-life human connections are. I’m hoping that at some point in 2021 I can hit the unpause button and get out there to meet new people and forge new friendships.
Have a great 2021 everyone 🖖