Hey friends 👋 At Virtual Coffee, we're excited to announce our latest monthly challenge: Build in Public Challenge.

For a lot of us, building in public has been a significant part of our journey. In fact, every job I've had since moving to tech has a direct connection to building in public. Building in public allows us to share our progress, become a part of supportive communities, and gain valuable feedback. Whether you're a Virtual Coffee community member or part of the wider Dev community, we invite you to join us on this journey of building in public.

The Build in Public Concept

The Build in Public movement, popularized by Shawn Wang, emphasizes the idea of sharing your work transparently throughout the development process. By opening up about your progress, challenges, and insights, you create an opportunity for collaboration, learning, and community engagement.

Benefits of Building in Public

1. Accountability: Publicly sharing your goals and progress creates a sense of accountability. Knowing that others are aware of your commitments is a powerful motivator, driving you to stay focused and make consistent progress.

2. Feedback and Support: When you build in public, you invite feedback and support from a community of like-minded individuals. This can lead to valuable insights, suggestions, and encouragement that can help refine your work and boost your confidence.

3. Networking and Collaboration: Building in public allows you to connect with others who share similar interests. You can collaborate on projects, exchange ideas, and establish meaningful professional relationships that can open doors to new opportunities.

Ways to Build in Public

Coding Projects

Share what you're working on, ask for help or collaboration opportunities, and talk about the work you've done. You might even check out some open source opportunities 😉

Non-Coding Projects

Sometimes we need a break from coding or contributing to tech projects. If you want to enrich other parts of your life, consider doing it in public. Maybe you're writing a book, creating artwork, or on a health journey. Leverage social media, personal blogs, or forums to share your journey, challenges, and milestones.

How it works

Daily Standup and Demo

The Daily Standup and Demo approach is an effective way to embrace the Build in Public philosophy. It involves communicating regularly about your work, sharing progress, and preparing for a final demo to showcase your achievements. If you're not a part of the Virtual Coffee community, we'll do weekly check-ins where you can post what you've done all week. Or you can post to social media and tag us in the post.

The Process

1. Define Goals. Start by clearly defining the project you want to share and the scope of your work. Set achievable goals and outline what you aim to accomplish by the end of the month.

2. Share Progress. Regularly communicate your progress in designated channels. Whether it's a detailed blog post or a short tweet, sharing your milestones, challenges, and learnings encourages engagement and demonstrates your dedication.

3. Seek Support. If you encounter roadblocks or need assistance, don't hesitate to ask for help. Engage with the community, ask for help on social medai, or participate in coffee table groups to find support and solutions.

4. Prepare for Demo. As the challenge progresses, prepare for the final demo. Decide whether you want to pre-record your demo or present it live. Test your workflow, ensure you have the necessary environments, and prepare talking points to deliver an engaging presentation.

Resources and Further Reading

• Shawn Wang's original “Build in Public” concept
• Agile Sprint Reviews: Three steps for better sprint reviews with your agile team
• How to prepare a demo
• How to give a great Agile sprint demo

How to Get Involved

Getting involved is as easy as grabbing your favorite cup of coffee (or tea!) and joining us here. Here's how you can participate:

1. Follow our Virtual Coffee org on Dev and introduce yourself in this thread.
2. Look for the Build in Public challenge posts and engage in discussions.
3. Share your reflections, updates, and insights with the community.
4. Connect with others and find an accountability partner to support each other.
5. Celebrate your progress and encourage others by participating in the progress celebration thread.
6. If you want to, share your progress and tag us (@VirtualCoffeeIO) on Twitter.

By embracing transparency, seeking feedback, and celebrating small wins, we foster a culture of continuous improvement and create opportunities for collaboration and growth. So, let's embark on this journey together, build in public, and showcase our work at the end of the month!

Remember, building in public is not only about the end result but also about the relationships and knowledge gained along the way. Let's support each other, share our progress, and make a positive impact in the developer and creator community.