Your company’s end-of-the-year party was probably boring (No shades, haha). Because it’s usually about looking good and pretending the year wasn’t stressful. Ours was all that, plus a bit of chaos, a lot of laughter, and a few days on one very unforgettable island. Let me gist you all about it.
We held our end-of-year party at YOLO Island Beach Resort, a private island surrounded by calm, clear Atlantic waters. And yes, we had the entire island to ourselves for roughly 3 days.
We arrived on the island a day before the main event. And trust me, getting to the island was already an adventure on its own. We all took a jetty (boat) across, looking fresh, excited, and ready to party. But of course, a few stubborn latecomers missed the jetty. How they later made their way to the island is still unclear. Word on the street is that some of them swam. Some say they hung on to a fish. Others claim they hitchhiked (not sure how that works on water). But the point is, everyone got to the island.
The Calm Morning Before the Rush
The morning of the party itself was calm. Everyone had breakfast, and the island slowly came alive.
While décor was still ongoing, team members were already enjoying the space. Some were playing video games, snooker, and tennis. Others were swimming or just moving around like people who had suddenly realised they were on a private island.
It felt less like a company event and more like a group of frat bots on a getaway.
As the day went on, things naturally got busier. Vendors had to move equipment over water, including large items like the stage screen and the 360 camera setup. This added an extra layer of logistics, stress, and the need for Aishat to swallow one paracetamol tablet every hour.
There were even last-minute fixes, and a lot of screaming on the phone: “WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE FISH SWALLOWED YOUR EQUIPMENT???????”
“Everybody Please Come Downstairs”
We set up the outside area first so people could at least start taking pictures.
Next challenge: Getting people downstairs.
Aishat was moving from room to room like a town crier, begging grown adults to come outside.
Outfits were ready. Faces were beat. But seems someone secretly dropped a challenge that says: “the first person to go downstairs is a fool”.
NEPA Said “Not Today”
Then, just when we thought we’d got it figured out, the lights started tripping.
On. Off. On. Off.
Too much load. Wrong distribution. Weak wires.
We separated the LED screen from the lights. Changed wires. Redistributed load.
After about five betrayals, the lights finally stayed on.
By the time pictures started properly, it was already around 9 pm.
9:30pm: The Party Finally Starts
Instead of 4 pm, we kicked off at 9:30 pm.
But once the event fully kicked off, everything else faded into the background. Timi Agbaje was the wonderful host. And the awards segment was one of the highlights of the night, with sixteen award categories recognising people across teams and roles.
Beyond the awards, there were raffles, trivia games, and cash prizes flying around. Almost everyone went home with money. If you didn’t win an award, you probably won a raffle. If you didn’t win a raffle, you likely won a game. If you didn’t win anything… please see management.
There was even a car gift, which instantly changed the mood of the entire room. And guess who got this gift? The person who kept swallowing paracetamol in this whole adventure, Aishat.
Here’s a video of some of those who won some money; you can bill them if you see them.
The Funny Bits That Made It Very Breet
There were moments that had everyone laughing.
Firstly, the Indian dancers came on and did their thing so well that the moment ended up becoming a trending TikTok video (yes, that one 👉 https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSPSKUonv/).
Then there was this Mirror Man (I don’t know why they call him that). He was booked to come out by 10pm, which was supposed to be when the event ended, and the after-party started (If we followed the schedule). Unfortunately for planning, we started the event 5 hours late, and Mirror Man clearly didn’t care about delayed schedules.
He jumped on stage in the middle of the event, started showing off like rent was due, and honestly? We respect it. Man just wanted to get his money and move on with life.
He had to be gently escorted off stage, but by then, the damage (and laughter) had already been done.
When the Party Truly Began
After the formalities, the real party started. Music took over, dance circles formed, and people cheered each other on as they took turns in the middle.
At some point, it stopped feeling like a company event and became a full-blown celebration of surviving the year together.
The energy was loud, genuine, and contagious.
The night didn’t end anytime soon. People were still dancing well into the early hours. Some were by the pool, others playing volleyball, and a few having deep 2 am conversations that probably made sense at the time but would be nonsense talk on a normal afternoon.
Everything Comes To An End Eventually
By the end of it all, the feeling across the team was clear. Everyone had fun. Everyone felt appreciated. Almost everyone went home with money. And nobody regretted being there, even the people who had to swim all the way there felt it was worth it.
It was a proper end-of-year celebration, full of effort, laughter, teamwork, and the kind of chaos that only happens when people genuinely enjoy being around each other.
As we packed our bags to leave the island, Slack notifications started dropping, giving everyone a harsh reminder that it was time to return to the real world and resume building Breet. We love to do that, but should someone suggest to management to arrange something like this every three months?
Up next, Lakowe Lakes.
Men mount. Women mount. Everywhere telepeps.
