Introduction
I spent 15 years of building odd bits of software. I'm far more than just a software engineer, but that's what I'm here to discuss.
Some of my software has been quite successful, and most of it has not. Some I wrote for freelance clients, and some were for myself.
I wrote good software. I have never been the best engineer–not by a long shot. I dropped out of university during my junior year because I wanted to build products, and schools were focused on teaching compsci theory. It was 2013 and software engineering was not yet taught. It probably still isn't–it should be a major in its own right.
Circumnavigating my personal shortcomings as an engineer, I developed a well rounded skillset. I brought taste and communication to my freelancing. I held an intuitive understanding of business goals and a keen sense for UX. I delivered my work on time.
I built many projects which now sit silently littered across dead git repositories. I love building things. It's not the secret to life, but it's brought me great fulfillment.
In 2015 I created a niche product1 and in 2021 it became my full-time job. I run it alone with no employees and it makes enough to pay my bills (for now).
I co-created a popular free and open source concert streaming platform2, and built a hand-curated concert calendar for the NYC live music scene.
I don't know why I love building things. For whatever reason, the process is incredibly fun to me. Unlocking the puzzle of a project feels like the closest I can get to pure creation, and is far more 'art' than people seem willing to acknowledge. Software gives me the leverage to have an incredibly wide and dynamic impact, all through a simple laptop in my home office.
During this period of work, I didn't write much because I wanted to spend my time building. As I get older, I have come to appreciate writing as a form of building. And I'd like to get better at it.
My feeling now is that if I write sparingly, and passionately, expressing myself publicly will bring value to my life. This is not in pursuit of money nor accolade, rather personal fulfillment and distillation.
My plan is to write for myself, and those that care to follow along. That mostly means my mother, though she might bail out after the first deep dive into the user experience of loading states.
I have the extraordinary good fortune to wake up every morning and decide what I want to work on. When people ask me what I do, I tell them that I am a software engineer. When they invariably ask "who for" and I tell them myself, running my own solo-business. The most common follow-up is: 'oh that's the dream'. And, candidly, it was always mine.
Most days, my work involves writing software. Some days it's going for a walk or just sleeping in. Or, more importantly, spending time with the people I love. I could (and should) be far more intentional with my time.
Today, I feel like writing. I never set out to only build software–software was just my medium. I've come to realize that the worst aspect of software is that you have to maintain it. And writing can be finished. It would be so nice to make some things that feel done.
Writing has been a long itch that I've never quite been able to scratch.
When I was younger, I saw blogs as tools for dispensing advice. But I never felt qualified to dispense advice, nor did much of the advice I found online ring true to me.
I hope I don't do that here. I'd like to share some of my experiences and perspectives. But I don't want to tell you how to live your life, or presume that I have any answers, because I don't. I'll try to frame things from my own experience. And I apologize in advance for any hyperbole.
When advice does appear, please take from it what you want, and throw away what you don't. It's not gospel.
My job and career is cool, but it is not a template nor is it the key to happiness–I promise you that. But it is fun, and I thoroughly enjoy it. Maybe you'll find it interesting too. While I mostly plan to talk about that here, I'm also trying to live a full life outside of the screen. Maybe it'll seep in, we'll see.
I'm well-aware that the only person who will be interested in every topic that I choose to write about will be just me. That's okay, niche is good.
There are a number of sitting drafts, ranging from interactive software tutorials, treatises on user experience, and thoughts on running a solo, bootstrapped business. I don't know exactly what I'll publish. I guess we'll see where it goes.
For now, it feels hard to finish and release a post. But I know-like all things-it is merely a skill to be honed. And as I publish, it will get easier.
Thanks for reading this meta post. It won't be the last post I publish.