I am an aspiring indie hacker but I don't have any profitable websites so far. In the many months of struggling to make one such website, I made quite a few websites and mistakes.
I want to share those with you today.
Preface
In the summer of 2016, I graduated as an electrical engineer. Parents and relatives thought I would go to the Middle East, live with my mom and dad, get a job as an electrical engineer.
But that's not what I wanted.
In mid-2014, I enrolled myself in a workshop to skip classes in college. It was a workshop on How to build a robot using Arduino. That day I fell in love with programming and decided I want to make a living out of making robots.
This dream was short-lived, as in 2015 I took two more workshops, but this time it was for making Apps for iOS and Android devices. I don't mean to brag but I won the first price in both workshops.
So my love for Programming stuck and I forgot about robots. This was because of financial conditions, Robots were a lot more expensive to build because, depending on the project, their parts and sensors were needed. Whereas an app could be developed on a laptop. No extra hardware required. (unless of course If I decide to make Apple-based apps, then I needed a MacBook and an iPhone.).
While in the final year of college, I convinced my parents to buy me a MacBook, as an investment. It was really hard for my family to purchase an expensive computer (like many other families), but I promised my parents it would be worth it.
After college got over, while my friends and classmates were hunting jobs, I was learning to make apps. A few months of research later, I realized the future is in websites which can download themselves on to phones, and act like apps.
So I moved from App development to Web development, and started learning Python 3, and made apps using the Django Framework. I would spend hours on my MacBook watching video tutorials of various people on youtube.
Sendex, TheNewboston, CodingForEntrepreneurs, are just a few I can mention.
A year after college, I was equipped enough to make simple apps on my own. If I would get stuck on something, StackOverflow would have an answer. Although I must admit I still find it frustrating that I still can't understand the official documentation sometimes :-/.
Not that you know about me, here are some of my mistakes and websites.
Mistakes
- Should have got a job as a Junior Web developer. But I guess imposter syndrome.
- Should have asked for help, when I needed it. I keep hearing mentors are necessary for every one, don't know that would work.
- Shouldn't have locked me in the house. Need to meet more people in this same field.
- Should think of more ways to be less lazy. So far all I could think of was remainders for everything in a day, including messaging mom every day.
Websites
Ritrew
At first, I created Ritrew. It was a social media platform for poets and writers to share their work online. I had no interest in a website for content writer and authors (made it because my little cousin was interested in writing poems.), so I couldn't take it forward with much effort. Lost interest in it a few days after completing the alpha version.
Daily Launcher
A few lazy month later, I created a website called Daily Launcher, which helps you organize cards containing links. I thought it would be a good idea, but it wasn't. People told me there are browsers which can easily do this job. And I realized it was stupid of me to make such a website.
Basically Twins
Then again, fast forward another few lazy weeks, and I made Basically Twins. This is the first product which I made for myself.
I felt there was a lack of resource to help other entrepreneurs understand where the money is.
Because everything I created before, was either not needed, or had no market at all, I feel this website could actually be useful to a lot of people.
Afiio
Afiio is an online business card-esque service. I wanted a place to keep a List of websites I created so far, easily accessible to anyone and shareable for me.
The main idea here is that it can hold your work portfolio, links you want people to see, and it had to be stupidly easy to maintain.
Why did I write this?
I guess I want to share this, just to know what other people have some. Because it would be stupid to assume that I am the only person who is going through this. I want help.
Heres how any conversations end every time I talk to a friend or supporting relatives
Its been 2 years since college, you have no job, no money, no career. We support you, but when will we see results?
I am not sure how to get there. I try making websites, but I don't know how to take it to the appropriate audience after the website is ready for public viewing.
I don't know how to keep the motivations up and Ideas flowing.
I don't know if I can make it. But I don't feel like quitting. I didn't invent 2 years of my life only to quit.
What do I want from This article?
I Just want to hear what you think about my decisions so far.