Consistency in Software Development

We all have people around us who want to create something of their own but lack the motivation to do that. We all have those wonderful ideas that could be game-changers. Some of us do it to put our skills to the test. Others do it to create a personal brand so that they get noticed and can grab opportunities.

No matter what the ideas are, they end up at the back of our minds until someone else goes and executes them. Well, like they say the best time to start something was yesterday, the second best is right now.

Here is something that has always worked out for me.

1. Document — whenever you have an idea just write it down. It doesn’t matter how silly of a thought it is. Just start writing it somewhere in a neat manner. Every day post that, just keep reading that.
2. Design — you don’t need things like Figma or any other design software. You can use a pen and paper and draw out how you are imagining it. Save it somewhere and keep looking at it and improve on it.
3. Plan — There will be n number of things you want to do. Use a popular issue management software and just write those things down. Break them down to the smallest possible unit of work so that you can estimate it correctly. The smaller your task, the better your time estimates.
4. Develop — Use a popular version control like Github. The reason is not for collaboration but to keep track of the awesome work you are doing. We humans want to see progress. It doesn’t matter how much we have accomplished as long as we keep doing things. GitHub allows you to see the contributions you are making to the project that keeps you motivated.
5. Release — Make release notes. No matter how small they are. Maybe you have just changed the color of a button. Make a release note and make it public. This gives a sense to your users that you are serious about things and want to keep improving the project.
6. Collaborate — If it’s not something you are looking to make money out of, open it to the public. Identify issues and log them under the issues tab on GitHub. And allow others to make PR to your code.
7. Consistency — Just visit your project on a daily basis. Take the help of ChatGPT if you are stuck on what next to build on your product. Most of the time you will get great feedback. Again try to repeat the above steps when you get a nice idea from AI.
8. Block Time — Use a todo app and just block time to sit with your project. Can be 10 minutes or even 2 hours. Don’t stretch beyond that though.

Remember, Rome was not built in a day. So don’t rush through things. Take your time, and build things peacefully. Believe me when I say, that if you don’t build your idea, no one will.