Burnout after working on a project for a year

The transcript discusses the topic of burnout and how to avoid it. The speaker shares the story of a developer named Toolatrix Chow who experienced burnout after working on a project for a year. Toolatrix identified three major pitfalls that led to burnout: getting too focused on technical details, experiencing internal conflict, and not addressing core issues. To prevent burnout, Toolatrix developed the 2-2-2 method, which involves spending two hours on a proof of concept, two days on testing, and two weeks on launching the project. This method helps maintain focus and receive faster feedback. The speaker emphasizes the importance of adapting and finding a sustainable pace. They also suggest starting new projects as a form of mental massage to prevent burnout. ever just like poured your heart into a project only to feel totally fried when it's finally done. Oh, tell me about it. It happens to the best of us. Right. And then it's like where'd the passion go? So today we're diving into how to dodge that burnout bullet. Perfect topic. We've got a great post by Toolatrix Chow to guide us. They're a developer, really knows the struggle firsthand. Oh, interesting. So like from the trenches. Exactly. And get this, their journey building software. It actually reveals some pretty universal truths about burnout. Ooh. So even if we're not like coding gurus, we can still learn something. Absolutely. It's about the underlying patterns. So Toolatrix's story starts with this product, MarkMark, one of those passion projects that just, you know, spirals over a year of work poured into it. Whoa, a year just thinking about that stresses me out. And that's the thing. By the launch, Toolatrix was drained. Like they even said, and I quote, this project took over a year and it really drained my patience. You can practically hear the burnout in that sentence. No kidding. And that's where the real deep dive starts, right? Because it's not just, oh, I need a vacation. It's deeper. It's about falling out of love with the work itself. I feel that. So like, how do you even begin to unpack that? Well, Toolatrix wasn't just content to complain. They wanted to understand why this happened, how to avoid it next time. They were determined to figure it out. So like, how'd they even start to untangle that burnout? Well, they got introspective, you know, really dissected what went wrong with MarkMark. And they pinpointed these three major pitfalls. And honestly, they're scarily relatable. Oh, spill the tea. What were they? Okay, so get this. The first one, Toolatrix calls it the engineer mindset. It's like they got so bogged down in the technical weeds of building a thing, they kind of lost sight of the WHY. Ooh, I feel that. It's like that saying, can't see the forest for the trees. Exactly. You're so busy obsessing over every little detail, you forget the big picture. And for Toolatrix, the forest was like the whole user experience. Right. Like, does it even matter how fancy the tech is if it doesn't actually solve the user's problem? Exactly. And let's be real. We've all been there. Yeah. Down the rabbit hole, miles from where we meant to be. Ooh, all the time. But okay, so that's one pitfall. What was the second one? So this one's kind of juicy. They called it internal conflict. Picture this. You're the product manager and D, the engineer. Ooh, so you're like your own worst critic and D, your own biggest fan. That sounds messy. Total recipe for disaster. One minute, it's all, let's add all the features. Next minute is, this is impossible, I'm a failure. And then the deadlines fly out the window, the pressure mounts, it's a runaway train. And the worst part, they tried to fix it by bringing in help, but hadn't addressed those core issues first. Oh no. It's like adding more cooks to a pot that's already boiling over. Exactly. Just amplify the chaos. So yeah, we've got the problem. Burnout, fueled by these three major pitfalls. So what's the solution? How do you actually break the cycle? Okay, so we've got burnout, major pitfalls, it's a recipe for disaster. What did 2electrics do? So they find this idea called the 2-2-2 method. 2-2-2? Okay, what is that? It's a secret code. Basically, it's like this. It takes two hours to build a basic proof of concept, you know, just get the core idea down. Okay, two hours. Got it. Then what? Then two days for testing. See if it actually, you know, works. Get some feedback. Two hours, two days. Yeah. That's pretty quick. What's the last two? And here's the kicker. Two weeks to launch the whole thing. Two weeks? Are you serious? That's like warp speed. Right. It sounds crazy, but think about it. Remember 2electrics' earlier project, Paste Now? Yeah, the one that only took three months and they actually felt good about? Exactly. Something like that, but even more streamlined. So it's all about like forced focus, no time to overthink things. Exactly. And you know what? 2electrics is already seeing the benefits. They're not getting bogged down in all those extra features that sound cool, but aren't really necessary. It's like decluttering your project before you even really start. Yes. And the best part, faster feedback. They're getting it in front of people, making changes based on real input, not just their own imagination. That's huge. But like, is it all smooth sailing from there or are there still bumps along the way? Well, there's this one comment that's pretty interesting. Apparently 2electrics is using this software called SwiftUI and it sounds like it can be a real pain to work with. Ah, so even with the best laid plans, sometimes the tools themselves can throw a wrench in the work. Exactly. And I think that's a good reminder for all of us, right? It's not about perfection. It's about adapting as you go. So it's less about like crushing it and more about finding a sustainable pace. Exactly. And remember how drained 2electrics was after MarkMark? Well, think about how satisfied they were with PaceNow, the one with clear boundaries and a quick turnaround. It's about finding that sweet spot where the challenge actually energizes you. Okay. So last question. How do we actually do that? How do we find that sweet spot? Well, I think 2electrics gives us a really interesting clue. The original title of their blog post, it's in Chinese, but it translates to something like starting a new project as a form of mental massage. Ooh, mental massage. I like that. So it's like even just the act of starting something fresh, even something small, can be a way to recharge. Exactly. It makes you wonder, could embracing that new project energy actually help prevent burnout in the first place? Interesting. So instead of waiting until we're totally fried, maybe we should be looking for those little sparks, those opportunities to refresh and recharge. Exactly. It's all about finding what works for you. Awesome. Big thanks to 2electrics for sharing their insights. It's been quite the deep dive. And to all of you listening, thanks for joining us. Until next time, stay curious.