Ben’s Five Keys to Creating a Successful Side Project

Ben argues that the side project that lasted for him was the one he could keep sustaining over time. He ties that to personal interest, firm limits, no rush, a simple first version, and bringing in help only after the project had already gained traction.

Reading notes

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• The project has to be genuinely his, with enough interest that he can keep working on it for a long time.
• He treats constraints as useful, especially when they keep the work manageable and force better pruning of ideas.
• He argues that the time constraint should be removed from the start so the project can live on without a deadline-driven rush.
• The first version should be basic and not try to do too much, because the point is to launch, learn, and let the project grow over time.
• He recommends starting alone first, then finding help later at the right inflection point, as happened when Jess Lee joined.
• He also says not to feel pressured to make the project commercial, and suggests considering a public API and open sourcing earlier.