My philosophy on life: if I have to do it anyway, I might as well have fun doing it. And I describe myself as seriously unserious. I take the work seriously, but we don't have to be so serious all the time.
These ideas touch almost everything I do. I updated my website because it was fun and practical (I even recreated my portfolio as an operating system). I spent several days exploring NYC's boroughs placing 70 QR stickers that sent people to my website so I could meet and network with people. I run free office hours and I've built and shared several web apps. I really like making things, and I want to have fun doing it.
The QR stickers pointed to four silly little mini sites, each one showing a different side of me: /catdad, /nyc, /fixer, and /officehours (which later grew into its own thing). Every one of them led back to my main portfolio. There's also /kevin which I made purely for the fun of it.
My site is also full of easter eggs. There's no reason for any of them except that I love making them.
Here's what I've learned from building the fun way.
Make it for yourself first
Build something because you find it useful. Write a post because you have something to say. Share it however you like, on LinkedIn or on a blog, and stop caring whether it gets likes. It probably won't get many, and that's okay.
When you make something for yourself first, the bar is whether it helped you, and you can clear that bar every time. Hopefully someone else finds it helpful too. Repeat this and keep going.
It gives you something to do
I think we often gloss over this part. Doing things fills your time and gives your days some structure.
If you're in a lull or between things, the days can blur together. Building something lets you set personal milestones. You can wake up with a next step. Think through a small problem during your walk. You're solving problems that you want to solve, and learning along the way. It's a win-win.
Fill a gap intentionally
Most of us have a gap somewhere: a skill a dream job asks for that we haven't been asked to use in our current or previous roles, or a subject we want to know better.
You don't have to accept the gap just because you haven't been formally asked to solve that problem in a work setting. You can teach yourself something new in the most enjoyable way you can think of. Build something in your area of weakness and post about it. Write about the subject while you learn it. Team up with other people who want to learn it, too. You can do it however you decide. How cool is that?!
With AI tools it's never been easier. You don't need permission or even money. You need a little time and something you want to build.
Even the "What I'm building" section of my site is a deck of cards you can drag around, flip over, and make a mess of. Making it was pure, silly fun.
Make "what have you been working on?" fun to answer
People ask me "what have you been working on?" all the time, at office hours and over coffee, and I love this question!
I pull up my portfolio (which I also built, and had fun building) and show them a few things I've been building lately.
Clockwise from top left: Office Hours, Unpaid Intern, KevinOS, and Recruiter BFF.
I built these in my spare time, and I had so much fun doing it. Maybe they'll go somewhere. They probably won't. And that's okay!
It might take one minute to talk about these with someone, but in that minute they can see your enthusiasm, and that you're actively building something right now. That leaves a great impression, and it's a lot more fun to talk about than the weather.
People will notice, and those are your people
My office hours started as something I made from nothing. GitHub Pages is free. Calendly is free. I put up a page and a booking link, and I've met dozens of people through it.
I get feedback on the things I'm building. I help people think through their problems, which keeps me sharp and current and teaches me new ways to dig into problems of my own. These are people I'll keep in touch with for years, people I can lean on and trade feedback with.
This week a senior analyst who'd been searching for almost a year messaged me after one of my posts. He'd been using AI to tailor every resume, and he could tell the results read like fluff. I gave him some feedback he can use on his resume. Neither of us was selling anything. He found me because I'd shared something I made.
When you make things and share them, the right people find you.
Networking that "works"
Most people only network when they're in danger. They reach out the week they need a job, and it feels transactional, because it is.
What if we all just networked all the time? That's how networking is truly meant to be: a regular way to talk with people. Saving it for emergencies is what makes it feel awkward. Office hours turned networking into something I enjoy, so I actually do it. I found a way to make networking work for me, pun intended.
So build something
Pick something you want to make. Make it for yourself first. Share it without worrying about the likes. Keep going.
Someone will notice. Those are your people.