80% of success is showing up - Woody Allen

June 23, 2006

Two months into coding my product, it became clear that it would never finish. All of a sudden, the expression "80% of success is just showing up" began to make sense. Most programmers give up before they finish. I had reached about 2000 lines of fairly complex code before realizing it isn't a one man's job. I have noticed that most programmers begin to lose faith in their product's worth as it approaches the finish line. This is what happened to me. I consider my product, a collaborative software editor, to be extremely useful for software companies that require team of programmers to work together. I originally designed it to facilitate my own need for efficiently offshoring software development to Pakistan. There is a fair deal of competition out there for this sort of product, so running low on pizzazz is expected. Besides, competition is a positive sign for a healthy market for the product: so I should focus more on providing a viable product than potential market for it.

Most programmers design as they code. As it turned out, this became a problem. I began to add too many extra 'goodies' to the product; as a result, it not only became more complex but also extremely difficult to finish. Billionaire Jim Clark's advised on a similar matter: 'don't incorporate everything into the product, this is something engineer's never understand'. It just so happens, I am an Engineer. The product, as it stands right now, is 30% finished. I plan to get some outside help to code a few components, this will not only relieve tension off my back but also give me much needed time to research the products place in the market.

For now, I just want to get my butt into the market. Once I am there, I will find my way to the top.