The grift on SaaS / indie hacking is crazy. Everyone is like step 1 find an idea using this tool I built. Step 2 validate your idea using this other tool I built. Step 3 build a no code landing page using this tool I built.
It’s like the note taking productivity circle of taking notes about taking notes.
...Maybe it’s not grift, its good ol' business synergy.
Supposed to write down my problems so I can figure out “what problems I know best” to solve.
WDYT A feedback widget embedded on your website. The fastest way get quick user feedback. Target specific questions on specific pages of your site. Limits per user so they only get x questions per timespan.
Selected quotes from "The Experimentation Layer" by Packy McCormick (Not Boring)
The beauty of the system lies in millions of people trying new things, most of which will fail outright, some of which will succeed spectacularly, and many of which will survive only in pieces, contributing a new mechanism, concept, or feature to the pile of Lego bricks that the next group of tinkerers can play with.
Most of the things that get tried out at the experimentation layer don’t make it through.[…] That’s OK. That’s great! Variance is the point. Launch a million mutations and see which increases society’s fitness. If something seems too unpolished, ambitious, weird, or even dangerous, good! It’s in the right place.
Resilience is a feature strengthened through many [approaching infinity] years of experimentation and [natural] selection
Finding myself caught up in the “React sucks” internet hivemind but to be honest it’s pretty productive and it rarely gets in my way. Maybe Remix was the missing link that was needed to make it smooth. Not quite as batteries included that rails is but people still hate on rails even though its a complete package.
Will somebody make remix on rails? Hook up the db, email, job layers. Hopefully they add middleware to remix soon and the foundations are there for something like that.
Trying new programming languages has become a form of extreme procrastination for me. I can ship anything I can dream of with the tools I know best, so why bother switching at this point? Focus on shipping - it feels better!
Didn’t even think it rained much last night but half of the park is underwater. The weather is strange.
How to learn a new programming language (maybe):
Find an extremely boring business tool to build
Gain insane willpower and the determination to slog through
Build the core functionality
Figure out pricing and build it in
Put it live and see if you can make some money. This is probably the hardest part but at least by this point, you will have written business logic and got a good sense of what using the language was like.
Profit?
Dm G C F C F Am G F C G | Am G-C-G-F
Listening to an AI recreation if your favorite comedian is a bizarre experience. Does it trivialize their work? Or is it built on their shoulders? It could not exist without their body of work. Strange times.
My dog can stand on his hind legs. Recently he appears to be trying to mimic the human sitting position, sitting up straight on the couch before tipping over to the side. I’m convinced one day he’s going to randomly blurt out a word of english.
Don’t let perfect be the enemy of shipped.
Teddy Roosevelt, maybe
There’s an agony that comes with being extremely self critical. It makes it very hard to be a beginner. Remember that if you stick with it you’ll gain enough expertise that low effort will yield acceptable output. If you quit, you won’t be satisfied either.
Is the desire to code in low level languages or over engineer every problem or make every piece of code aesthetically perfect or lightning fast a form of masochism? Shipping apps is already more than most people can do. Are we not smart enough already? Shipping something simple is more rewarding, but it's a test of discipline, not raw intellect. It doesn't make you feel smarter. It's easy to start hacking on a pie-in-the-sky technical problem, because when you inevitably give up it doesn't feel so bad because it was a near-impossible task anyways. Maybe if you finished that Mount Everest of a program you'd feel satisfied, but is it truly achievable?
Do you need to read more to write more? Or is the material already inside you and you just need to be less judgemental and let it flow out? Both probably, but it's not just reading that generates ideas, it's about observing the world through your personal lens. Nobody sees the world the same way you do. Take it in then put it down. Let it breathe. Let the sunlight cleanse it. Then decide if its worth sharing. It's okay if it goes in the trash, because there's always something better coming up right behind it.
Building for yourself creates a personal flywheel. You are the only one who needs to be satisfied. Publishing a log, or shipping a page on your website, or writing a hook to a song is a big win. Do it a second time and now you have a microverse to explore and grow your creative yield.