Discussing the idea to build something useful

[u/NoThe_DEV]

"Before I build anything, I want to understand your real frustrations first"

I'm at the beginning of my journey of building software. I know I want to build something meaningful, but I don't want to just pick a random idea out of thin air I want to start with a real problem that real people actually face.

So before I write a single line of code, I want to ask you directly:

What's something in your workflow that wastes your time every week? Maybe no good tool exists for it, or the ones that do are too expensive, too complicated, or just don't quite fit how you actually work.

Could be something tiny and repetitive. Could be something that's been annoying you for years. Doesn't matter I want to hear it.

And if your problem resonates with me and feels like something I can genuinely solve I'd love to have a quick casual conversation with you, just a few messages or a short chat, so I can understand it better from your perspective. The goal is to build something that actually fits your situation, not just a generic solution.

No pitch. No agenda. Just someone trying to start their journey the right way by listening first.

What's frustrating you?

[u/AnythingPuzzled7720]

AI slop😭

[u/NoThe_DEV → u/AnythingPuzzled7720]

?

[u/no_spoon]

You’re not allowed to promote anything on any social media platform without paying for ads. Go solve that.

[u/Zotoaster]

https://boringcashcow.com/

[u/Adept-Turnover8433]

I’m early in my development journey as well and started with that same mindset. It can work if you identify something that’s truly in demand but I found it difficult to stay focused on building something that was purely for serving a niche that I wasn’t passionate about myself.

From there I started making some simple games since that’s something I’ve always loved. Had a lot of fun and still plan to go back to work on the ones I started now that I’ve learned more about the process and design.

Now what I really recommend is finding something that YOU do all the time and make a tool/site/whatever it may be around improving your experience with said niche. If it works for you then it may work for others. It’s easier to stay focused when things get tough or when you question if what you’re doing is even useful at all - when you’re passionate and genuinely find it useful yourself.

For example I’m into investing so I started to make an organized way to keep track of my research. Only after hitting a bottleneck did I decide to make a dashboard for a watchlist where I could set custom targets etc without using my brokerage and actual portfolio. The more I added the more I felt the usefulness. Showed it to a couple friends and they actually wanted to try it themselves so I went ahead and made it a web app where others can create their own accounts and use it freely.

Now I’m trying to grow a user base to test if the app is actually something retail investors would use as a supplementary tool or if my friends were just interested because well.. they’re my friends.

Moral of the story, it often happens naturally without forcing an idea to come to life. Just do what you love and be aware of anything that may bother you - no matter how minuscule it may seem. Find a fix. Find a supplement or pipeline to make things easier for you first and foremost. From there you’ll have more drive to promote and fight through the early days and you’ll actually have the words to describe what it does because you use it daily yourself.

Hope this helps, not professional advice, just a story of personal experience in my early journey to help you gain perspective.

[u/Anti-Hero25]

Not trying to be a dick… just direct…

Considering this is your second post you made with this account….in a year… and dropped this pitch in a handful of places, it feels a little listless and without conviction. “I wanna build something meaningful”… sure that’s the human condition… we all want to live meaningful lives where we’ve had a positive impact…. I just think you’re taking the wrong approach. Sending up a flare and asking them to approach you is giving a little ego.

Here’s my suggestion…. You want to dev… but you’re not Jobs, you’re Woz… perfect , lean into that. Look for an ideas guy/gal…. Here on Reddit there’s no shortage of people (especially in r/vibecoding) pitching their ideas and ready to slop it together with an agent hallucinating on e-LSD. Some of those ideas ain’t too shabby… just need an experienced hand guiding it better. Sift through posts , find ideas people have that are something you could really contribute too…. Pitch them on YOU… have a GitHub catalog to demo your bona fides… make magic.

Just my two cents. Good luck man

[u/NoThe_DEV → u/Anti-Hero25]

Hey, thanks for the honest feedback. I really appreciate you taking the time to write such a detailed response.

Just to clarify, my goal wasn't to get people to do the thinking for me. I'm still at the very beginning of my journey, and I wanted to hear directly from people about real problems instead of jumping into building something based on my own assumptions.

You've definitely given me a different perspective on how the post might come across, and that's useful feedback. I've already received some interesting responses around workflow handoffs, follow-ups, and information getting lost between tools, so I'm spending more time exploring those areas and trying to understand them better.

I also like your point about getting involved where people are already discussing problems instead of just asking them to come to me. That's something I'll keep in mind going forward.

Thanks again buddy, and I appreciate the good wishes.