You're Not Bad at Side Projects. You're Just Building the Wrong Thing.

Let me guess: you've got at least three abandoned projects in your GitHub repos right now. You spent weeks building them, maybe even got them feature-complete, possibly even launched them. A few polite upvotes on Reddit, some "nice work" comments, then... nothing. No users, no revenue, no momentum. Just another project gathering dust while you scroll through indie hacker Twitter wondering what you're doing wrong.

The frustrating part? You know you can code. You ship features at work every day. You understand React, you can integrate APIs, you've deployed production systems. But somehow, when it comes to your own projects, you're stuck in this loop: build something cool, launch into the void, get discouraged, repeat.

Here's what nobody tells you: the problem isn't your technical skills. It's that you're starting at the wrong end of the process.

The Side Project Death Spiral

You know the pattern because you've lived it. You get inspired by a podcast episode or a tweet about someone hitting $10K MRR. You have an idea, maybe even a decent one. You spin up a new repo, configure your build tools, start implementing features. The first weekend feels productive. You're making progress, the dopamine is flowing.

Then reality hits. How should you price this? Should it even be paid? Maybe you should build more features first. Who's actually going to use this? How do you get users anyway? Is this idea even good, or are you just building something you think is cool?

Three weeks in, you're still building. The initial excitement is gone. You haven't talked to a single potential user. You have no idea if anyone will pay for this. You start another project, telling yourself this time will be different.

The worst part? You're spending 10-15 hours a week on side projects, which is more than enough time to build a real business. But those hours are scattered across false starts, tutorial hell, and building features that don't move the needle. You're working hard but going nowhere.

I've seen senior developers, people who make $120K at their day job, who can't figure out how to make their first $100 online. Not because they're not smart enough. Not because they can't code. But because nobody taught them the system for going from idea to paying customers.

What If You Started with Evidence Instead of Ideas?

Here's the fundamental shift that changes everything: stop starting with "what should I build?" and start with "what are people already trying to pay for?"

Ship Your First Paid Chrome Extension in 30 Days isn't another course about passive income or building an audience or finding your passion. It's a tactical, step-by-step system for developers who want to ship something people actually pay for, using a distribution channel that's underutilized and a format you can ship in weeks, not months.

Chrome extensions are the secret weapon for developers who need to prove to themselves they can build a real business. Why? Because the Chrome Web Store is a distribution channel with 200+ million potential customers, built-in payment infrastructure, and way less competition than the app stores. Because extensions solve clear, immediate problems for people who are already at their computers, ready to pay. Because you can build and ship an MVP in 30 days without learning a new framework or hiring a designer.

But here's the catch: most developers who try to build paid extensions fail for the same reasons they fail at other side projects. They build the wrong thing, they don't understand pricing, they get rejected by the Chrome Web Store for fixable mistakes, or they can't figure out how to get those first crucial users.

This course exists because I got tired of watching talented developers waste months building extensions nobody wants.

From Analysis Paralysis to First Dollar

Section 1 teaches you how to validate three extension ideas in 48 hours. Not validate as in "my friends said it's cool." Validate as in: you've found evidence that people are already searching for solutions, paying for inadequate alternatives, and expressing willingness to pay. You'll use a systematic framework that forces you to identify the specific buyer, their specific problem, and clear monetization before you write a single line of code.

This is where most courses fail you. They tell you validation is important, then leave you to figure out how. You'll get the exact research workflow: where to look for competitor pricing, what questions to ask in user interviews, how to interpret pre-sell signals, and how to kill bad ideas fast so you don't waste weeks on them.

Section 2 solves the technical overwhelm problem. You'll build a production-ready Manifest V3 extension with proper architecture from day one. Not a hacky prototype you'll need to rebuild later. The real thing: service worker lifecycles that don't randomly fail, content script injection that works reliably, message passing that handles edge cases. You'll learn the MV3 gotchas that cause random bugs at 2am, and how to architect around them.

This matters because you don't have time to rewrite your codebase when you're trying to grow to $3K MRR. You need it built right the first time, with patterns that scale.

Section 3 addresses something most developers get wrong: extension UX isn't web app UX. You'll design the specific flows that matter for paid extensions: first-run onboarding that drives activation, time-to-value that happens in seconds not days, and upgrade moments that don't feel spammy. You'll implement the UI patterns unique to extensions (popup, side panel, options page, in-page injection) and connect them directly to business outcomes.

This is where conversion happens or dies. You can have the best solution to a real problem, but if users don't understand the value in the first 60 seconds, they uninstall. You'll learn exactly how to prevent that.

Section 4 demystifies the part that stops most developers cold: payments and licensing. You'll integrate Stripe subscriptions end-to-end, implement auth and licensing that works across devices without creating friction, and build the complete paid funnel: checkout, webhook handling, entitlement verification, graceful downgrades. No hand-waving, no "figure this out yourself." The actual implementation, with code.

