As a young man in the software industry- I remember the times when I was dreaming of having my own start-up or SaaS product. Something that scales and is not fully dependent on the hours I put in. Something semi-passive to work on. Even if it turns out to be a free product for fun and exposure instead.

But then life happened. A decade has passed. I know. Convenient self-justification when it’s actually a prioritization and mindset question.

It’s easy to forget to do recreational programming besides everyday work. Especially if there is no plan and the comfort zone takes over. Different ideas have been in my head all the time but never done something much actionable with them. More like dreams. And without a plan, they will remain so.

I am sure all this sounds similar to many people.

Recently I have started taking more seriously a plan to build something as a solo founder or as a team with my friend, who is an excellent designer. We work together anyway in our digital agency, so it would be a logical team-up. What is the reason behind this plan? Not really sure. Maybe the start of middle age is pushing on me or just seeking fun in coding. Who knows.

Here are my steps on how I plan to start working on something again.

Focus on one thing at a time

I am terrible at focusing on one thing for too long if it’s not actual client work. Shiny object syndrome is strong with me. I have to accept my weakness. My greatest hope is to build something small enough that I can just power through with enough momentum.

This means closing most doors and ideas and only working with the one most likely to be finished. Easy to say, hard to live by it.

Work as I am the client for myself

On the contrary, I handle work for clients that go through many years. I can totally focus for a long time period. The difference is that for a client, the work is scoped, has a fixed outcome, is split into steps, and has a timeline with a budget.

I need to do the same for my own projects. I tend to loosely define my own objectives. Like it’s not a real work. This needs to be changed. I have to be accountable for my plans. Most importantly I need to set a “time budget” and a actionable steps for myself.

I must let my inner perfectionist go

Of course, in areas where it’s not reasonable or relevant at the beginning. When it comes to my own code- I tend to over-engineer, and think too big or too much into the future, before even starting to code.

The perfectionist inside me must be silenced because it kills the momentum.

Working on my own project means there is less accountability involved and quality needed for code and processes behind the scenes. I should literally be able to script something together without feeling guilty about how bad it is. I have to be able to let it go. Marketing, product validation, and design are the most important aspect instead anyway. Maybe even no-code is way to go.

Marketing is my friend

This is definitely one of the hardest things I have to work on. I am the one who does not like to toot one’s own horn. Ironically this is pretty vital in business. This writing here is likely also a unconsciously part of self-marketing. For me- public writing is scary already and this is a very big step forward.

Remembering fun old times

I think one of the components of success should be fun. There was a
time when programming was done for fun- not work. I built many small games and tools as a youth. Just for fun. Before venturing into real problems, a small weekend project can boost confidence and morale well. Should start with that. I would call it recreational programming with a more focused purpose.

Final words

Now that I have written it down publicly, I hope this keeps me on my track. This article is very self-centred, but I hope it relates to someone. Even if nobody reads it, writing it down holds a therapeutic effect fore me already.

Drop me a comment if this hits home for you too and thank you for reading.