Hey HN!<p>Like a lot of you I tinker away at side projects before and after work.<p>My system for how I plan my "work away from work" is roughly:<p>- Capture all ideas as a digital one-sentence "pitch"
- Repeat entries are okay
- Add context (links, examples, growth strategies) if they are novel
- When I get free time from executing all existing commitments, hit the idea backlog and see what feels doable based on the coming weeks, my energy and interest.<p>Please share how you plan your side projects!
Justin
1. Buy or gather everything needed for the project and put all parts of the project in a box. Probably it may be a directory on a file system if the project is something digital, but as I love to get outside of displays most of that boxes for me are some real cardboard boxes in the offline world, full with offline stuff.<p>2. Wake up as early in the morning as possible because evening is never a good time for any projects with uncertain time constraints - because waking up early constantly is important per se. Believe me or not but all my time except of more than 1 year I was an owl and now I realized that this is a key for my productivity.<p>3. After your morning coffee realize that there are a lot of boxes around. Pick any one and start working! And get ready that most of that boxes gotta be untouched for the sake of dealing with the most important/interesting ones.
First and foremost, pinpoint the goal. Is it purely for funsies? To acquire new knowledge? Must it be pragmatic? Perhaps a business venture? Are there any users who will interact with the thing?<p>Next, break it down into steps. Write everything down like a brainstorm meeting.<p>This is a preliminary plan. Identify any known unknowns and research topics until they become known knowns. In the end, there is a list of steps to be done to achieve the goal. Can't crack it yet? Not a problem, put it in the reserved zone and move on.<p>Tackle step #1, or perhaps start with the most troubling one, then reassess the remaining parts. Is the goal still stand, or has something changed? No? Excellent--proceed. Yes? Take a half step back and adjust the plan.<p>Repeat.<p>Don’t forget to take breaks, drink water, and, please, be forgiving.
I don't really plan.<p>I get an idea, draw up a diagram and start building it.<p>Eventually, I'll screw something up and learn something. That's part of the process.