This is what separates a portfolio project from a business. When you can take payment and verify entitlements reliably, you have a real product.

Section 5 gives you the analytics system you need to improve conversion. Not vanity metrics. The metrics that move MRR: activation rate, trial-to-paid conversion, churn signals, feature adoption. You'll instrument events that matter, build dashboards that guide decisions, and run high-leverage experiments on the parts of your funnel that actually impact revenue.

Most developers build blind. They have no idea which features drive conversion or where users drop off. You'll know exactly what's working and what to fix.

Section 6 prevents the nightmare scenario: spending weeks building an extension, submitting to the Chrome Web Store, and getting rejected for a vague policy violation you don't understand. You'll learn the compliance-first approach: privacy policies that satisfy reviewers, permission justifications that don't trigger red flags, store assets that communicate value, and how to interpret rejection feedback and fix issues fast.

Getting approved isn't luck. It's understanding what the review team is looking for and giving it to them the first time.

Section 7 teaches you how to price like a business, not a hobbyist. You'll design tiers, set value-based limits, and anchor pricing to user ROI so your pricing feels obvious, not arbitrary. You'll implement packaging in your UI that makes the difference between free and paid crystal clear, and create upgrade paths that are easy to understand and hard to ignore.

This is where most developers leave money on the table. They charge $5/month for something that saves users hours of work every week. You'll learn how to price based on value, not cost.

Section 8 solves the "nobody knows my extension exists" problem. You'll execute a launch plan that combines Chrome Web Store SEO, social proof, and direct outreach to find users who already have the problem you solve. You'll build a lightweight marketing system that keeps working after launch week: demo pages, content angles, community posts, and partnership strategies that drive sustained growth.

Technical founders hate marketing because nobody taught them the system. You'll get the playbook for your first 100 users, then your first 100 customers.

Why This Actually Works (When Other Courses Don't)

You've probably been burned by vague business courses that teach theory without tactics. Lots of inspiration, zero implementation details. This course was built by developers, for developers who think like you do.

Every section includes the actual code, the real examples, the specific numbers. Not "you should validate your idea" but "here's the exact 48-hour validation workflow with the questions to ask and the signals that matter." Not "implement payments" but "here's the complete Stripe integration with webhook handling and error cases covered."

The 30-day timeline isn't arbitrary. It's designed around the reality that you're working nights and weekends while holding down a full-time job. Each section builds on the last, eliminating decision fatigue. You're not figuring out what to do next. You're executing a proven system.

The $3K MRR target is intentionally chosen. It's enough to be meaningful (that's $36K annually, a real second income), but achievable for a well-executed extension in a validated niche. You're not trying to replace your salary in month one. You're trying to prove to yourself that you can build something people pay for.

This Is For You If...

You're a developer with 3-7 years of experience. You're comfortable with JavaScript, React, or Vue. You can read documentation and integrate APIs without hand-holding. You've shipped code professionally. Your technical skills aren't the problem.

You've started multiple side projects in the past year, but none of them made money. You're tired of building things nobody uses. You spend hours every week on side projects and have nothing to show for it except abandoned repos and diminishing motivation.

You follow indie hackers on Twitter. You listen to podcasts about people building businesses. You know it's possible because you've seen others do it. But you can't figure out how to bridge the gap from inspiration to execution. You're stuck in analysis paralysis, overwhelmed by all the decisions required to actually launch and monetize something.

You want proof that you can build something people will pay for. Not someday. Now. You're willing to invest 30 days of focused work if someone will just tell you exactly what to build, how to build it, and how to get your first paying customers.

You're skeptical of courses (good, you should be), but you're desperate for a system that actually works. You need tactical, step-by-step guidance from someone who's done this, not vague principles from someone who's only taught it.

Start Building Something That Actually Makes Money

Here's the reality: a year from now, you'll either have a stream of income outside your salary, or you'll have more abandoned projects in your GitHub account. The difference isn't your coding ability. It's whether you follow a proven system or keep guessing.

Ship Your First Paid Chrome Extension in 30 Days gives you that system. Validation frameworks that surface real willingness to pay. Production architecture that doesn't need to be rewritten. Payment integration that actually works. Store approval strategies that prevent rejection. Marketing tactics that get you your first users without building an audience first.

Stop building things nobody pays for. Start shipping products that generate revenue.

The developers who succeed at indie hacking aren't smarter than you. They're not better at coding. They just have a system, and they execute it. This course is that system, built specifically for developers who are done being wantrepreneurs and ready to ship something real.

Your first paid customer is 30 days away. The only question is whether you're going to take the structured path or spend another year guessing.

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Tags: #webdev #chrome #sideproject #indiehacker #monetization