#5: Is it weird to not build apps even though you can?
Oh look, a rock...
Hello folks,
Today’s thought is about not building applications even though one can.
In a world where business people clamour towards developers to build their app ideas, where developers can build bajillion-dollar businesses based on said apps from their laptops, I feel a little uncomfortable that I’m not doing anything with my software development skills.
Am I a vessel of wasted potential? Is something wrong with me? Ought I do more, if not for a bigger payday, at least for a good cause?
I have in my mind a rock for an answer that I’ll need to chisel to reveal its core. Grab a chisel, let’s hammer our way together.
First, let’s chip this away: Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Nobody needs another shitty app developed for the developer to make a quick buck.
Craaack! Well done, that piece was asking to be hit!
Next, let’s target that one there. You see it? That gray thing amidst the black that’s really easy to ignore? Yeah. Let’s go for that.
Starting new projects is easy, but sustaining anything long-term is extremely hard. I’ve blogged for 8 years! Wow! But do you know how many times I stopped and bashed myself over it? And that’s just a hobby! What about a business?
Any app that is meant to be the basis of a business needs proper commitment to maintain and develop. I’m not just talking about the technical aspects of keeping servers up and updating packages. There’s chasing customers for money, paying the bills, marketing, sales, customer support… that list is endless. Ask a founder near you.
The 4-hour workweek dream is that you could outsource this but then you’d still need to learn how to outsource the right thing to the right people, which I’ve always felt is akin to assembling a puzzle in the dark. You never quite know if you’ve got the pieces in the right places, even if they seem to fit. So you might as well construct a new puzzle yourself and call it a 5-, 10-, 20-year commitment.
CRRAASSSSSSHH!! oh shit, that’s some brilliant hammerwork! Did you see how chonky the piece that fell was?! I can already see parts of the core.
Hang on a minute… there’s a slip of paper sticking out of it. Let me pull it out, one sec.
Here, here, I got it, let’s read it together. It’s so small… if my hands would just cooperate…
This space intentionally left blank.
