Life-work balance [1] is very important. Overworking yourself will lead to burnout the same as not being challenged at all will lead to boredom. Both are unsatisfying outcomes.

I’m in a lucky position to be able to do the type of work I am really into and that I can enjoy. So often, even in my off-time, there are ideas popping up and the fingers to make something are getting itchy. To scratch this itch it is a good idea to work on a side project.

As the name already implies this project is meant to accompany you and not take over the majority of your time. It should be something you can come back to occasionally and not take days and weeks of your attention at a time. A small tool or App focusing to solve a very specific problem or satisfying a particular need has proven to be a good choice for me.

Taking on a project on the side has quite a few benefits. For one it can help you relax, because you are working on something fun you have personal interest in. Since you are the owner of the project you are free to tackle it in any way you want. With any tools you want to try, with any programming language you always wanted to learn. Or maybe just explore some new frameworks. In any way you will learn a lot while doing it.

For me, I am doing mainly development for macOS and iOS, so often something I already explored or learning for my side-projects actually benefits me for client work. It might be a framework I don’t have to learn anymore with a deadline sitting in my neck. It might be some new best practices I came across that make work easier. But the very best part is the mistakes I could already make in an environment where it is not so critical. Mistakes I don’t have to make anymore during “normal” working hours.

[1] Or “Life-work harmony”, which is probably a much more preferable term.