I spent four months on a project that never launched. No dramatic failure - just slow drift until I admitted it wasn't going to ship. Here's what went wrong.
Mistake 1: Built for an Imaginary User
I never talked to a single person who had the problem I was solving. I built features I thought were cool. When I finally showed it to two friends, they were polite but confused about why they'd use it.
Mistake 2: Perfect Tech Stack Before Product
I spent two weeks choosing between databases and setting up CI/CD for an app with zero users. The infrastructure was beautiful. The product was empty.
Mistake 3: No Deadline
"I'll launch when it's ready" meant never. Side projects need artificial deadlines - a demo day, a blog post date, a commitment to a friend.
What I Do Now
- Validate with 3 conversations before writing code
- Ship in two weeks or kill the idea
- Use boring technology I already know
Failure isn't wasted if you write down why. This post is my receipt.