Waiting for the next peak
In 2017, I was attending a conference at work. It wasn't a conference for me. The talks weren't aimed at me, I was just there because I had to be. But one talk did stick in my mind. It was about the gender inbalance in STEM (the acronym used to group Science, Technology, Engineering and Math subjects together).
I wrote one note that entire conference and it was the name of an idea – How do.
I started building How Do later that year.
Building something new can be disheartening a lot of the time. You're all alone, building this thing that only you really care about. People come and go. You show it to some people and they like it. Others don't get it.
Progress is a slog
What I've found working on How Do is that it's a lot of lows. Not failures, just times when you are by yourself and it's you and the product.
This is how all my side projects have felt. But unlike the projects before, I have kept going with How Do. Some days I don't even think it's a good idea. But I keep building it. It takes a steady determination to keep going.
A jolt of energy
I've found every now and then you get a jolt of energy. It's usually hitting a milestone or someone coming to you talking about the thing. It gives you the push you need to keep going. It's important to anticipate and hope for the next peak in the journey. At each peak, progress is easier.
But before long the peak will disappear and the slog will continue. Hope has to be replaced by determination. One day it might be a real product helping real people but right now it's nothing but an idea.
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