Journey
Milestones, transitions, and learnings that shaped my path.
What I experienced
- Time Pressure: Building within a strict 24-hour window
- Team Collaboration: Working closely with others under a deadline
- Rapid Development: Prioritizing speed over perfection
What changed
Unlike earlier experiences, this involved actually building something within a limited time. It required quick decisions, compromises, and staying focused despite fatigue.
Impact
Even though we did not win, it was a fun and valuable experience. It gave me a better sense of how I perform under pressure and how to approach building when time is limited.
References
Around mid 2025, I started working on another project for the same client, this time for a real estate platform.
What I built
- Property Listings: Displaying and managing real estate listings
- User Management: Handling logged-in and non-logged-in users
- Access Control: Restricting certain features to authenticated users
- Lead Management: Allowing users to contact the realtor through the platform
What changed
This project was more feature-driven compared to the previous one. Instead of just building pages, I had to think about how users interact with the system, what should be accessible to whom, and how data flows through the application.
Impact
It pushed me closer to building full applications instead of just websites. I started dealing with more structured logic and real use cases, which made the work more interesting and challenging.
References
In April 2025, I started working with my first client on a WordPress website for a renovation company.
What I worked on
- WordPress: Building and customizing the website
- UI Sections: Services, contact section, and layout structure
- Forms & Integration: Setting up a contact form and embedding location details
- Client Requests: Adjusting features based on feedback
What changed
This was different from anything I had done before. I was no longer building for myself, and the work had to match someone else’s expectations. It required clearer thinking, cleaner execution, and more attention to detail.
Impact
It introduced me to working with real requirements and feedback. It also gave me a better sense of responsibility, since the work was actually going to be used by someone else.
References
What I handled
- Event Coordination: Managing the overall flow of the event
- Activities: Organizing a quiz and student presentations
- Mentor Talks: Assisting with sessions led by faculty
What changed
This was a shift away from working behind a screen. It involved handling people, timing, and coordination in a live setting.
Impact
It gave me experience managing something end-to-end in a real environment. It also helped me get more comfortable taking responsibility outside of development work.
References
Around early 2025, I fully switched to using Linux as my daily environment and moved to a tiling window manager setup.
What I explored
- Manjaro (KDE): My starting point with Linux on my laptop
- i3: Switched to a tiling window manager for a more minimal setup
- Keyboard-driven Workflow: Navigating and managing everything without relying on a mouse
What changed
KDE felt powerful but overwhelming for how I was using my system. There were too many moving parts, and I did not really understand or need most of them at the time.
Switching to i3 simplified everything. It forced me to learn how things worked and made me more intentional with how I used my system. Over time, I got comfortable with keybindings and started relying almost entirely on the keyboard. I also created a lot of shell scripts including rofi menus to enhance my workflow.
Impact
This shift changed how I interacted with my computer on a daily basis. It made my workflow more consistent and efficient, and it aligned well with my preference for keyboard-heavy usage.
On November 1, 2024, I participated in the SIH internal hackathon, which was closer to an ideathon format. Our team presented an idea for a student guidance application and secured 2nd place.
What changed
This was one of my first experiences presenting an idea in a competitive setting. It was less about building and more about thinking through a problem, shaping a solution, and explaining it clearly.
Impact
It gave me confidence in my ability to think through problems and present ideas under pressure. It also showed me that execution is only one part of the process, and that clarity of thought matters just as much.
References
Around October 2024, I was selected to be part of the college ERP development team.
What changed
This was my first time being involved in something more official than personal projects. The environment was different from working alone, with more structure and expectations.
Impact
It gave me a glimpse of how development works in a team setting. Even though I was still learning, it pushed me to take things a bit more seriously and be more consistent.
In 2024, I completed my 12th grade and started my undergraduate studies in B.Tech. Computer Science and Engineering.
What changed
This was a new phase of life more than anything else. Nothing dramatic changed in how I approached development.
Impact
It marked a reset in routine and environment, while I continued learning and building alongside academics.
