This was a very humbling part of the process, especially when I looked back after finishing the project at all I thought I was going to fit into the app.
I learned that this part is crucial, it's the visual equivalent to making an outline for a written essay, and the more detailed and more thought out, the easier it'll be for you when you go to actually build the thing.
It feels like a step you can skip, but please, be kind to your future self and do not try! If you're anything like me, you probably get really excited when you first come up with an idea, and think you can see it perfectly in your head. You can't wait to get started -- and good on you for capturing that momentum and energy, it's also essential if you want to finish any project to move when you're excited -- but please be kind to yourself and sketch out your idea, get it out of your head in some capacity!
It not only helps guide you, during the process of building -- when you're stuck or if you need to stop for a couple weeks mid-way through building the project -- but most importantly it helps you see the gaps and weak spots in your idea and design. For some reason our brains love to smooth over those inconvenient gaps, like a blur filter.
It amazes me how the general stereotype of programmers can be that they're solo workers, when it involves so much communication to build anything. The best programmers I know are so good because they can communicate their ideas well, either before hand or during when they're stuck. The first piece of advice I ever got when I first started learning coding was that the best skill you can learn initially is to know how to ask for help.
And it's proven to be so true. Whenever I'm stuck, writing out my question on stackoverflow often clears up my confusion, before I even hit submit on the question. If not, then after about 10 minutes as I imagine a person reading my question, it's like magic and the missing link pops into my head! Likewise, calling a friend and explaining it to them, often before they can even respond, I have an idea on what was missing.
This first design step is similar to that, it's getting the idea out there, and since inevitably we'll want others to use our project, or enjoy it in some way, involving them as early as possible simply makes sense.
Anyway, I learned to love this step, and would love to hear your thoughts:
How do you first get started on a project? Do you have any "go-to" design steps? Tips on how to keep your project realistic and simple? Write them below 🫶
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