I used to be like you. Back in my early career years, and even before when I was a student, I used to have a lot of cool side projects that would only interest

I used to be like you. Back in my early career years, and even before when I was a student, I used to have a lot of cool side projects that would only interest me for so long. I would spend a few hours or days on them, and then throw them out or forget them. It was ok because I did not care about the project in itself. It was interesting to try new techs, or methods, or just spend some time doing something I loved. It stopped being ok when something shifted in my mind : I subconsciously decided that I wanted to stick to a project. But it was for the wrong reasons. I wanted to make money. I wanted to have a cool startup. I wanted to be able to stop working. Too much Hackernews hype. But since I did not really care about the project itself, I never managed to stick to it. After years of frustration, I quit wasting my time and took on some other non IT related hobbies. Two years ago, I picked a side project for the first time in years: it's a cool music theory related website. https://www.mamie-note.fr https://www.mamie-note.fr in case you're curious. I've managed to keep working on it (and being interested to do it) since then. It's the longest time I've ever spent on a single project. Here are the things that are different for me today: - I do care about the project in itself: it's the site I wish existed when I started learning music, and the site grows as I'm growing as a musician. - I really enjoy the daily process of working on it, I don't fantasize about how great the end result will be in a few years. - I don't care about the tech, I care about the topic. - I'm turning the site into a business, but making a living with it will be a cool side effect, not the main objective. - Since I do have a family now (and we are in lockdown), I have much less time to work on it. It's easier to stay motivated when you spend two or three ours on a project instead of 15 or 20. - Working on this project is a hobby, but it's not my only hobby, I take interest in other things, so when I'm bored and don't sweat it and take breaks for some days or weeks. My two cents.