Your project isn’t going anywhere until u stop playing it safe

Let’s face it: Most people are here because they’re dabbling—toying around with something they say they care about, all while juggling day jobs, Netflix, doomscrolling, and a laundry list of “real life” responsibilities. But here’s a big question that might rub some folks the wrong way:

Why do so many side projects never see the light of day beyond a GitHub repo or a ghost-town landing page?

I’m not trying to be a jerk. I’m just noticing a pattern. You’ve got “10% of the time” to devote to an idea that could be huge. But in reality, you’re giving it 2%. Scrawling half-baked thoughts in Notion docs, adding package after package, and telling yourself you’re “building in public” if you tweet a screenshot every few weeks.

Hypothesis

Playing it safe. Keep it a “side project” so if it flops, you don’t look dumb. If it stagnates, you can blame the day job. If you lose interest, you shrug and say, “Eh, it was just a side thing.” This mindset keeps us from doing the single most important part: shipping and actually putting it in front of real users (who might hate it, or love it, or ignore it altogether).

Why This Hurts

  • Zero Accountability: When something is “just a side project,” it’s easy to walk away if it gets hard or boring.
  • Fear of Feedback: Deep down, you’re afraid of hearing crickets—so you only half-launch, never truly risking rejection.
  • Missed Potential: The next big idea might be simmering in your spare time. But you’ll never know unless you treat it like it matters.

My Suggestions..

  • Commit to a “Ship Date” for your side project—like it’s a real product launch, because it is.
  • Force Real Usage: Get strangers (not just friends) to try it. Negative feedback is better than no feedback at all.
  • Kill It or Double Down: If you truly can’t bring yourself to finish or iterate on it, maybe you should kill it and move on. Stop letting old code weigh you down.

I’m not saying everyone must quit their job, take out a second mortgage, and go all-in. But for the love of all that’s unholy, if you’re going to spend precious hours on a side project, at least do yourself (and the world) a favor and actually get it out there. Make the choice to risk looking silly, or failing, or hearing “meh.” Otherwise, what’s the point?

So, Fight Me on This

  • Agree? Think we’re all coddling ourselves by not really committing?-
  • Disagree? Believe side projects can be purely for fun, learning, or creativity without any need to ship?

Here’s what I committed to and launched recently! www.fyenanceapp.com