Why?
"he not ask for why he just does"
— pixels and data (@EcoLaurenY) March 10, 2024
It's true: I hardly ever ask "why?". So... why?
What is the Why?
Why do this side-project?
Why do side-projects at all?
Why Do Side-Projects
- build your own skills
- build your own brand
- make something in your control
- challenge yourself (productive discomfort!)
- have a personal success
- it can be fun (?)
- teach someone something
- inspire someone to do something
Why Don't Side-Projects
- life
- mental health (destructive discomfort)
- do not burn yourself out
- my rule is to quit as soon as something gets annoying
- don't grind
- just don't wanna
- fear of mean people
- in my experience, most people are surprisingly kind online (YMMV)
- the worst I usually get are feature requests
- fear of embarrassment
- I don't think this sort of thing has hurt me professionally
Unsolicited Advice
- think small
- quit early
- find your lane
- try to do something new
- share it
Doing, Telling, and Luck Surface Area
I presented this site to my co-workers on April 23, 2024, but these people unrelatedly articulated my advice much better:
"The amount of serendipity that will occur in your life is directly proportional to the degree to which you do something you're passionate about combined with the total number of people to whom this is effectively communicated."
— Emily (@EmilybyNight) April 24, 2024
"'Do stuff and then blog about it' remains one of the most underrated pieces of career advice"
— Simon Willison (@simonw) April 25, 2024