Around April 2024, I revisited Next.js, this time using the newer App Router. I had tried it earlier when it used the Pages Router, but did not go deep into it back then.
What I explored
- App Router: New structure and routing approach in Next.js
- Server-Side Rendering: Understanding how rendering can happen on the server
- Full-stack Patterns: Handling both frontend and backend concerns in one framework
What changed
Server-side rendering was the main thing that pulled me in this time. It made Next.js feel more than just a frontend tool and closer to a complete framework.
Impact
It became a more practical choice for building web projects, even though this phase was more about getting familiar with the ecosystem than doing anything major.
Towards the end of 2023, I worked on Inner Ink, a desktop diary application built using Tauri. This was the first time I took a project seriously from both a development and structure point of view.
What I worked on
- Tauri: Building a desktop application with a local-first approach
- Tailwind CSS: Styling the application using utility-first CSS
- DaisyUI: My first exposure to design systems and pre-built component patterns
- App Bundling: Packaging the app for different platforms
- Semantic Versioning: Managing versions and releases properly
- GitHub Actions: Automating builds and release workflows
What changed
This phase was less about just building features and more about how a project is structured and shipped. I started paying attention to consistency in design, versioning, and how an application is actually delivered to users.
Impact
I was not able to take the project as far as I originally planned due to time constraints, but the process itself was worth it. I ended up learning a lot, especially around automation and release workflows, and it gave me a much clearer picture of what goes into maintaining a real project. (with a non-existent user-base btw)
In 2023, I got back into the idea of building a desktop application. This time, I started looking into different ways to actually do it.
What I explored
- Electron: The first option I tried, already familiar from apps like VS Code
- Progressive Web Apps (PWA): Considered for their simplicity and web-based approach
- Tauri: A newer and more lightweight alternative
What changed
I started evaluating options based on what I actually wanted. Electron felt too heavy for what I had in mind. PWAs looked promising, but would have pushed me into hosting and managing online infrastructure, which I was not interested in at the time.
Tauri was something new. It felt simpler and closer to what I wanted, so I decided to go with it.
Impact
This was the first time I made a clear choice between different technologies based on trade-offs instead of just trying whatever came up first.
In April 2022, I started working with Python and explored building desktop applications using Tkinter. This was my first attempt at creating something outside the web.
What I explored
- Python: Learning a new language outside the JavaScript ecosystem
- Tkinter: Building simple graphical interfaces
- Application Basics: Handling user input and structuring small programs
What changed
During this phase, I got curious about how desktop applications actually work. I found myself thinking about things like where data is stored, how files are managed, and how users interact with an application. I did not fully understand everything, but it was the first time I started asking those kinds of questions.
Impact
This was more of an exploration than a long-term project. It opened up new possibilities beyond web development and made me more interested in how software works at a deeper level.
In 2021, I moved away from purely frontend work and started building Discord bots. This was my first real exposure to backend development.
What I explored
- Node.js: Writing JavaScript outside the browser
- Discord API: Interacting with external services and handling events
- Command Handling: Structuring logic for user inputs and responses
- Basic Backend Concepts: Working with data, state, and asynchronous code
What changed
This phase changed how I thought about development. Instead of focusing on how things look, I started thinking about how systems behave, how data flows, and how different parts of an application communicate.
Impact
I followed the official discord.js guide while building my first bots. It was one of my first experiences relying on documentation instead of tutorials, and it changed how I approached learning new tools.
June 2020 is when I first got into web development. It started out of curiosity and slowly turned into something I kept coming back to.
What I explored
- HTML & CSS: Understanding how web pages are structured and styled
- JavaScript Basics: Making pages interactive instead of static
- React: Getting introduced to component-based development
What changed
This was the point where I stopped just using websites and started thinking about how they are built. It made things feel less like magic and more like something I could actually understand and create.
Impact
This phase mostly involved following YouTube tutorials and trying things out on my own. It was not structured, but it built the habit of learning by doing, which ended up sticking with me.