What I've Learned Building Side Projects

Side projects are one of the best ways to learn, and also one of the most humbling.

Over the past couple of years, I've started more projects than I can count. Some shipped, most didn't. Here's what I've learned along the way.

Start Boring

The most useful projects I've built weren't exciting at the start — they solved a concrete, boring problem I had. Fancy ideas with vague goals tend to stall out.

Scope Ruthlessly

The first version should do one thing well. Every feature you add before shipping is a bet that you'll ever ship at all. Cut it.

The "Good Enough" Trap

Perfectionism kills side projects. There's always a refactor to do, a design to polish, a test to write. At some point you have to decide: done is better than perfect.

What Actually Ships

The projects that make it out the door are usually:

• Solving a problem I personally had
• Small enough that I could hold the whole thing in my head
• Fun enough to work on late at night

Closing Thoughts

Side projects aren't about building a portfolio or landing a job (though that's a nice side effect). They're about learning and building the habit of finishing things.

Start small. Ship something. Repeat.