Why should we stop doing pet projects

I worked on my project for three years. And this was not the first, I have accumulated a whole cemetery of unfinished projects. But after all, on the main job, I quite successfully cope with my tasks. There are no problems with the timing or execution.

Of course, such a situation should not surprise anyone: work is work, and a home project should be fun, you can do the most tasty things, and not do monotonous grinding of small parts that are necessary for release.
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All this is true, but the pleasure to see how someone else uses your product, to see that it solves someone’s problems is incomparably higher. So I decided to bring at least one project to release, no matter what.
It was necessary only to figure out what prevented me from doing it earlier.

The very beginning: what is a pet project?

Judging by my experience (and the experience of my friends), this is something that is always in the “under development” stage and it is impossible to finish it. I can easily list the reasons why it is this way:

• We constantly time itself. This is absolutely normal, so our brains help us cope with adversity. For example, instead of “it didn’t work out for me” we say to ourselves “it’s not interesting to me anymore”
• There is no literature, or courses on how to manage a pet project;
• Even to start working on something unknown is quite difficult;
• Over time, even the most interesting project turns into a routine.

There are a thousand reasons and excuses for not completing a personal project.

Let's stop doing pet projects, it's something too vague, too incomprehensible, let's focus on what will lead us to a logical conclusion.

Project. Just a project

Everyone knows how to work on a project. We do this day after day at the main job. You, probably, imagine all these tables, diagrams, time-trackers and think that the project is boring. Do not worry. Your own project is very exciting. First of all, think about the perspective: it is very pleasant to watch the development of your project. And then - you just need to see how someone else uses it. In any case, the experience of working on a project as a customer, a contractor, and a manager will never be over.

Patience is definitely needed, but the result is worth it.

I often have to repeat myself:

This is not a sprint, this is a marathon.

purpose

Even if you have been working on your project for more than a month, you should pause and honestly answer one question for yourself:

What is my goal? Why am I doing this?

On the way there are many different interesting sparkles that constantly distract from the main goal. The answer to this question will help to prioritize the right.

The goal should be simple and clear. When I say to myself “I want to deal with the X framework”, this is probably not the goal. More often there is a hidden motive: “I want to deal with framework X in order to ...” The answer must be honest. If I want my personal project to bring me money, should I lie to myself and say “I just want to make a cool product” and hope that the money will come by itself? It will not happen. Wouldn't it be better to focus on proving (or refuting) the hypothesis that your product is commercially interesting?

Time

Time management is a huge problem. A lot of literature has been written, there are many lectures, etc., but, of course, there is no universal algorithm.

I can just give a few tips that work in my case. Start with planning. There is nothing better than the good old Gantt charts. Break your project into tasks, make a temporary assessment of each task, write them down. Make sure you need more than one life to complete all tasks, transfer some tasks to the backlog for later. Repeat all over again. Again, a clear understanding of the goal will help prioritize each task.

By the way, when evaluating a task, note that days are not the same eight-hour working days anymore. Note the time you spend on each task. First, it will make a temporary assessment more accurate. Secondly, time-tracking will be a good hint that you are moving in the right direction (or vice versa - in the wrong direction). A very important point - time-tracking will help not to lose motivation in those moments when it seems that efforts do not bring any results.

Resources

Initially, it may seem that personal projects do not have the resources to be managed, but this is not the case. First, think about your personal time. You can divide your salary by the number of working hours and get (very roughly) your value as a specialist per hour. Now think about money: is it cheaper to fix the kitchen faucet yourself, or pay someone for this job and save your time? If you are going to make money with your project, why not start earlier? You can hire someone to create a website, SEO articles, or conduct marketing research.

The most valuable resource of your project, its vitality is your motivation. Do not wait for inspiration, manage your motivation like any other resource.

Again - no silver bullets, only tips:

Keep a list of tasks at hand. There is always something to do, even if you are not in the mood to do one thing, you can do the other. Just make sure you do not waste time on unnecessary tasks.

Do not finish to the point, leave work for tomorrow. I only have 2-3 hours after working on my project. It is much easier to continue yesterday’s task than to start exploring a new one. And it also eliminates the "swing" (only 2-3 hours, on Facebook, favorite blogs and comics just do not have time).

Now you have read about project management and, perhaps, you think: “What is the fan itself?” I can argue that your home project is very innovative. At least for you this is something new (otherwise why is this?).

Hm Innovative project management, in conditions of complete uncertainty, a constant search. Wait, isn't it ...

Startup

Startups are fun and exciting. Ask anyone. Moreover, now you can find tons of literature, video tutorials, blogs, lectures, courses on how to manage a startup. Even better: standard startup technology can be taken and used in your project right now.

Minimally Viable Product - MVP

Minimum viable product , or MVP is a generally accepted term (IYP would sound strange). Startups use MVP to confirm (or disprove) product hypotheses. Initially - “they will use it”, “they will buy it”, etc.

MVP in a home project is not exactly the same as in a startup. Something minimally viable needs to be done as early as possible, with minimal cost, but its main task is to maintain your motivation. If you work on something that cannot be “touched”, it will get tired very quickly.

For example, if I have to write a lot of code before I can run something, I do unit tests. The ability to run unit tests helps to move forward, not to mention the benefits of early testing.

Something working you need to have on hand at all times. And it not only motivates, but also disciplines. For example, it forces you to focus on only one change, instead of making many changes at once, so as not to break anything when it comes to code.

Lecture hall

The main problem of a startup is the search for its audience. This, too, can be noted (there are plenty of literature and lessons). You are not alone, there are still people who are potentially interested in your project as well as you yourself. Find them, tell us about your idea. You can find like-minded people, hear plenty of good advice and comments. In any case, feedback from living people is better motivated by thousands of cat videos.

You can use many other ideas from the world of startups, it all depends on what you want to achieve with your project.

Productivity requires sacrifice

There is always not enough time, not only for personal projects, but in general. We can not increase the number of hours per day, but we can be more productive.

Mode . Bad news, yes. People are most productive when they live according to a cyclical schedule.
If today I lie down at 4 am, tomorrow I will not have time to complete all the tasks on the main job, I will have to overtime, and there will be no time for a personal project, etc. Better stick to the schedule.

Sport Anyway, and the carcass must be maintained in good condition, otherwise - the consequences will be sad. It is difficult to start playing sports, but after a couple of weeks the body will begin to ask for the next portion of physical activity, and the state when you just want to run forward, because you can’t describe it in words.

Balance sheet Everything is as usual, but with a personal project, the situation becomes more critical. I myself read a lot about the importance of being able to balance, but at the same time I managed to drive myself into a burnout. Burnout is a state of physical and emotional exhaustion. Even understanding your condition, you no longer have the strength to switch, go somewhere, just relax. And you act out of habit, like a squirrel in a wheel, unable to break free from this circle.

That's all. I hope that this article will help you to complete your home project, and with it the world will be even a little bit better.