The joy of product development.
The process is the reason.
Success is found as we go, not in the results. And you’ve probably heard that happiness is a journey, not a destination. It sounds like a cliché, I know. Still, it’s the emphasis of this whole post, so I’m going to say it plainly: It is true.
Everyday, more and more, I notice that everybody is looking at the next goal, at the finish line… the launch, the finished piece, the result. It happens in our personal lives too… the retirement plan, the promotion, the new offer… But the journey is where you actually live. And in the making is where you find fulfillment.
Originally, this post was going to be about something else, but I picked this topic on purpose because it’s the most relevant one at the moment and also it is hitting the note for this time of year. It’s not about AI, cause everything is about AI Lately, but AI does comes up a lot.
If you do not want to read, here’s the idea in one line: If you hand away the making, you hand away the part that was supposed to make you happy.
How making actually works
Any experience creator will tell you that motivation and inspiration won’t find you waiting. They arrive while you’re doing. If you ever feel uninspired, then just sit down and start working. It’ll find you, just keep going.
So no need to wait. You better start with what you can. With whatever you have. And then, not only inspiration finds you, it brings her friend innovation. We often find that an idea improves as you make it: you see what you don’t like, you see what could be better. And the ‘happy little accidents’ often turn out better than the plan.
You make, you try new things, you try a “what if” even when there’s no logical reason to. And then you are creating something new. Something that makes you proud. Something that makes you happy. Something that fulfills you.
My honest position on AI
This is not a sermon from above. I use AI for everything. I have agents for everything, and I like it quite a bit. A lot.
But we have to be careful not to let it take the process away from us. And that is me reminding myself of it too.
Because in full honesty, I was struggling with this too recently. As a designer who LOVEEEEEES creating 3D models and renders and fun animations, is very hard to see it done in 10 seconds by an AI software.
And we can complaint all we want about the mistakes it makes, the quality, or the sources it uses, but the reality is that it is going to get there… it will make better work and maybe use less resources eventually. But that is a whole other topic.
My point here is that: Regardless, YOU, as an inventor, creator, innovator, founder, entrepreneur… can’t give AI the task of creating, expecting it to give you the fully developed product.
The reason is the process. The process is the reason.
Our way of creating is very different from the automated one, and therefore, the results will be different. Not just in terms of quality. But like everything good in life: the devil is in the details. The tiny handwritten thank you card that a human who takes pride in their work adds on top of their package. The smile of your teammate when an idea hits. The excitement of expectation to see if this version will work or not…
But more importantly, the process is what makes us love the act of creating and the curiosity is what drives that process. When we resolve that curiosity in five minutes, an hour, a day, little by little the motivation and the desire run out, and you stop savoring what you do.
We are all so concern about losing jobs and the economy, but the lack of motivation and fulfillment hits much harder.
But what if we are already loosing out motivation?
Well, stop use AI as a helper for the day-to-day, not as a replacement for the process. Stop asking it to DO your work for you. And allow yourself to fail and try again, to take the time to work around the challenge, to figure it out. But also, there are tons of sources on creativity out there!
A thread from a book
I’ve mention this book already in this blog: Sensations, by Thalma Lobel. It’s about embodied cognition and physical intelligence: how we perceive the world, and how those sensations affect our decisions and behavior.
We see it every day, in the way we talk and the way we feel about everything. The book goes sense by sense, explaining the idea, the research, and giving examples on how we perceive these sensations in our daily lives. For example, the physical weight of your medium translates directly to the weight of your ideas. If you hold a heavy, well-bound sketchbook, your brain takes it seriously. You are telling yourself: This matters. I am doing real work here. On the other hand, if you are working on a flimsy napkin or tapping away on a frictionless glass screen (gen-z I am looking at you), it is harder to feel grounded. Consequently, if you ever feel uninspired or disconnected from your ideas, look at what you are holding in your hands.
The same goes for the temperature… Physical warmth actually makes us perceive the people around us as more generous and trustworthy. More “warm”. Think about the times you’ve been offered a cup of coffee for free… you were probably about to buy a car or something. So why don’t apply this on yourself, when taking big risks on your product development journey?
And we also have to talk about what we see. Colors acts like a direct switch for your cognitive state. The color blue promotes open-mindedness and red makes you more alert and careful. As a creator, you can use this in your environment. You can use it in what to wear to boost your confidence. You can use it for your notebook, laptop, or note taking whatever. The point is that you can change your environment and your tools to fit the exact part of the making process you are in. In order to display your best ideas, you must recognize that in the making is where you find fulfillment, and every sensation matters!
Creating doesn’t mean doing it all alone
A key clarification: I am talking a lot about creating but when it comes to product development, you have to open up and look for the help you need to make the best product: engineers, coaches, designers, whatever is needed. But without ceasing to be part of the product.
(I think next month I’ll write more about who you need).
But for now, let’s talk about collaborations. It helps to compare three scenarios…
Scenario A: AI makes it, you accept the result
What you gain: Speed, low effort
What you give up: The process, the learning, and your hand in the outcome
Scenario B: Someone collaborates with you
What you gain: Their experience, plus your own growth
What you give up: Some control, and the time to build trust
Scenario C: You hire someone, say “do this,” and accept what they deliver
What you gain: Capacity, a finished thing
What you give up: (Same loss as the first) you were never inside the work.
So I think, it is not just about AI. The first and the third share the same flaw: you’re out of the process. The second keeps you in it.
So I think, always keep a hand inside. Trust the experience of others. Keep learning the process. Collaborate, and remember that collaborating doesn’t mean giving orders.
Where I am right now
I’m super busy with the business: lots of ideas, lots of projects. For now I’m focused on social media, to grow and bring traffic to my page and my business. I’m doing it on my own, hoping to grow enough to hire some real people.
The busiest seasons are exactly when it’s easiest to give the process away, and when it matters most. So I feel you! And, here’s my invitation for this month: Look at your work day, what are you letting AI do that YOU could be doing and enjoying? Let the tools help but do not let them have it all.
