How do you plan your side projects?

Question

Hey HN!Like a lot of you I tinker away at side projects before and after work.My system for how I plan my "work away from work" is roughly:- 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.Please share how you plan your side projects! Justin

eimrine · Accepted Answer

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.
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.
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.

oneearedrabbit · Answer

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?
Next, break it down into steps. Write everything down like a brainstorm meeting.
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.
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.
Repeat.
Don’t forget to take breaks, drink water, and, please, be forgiving.

rozenmd · Answer

I don't really plan.I get an idea, draw up a diagram and start building it.Eventually, I'll screw something up and learn something. That's part of the process.