This one’s a bit more philosophical—but stay with me: There are things in life we can control, and things we can’t. That distinction lies at the heart of Stoic philosophy, most famously articulated by Epictetus in the first century BC.
What does that have to do with product development?
A lot, actually.
When you’re working on a small, independent project like poketto.me, it’s easy to grow frustrated with a lack of resonance. LinkedIn posts don’t get the traction you hoped for. Journalists don’t reply. Mozilla doesn’t respond, even after you’ve tried to nudge them on all imaginable platforms,. It can feel like you’re putting something good into the world—and the world is simply ignoring it.
But the Stoics would say: These are things outside your control.
You can’t control whether someone replies to your email, whether users sign up, or whether a post goes viral. These are decisions made by other people, based on their own contexts, priorities, and randomness. And so, getting emotionally attached to those outcomes—outcomes you don’t control—only sets you up for disappointment.
What is within your control is how you show up. Are you proud of what you built? Do you find meaning in the work itself? Does it reflect your attention to detail, your curiosity, your intent?
That’s what I try to focus on.
Yes, I want people to use poketto.me. I want their feedback. I want to co-evolve the product with many real users. But whether that happens this week, next month, or never—that’s not something I can force.
What I can do is send the tenth pitch email with the same care I put into the first. I can build the next feature with the same attention to usability, performance, and style. I can enjoy the process of solving problems, writing code, and sharing what I learn.
If that leads to growth, amazing. If not—that’s okay too. Because how could it not be?