The unreasonable effectiveness of just showing up everyday (typesense.org)

Article summary

The author of the article discusses the effectiveness of working on a project every day, without deadlines or pressure, and how this approach helped them build a search engine over six years. The author suggests that this approach can be applied to other projects and ideas, especially those in large and growing markets. By focusing on making progress every day, individuals can make significant progress over time. This approach allowed the author to build a successful product while minimizing risk and stress.

Main themes

• consistent effort
• side projects
• employer rights
• habit formation
• ADHD and executive function
• contract negotiation
• intellectual property rights

What commenters say

• Some employers claim rights to employees' side projects, which can be a concern for those working on personal code.
• The legality and ethics of employer claims to employee side projects are debated, with some arguing it is unreasonable for employers to own work done outside of work hours.
• Employees can negotiate contracts to protect their rights to side projects, and some companies are willing to accommodate this.
• The ability to form habits, such as working on a project every day, can be affected by individual factors, including ADHD and other executive function challenges.
• Some people find that forming habits takes longer than expected, and may require alternative strategies to be successful.
• The concept of employers owning employees' side projects is not unique to the US and can be found in other countries, although the specifics of the laws and norms may vary.
• The idea that employers should have no rights to code written by employees on their own time, unless it uses company resources or competes directly with the company, is advocated by some commenters.