Automation Culture: The Indie Hacker guide for beginners

Why Automation Isn’t Just for Big Tech

Imagine your indie project running like a well-oiled machine—tasks completing themselves, systems improving autonomously, and your team (even if it’s just you!) collaborating effortlessly. This isn’t magic. It’s a culture of automation, and it’s the secret weapon of engineers and indie hackers who ship faster, scale smarter, and sleep better. Here’s how to build it.

The Secret Sauce: A Culture of Automation

Successful automators don’t just write code—they live automation. It’s their default mindset. Here’s what sets them apart:

1. Document Everything (Yes, Everything)

   • They treat documentation like oxygen: critical and ever-present.
   • No debates over “Is this worth writing down?”—everything gets written.
   • Tools? A dedicated editor, shortcuts, and a second monitor to eliminate friction.

2. Revise in Real-Time, Not “Someday”

   • While others hoard sticky notes and half-baked plans, automators update docs as they work.
   • No “I’ll fix this later”—later is now.

3. Collaborate Early, Automate Faster

   • Share drafts early. Invite others to tweak, test, and improve.
   • Build a “stone soup” culture: everyone brings something to the pot.

The Golden Rule of Automation:

“Every manual task must either
(1) complete the job and improve the system, or
(2) create/refine an artifact. If it doesn’t, kill it.”

The 4 Phases of Automation (No PhD Required)

Forget traditional project plans. Automation thrives on iteration. Here’s your roadmap:

Phase 1: Learn by Doing (and Documenting)

• Start manually to understand the process. Take messy notes. Interview experts.
• Write a step-by-step guide—even if it’s ugly.
• Why this works: If you can’t explain it in plain text, you can’t automate it.

“Documentation is automation. You’re the CPU executing the code—except you can debug as you go.”

Phase 2: Replace Mouse Clicks with Code Snippets

• Turn each manual step into a command or script.
  • Example: Replace “click Export → CSV” with ./export-data --format=csv.
• Paste these snippets into your doc. Refine them every time you rerun the task.
• Pro tip: File bugs for GUI-only tasks. “Vendor knows about it” isn’t enough—get a bug ID!

Phase 3: Build Scripts That Grow With You

• Stitch snippets into scripts (Bash, Python, Go, etc.).
• Rule: Every manual run must improve the script. Edge cases? Celebrate them—they’re free tests!
• Stack Overflow’s hack: Use compiled languages (like Go) for big projects. Avoid rewriting later.

Phase 4: Let It Run Wild (Self-Service & Autonomous Systems)

• Turn scripts into tools, then into self-service portals (e.g., a Slack bot that spins up servers).
• Dream big: Autonomous systems act without human input (e.g., auto-scaling cloud resources).
• Indie hack: Use tools like Zapier or n8n for low-code automation. No engineering team required.

When to Stop?
Not every task needs Phase 4. Ask:

• How often is this done?
• Will automation save 10 hours/month or 10 minutes?
• Does a $10/month tool already solve this?

Key Takeaways for Indie Hackers

1. Documentation = progress. Start ugly, refine daily.
2. Automation is a team sport. Share early, even if it’s just you and a chatbot.
3. Every manual task is a script in disguise.
4. Autonomous systems are the endgame. Free your time for what matters.

Your Homework:
Pick one repetitive task this week. Document it. Turn one step into a script. Share it with a friend. Repeat.

Automation isn’t about perfection—it’s about momentum. Build the culture, and the empire follows. 🚀