Most side projects die in private. You build for weeks, polish until it feels ready, then launch to... nothing. Zero users. Zero feedback. The project quietly rots in a GitHub repo you stop opening.
Building in public is the antidote - and it works because it changes the game entirely before you ever hit launch.
What Building in Public Actually Means
Building in public means sharing your progress - the wins, the setbacks, the decisions - as you build. Not polished marketing posts. Real updates: "I just shipped user auth, took me four hours, here's what caught me."
It's not about being an influencer. It's a discipline that forces accountability, attracts early users, and builds a feedback loop you can't replicate any other way.
The key shift: you stop thinking of launch as the moment you start talking about your product. You start talking from day one.
🔥 Pro tip
Why Developers Resist It
I know why you're hesitating. The common objections:
- "What if someone steals my idea?" - Ideas are worthless without execution. Nobody is waiting to steal your to-do app.
- "What if it fails publicly?" - Failing quietly is much worse. Public failure teaches you fast.
- "I don't have enough followers." - You build the audience while you build the product. One post at a time.
The real reason developers avoid building in public is more honest: it feels vulnerable. Putting half-finished work out there is scary. But that discomfort is the exact forcing function you need.
The Practical Playbook
Pick One Channel and Commit
Don't spread thin. Pick one:
- Twitter/X - Best for dev audiences. Short updates, screenshots, and quick polls work well.
- LinkedIn - Underrated for reaching people who might actually pay for things.
- Your own blog - Slower to build reach but you own the audience.
Start with Twitter/X if you want fast feedback loops. Add your blog once you have something to say at length.
The Weekly Update Rhythm
Consistency beats quality early on. A simple structure that works:
What I built this week:
- [Feature 1]
- [Feature 2]
What's blocking me:
- [Problem I'm solving]
What's next:
- [Next milestone]
Post this every week even if you shipped nothing. "I spent three hours debugging a race condition and fixed it by rethinking the state model" is genuinely interesting to other developers. Don't filter it out.
✅ Tip
The "Show Your Work" Posts That Get Traction
Not all updates are equal. These formats consistently perform:
Before/after comparisons - Show the UI, the code, the metric before and after a change. The transformation is satisfying to watch.
Decision posts - "I chose X over Y because..." These invite discussion and signal that you're thinking carefully.
Failure posts - "This approach completely failed, here's why I'm pivoting to..." Counterintuitively, these often get the most engagement. People respect honesty and learn from mistakes.
Numbers posts - "Week 8: 47 users, $0 MRR, 3 churned, here's what I learned." Sharing real numbers, even small ones, builds trust fast.
💡 Good to know
Turn Your Build Log Into a Feedback Machine
Building in public isn't just about broadcasting. It's about pulling people into your product before it's finished.
Every time you share a decision, ask a question. "I'm adding onboarding - should I do a 3-step wizard or a blank canvas with tooltips?" Real users answering that question in the replies is worth more than three weeks of solo deliberation.
When someone comments with interest, DM them: "Hey - I'm building this, would you be willing to be a beta tester?" People who follow your build are the warmest leads you'll ever find.
Tools That Make It Easier
Keep the tooling minimal so friction doesn't become an excuse:
- Typefully or Buffer - Schedule your Twitter threads ahead of time so one block of writing covers a week of posts.
- Loom - Quick screen recordings for showing demos. Faster than screenshots and far more compelling.
- Changelog by Beamer - Embed a public changelog right in your app so users see you're actively shipping.
- GitHub public repos - Committing openly lets technically curious followers browse your actual code.
# A simple approach: tag your commits for public consumption
git commit -m "feat: add stripe checkout flow - replacing custom payment form"
# That commit message is a mini update by itself
⚠️ Watch out
What Happens When You Ship
Here's what building in public actually buys you at launch:
- A list of people who asked to be notified when you launch.
- Social proof - your timeline is a record of real work.
- Early feedback that shaped the product before you over-built the wrong thing.
- A small but warm audience that feels invested in your success.
None of that exists if you built in a vacuum.
The developers who launch to crickets are almost always the ones who showed up on launch day expecting attention they never earned. The ones who build in public launch to a waiting list.
Start posting this week. Your first update can be one sentence: what you're building and why. That's enough.
Ship loud.
