Things like:
- I cannot keep my pets form eating each others food so I'll create food bowls with covers that are only unlocked via RFID tags on the pets' collars.
- It's a pain in the butt to keep track of these 30 different sources of information I use when preparing a report so I'll build API connectors to automatically suck in the data.
- I'm constantly spending 5 hours a week doing X task which could be automated and I have 10 friends with this time suck as well.
Creating a project that you use yourself to solve a problem or save time has so many benefits:
- you understand the problem
- you can easily determine if your solution actually works by using it yourself
- you kind of understand the consumer (one person isn't a good sample size)
- you'll have personal incentive to keep working on it when things get tough
It's possible to come up with side project ideas that don't stem from problems you've experienced personally but you'll be facing an uphill battle. First, you'll have to research what the problem is and how it affects potential users. Then, you'll build something awful cause you really don't understand the problem. Then, you'll rebuild it again after getting feedback. You'll have to figure out how to test it since the problem doesn't occur in your life so you'll probably have to recruit other people to help out which can be very time consuming.
One major factor is this:
- Don't be afraid to build 15 shitty side projects you throw out. Each one will teach you something and number 16 may be your next company. Almost no one strikes gold on the first try.