What if building is the whole point?

You may recognize this cycle:

• flash of a new idea
• flurry of building over a couple days/weeks
• blog post with jokes, code snippets, GitHub links
• small announcement on social media

And then………..crickets.

We’re left wondering what we did wrong. The code was clean, right?

Then why do I only have two stars on GitHub and the last couple visitors (according to analytics) were likely bots.

There’s a second tier of bargaining afterwards: that’s fine I didn’t go viral, at least I can put it on my portfolio/resume. And you do.

When it doesn’t lead to more inbound messages from recruiters or future collaborators, we wonder again: was the idea just not interesting?

You read the usual advice about “knowing your user” and “solving a real problem.”

It doesn’t help. They don’t understand how unique your solution is.

I’ve gone through this pattern more times than I can count. While I certainly learn new tidbits each time, I must admit: the whole process is disheartening.

But what if we hadn’t even gotten to the good stuff yet?

What if the building was the whole point?

Not the blog post or the GitHub stars. Just sitting with a project long enough for it to feel alive. Opening your editor and trying something new.

I’m 100% not immune to this cycle, but building Memphis has shown me there’s another way. That all those years I was chasing external validation, I was subtly missing the chance to go deeper. To follow my own direction instead of what I thought would impress someone else.

It’s an ongoing challenge. We want our work to matter.

Next time you think about adding something to your code and catch yourself thinking, “what’s the point?”

Perhaps you’ve already found it.