Looking Back at 2025: A Year of Building With Intention
Here we are in December and as the year comes to a close, I have been looking back on everything that happened in 2025. It was a full on year that went by way too fast. A year that really challenged me and taught me a lot about how I create and how I lead.
When the year started, I did not expect to take on as much as I did. A new leadership role at 3D Walkabout, FoVR Interactive projects, XR experiments, community events, and being part of the Meta Start program. Somehow it all happened, but not without learning a few important lessons along the way.
This year was about doing what I was passionate about.
Taking the leap
A big shift happened for me in 2025. My contract as a Project Manager came to an end in 2024, and for the first time in a long while I had space to choose where my energy would go next.
Instead of jumping straight into another role, I decided to take the leap and put more focus into my own projects. It gave me time to explore new ideas, build prototypes, and push FoVR Interactive forward in ways I had been wanting to for years.
There were weeks where it felt exciting and full of possibility, and some where the lack of structure made things harder. Taking that leap helped me understand how I use my time and what actually matters in the work I choose to do.
You can do a lot, but you cannot do everything. Having the space to slow down and choose made a huge difference in how I approached each week.
Highlights of My 2025
Looking back, this was one of the most productive and transformative years I have had as a creator.
Some of the things I am proud of this year are:
- Releasing Forge of Elements, a full VR title under FoVR Interactive.
- Being selected for the Meta Horizon Start Program and travelling to the Meta campus in Menlo Park.
- Building the WebXR Music Player, a fun dive into browser based spatial experiences.
- Creating the Beardy Dev Adventures: Concept to Completion series and sharing more of my development process.
- Competing in the Meta Horizon Hackathon and submitting a full project.
- Running a Kickstarter for Chrono Team Go which taught me a lot about marketing and community.
- Building new prototypes like the Rubik’s Cube solver, blending XR and AI.
- Creating and launching the SaaS AI Resume Writer, expanding my skills in software development.
All of these projects and experiences helped me step into my new role as Head of XR and Web Development at 3D Walkabout, and they pushed my skills in a direction that felt right.
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The Power of Consistency
Earlier in the year, I wrote about consistency and how small steps create real progress, and I felt that more this year than any other.
I didn’t always have long blocks of time. Some days I barely had an hour, but I still put in whatever time I had. Those small moments of effort kept things moving forward.
What I learned is that consistency does more than just add up over time. It builds confidence, creates momentum, and keeps you grounded, even on the slower days.
Lessons From Working on Projects
FoVR Interactive was a big part of my creative identity this year. I built new prototypes, explored co-location, tested mechanics, and kept pushing what I understood about XR.
Projects like Forge of Elements continued to grow, and my MR target shooter taught me a lot about multiplayer and presence. Even the smaller experiments, like the Rubik’s Cube solver, ended up teaching me something useful and gave me more ways to show what I can do.
Working on projects like these teaches you patience. You try ideas, remove what does not work, and keep the parts that feel right. It forces you to think in systems, solve problems as they come up, and stay curious, which makes it one of the best teachers of leadership I have had.
What AI Taught Me About Creativity
AI became a normal part of how I worked this year. I used it for ideas, planning, writing, prototyping, and even helping me think through problems. It sat in the background and supported the work, not the other way around.
One thing I learned is that AI does not replace creativity. It can speed up parts of the process or help you explore ideas faster, but it still needs your input for direction.
The creative spark still comes from you. AI just helps you reach further and try things you might not have tried on your own.
This year gave me a better understanding of where AI fits into my workflow. It is a tool I will keep using, but not something that replaces the thinking or the judgement behind the work.
Learning to Value My Time
One of the biggest things I learned this year was how important my time really is.
I noticed how easy it is to jump into work that feels productive but does not really move you forward. It is also easy to take on too much without realising it. Time disappears quickly when you are not paying attention to where it is going.
This year pushed me to be more intentional. To choose projects that matter. To look at what the real return might be. And to stop spending time on things that were only keeping me busy.
Time is limited, and once it is gone, you do not get it back. 2025 helped me finally take that seriously.
The Importance of People and Community
This year reminded me how important the people around us are. Joining the Meta Start community and attending Meta Connect gave me the chance to meet other XR creators who were on a similar path. Talking with them, sharing ideas, and seeing what everyone was building made the whole experience feel bigger than just my own projects.
There were also a lot of moments where the people closest to me made a huge difference. I had friends who checked in, colleagues who gave feedback or pushed me to think differently and my mentors who helped me get unstuck when I was spinning my wheels.
Having a community around me meant I had people to bounce ideas off, people to learn from, and people who kept me grounded when things felt heavy. It made the wins feel bigger and the tougher weeks easier to get through.
Growth rarely happens alone, and 2025 proved that to me over and over.
What I Am Carrying Into 2026
As I step into the new year, I am taking a few things with me.
- I want to create with more intention.
- I want to protect my time and use it well.
- I want to build fewer things, but build them better.
- I want to grow FoVR Interactive in a way that feels authentic.
- I want to lead through curiosity and clarity, not control.
- I want to keep learning and exploring the edges of XR and AI.
2025 taught me a lot about focus and purpose. 2026 is where I apply it.