What is one thing people can do to make their website better?
Exactly what you want to build!
Ask yourself:
- What drew you to development in the beginning?
- Is there an experimental API that you’ve been wanting to try out?
- What could you spend all night hacking away at, just for the fun of it?
Your personal site is a statement of who you are and what you want to do. If you showcase your favorite type of work, you’ll get more requests for similar projects or jobs — feeding back into a virtuous cycle of doing more of what you love.
Like stage performances, you can tell when love and excitement went into creating a website. One of my favorite examples is Cassie Evans’ website. She added so many fun flourishes (including an adorable SVG self-portrait). The joy baked into her work has (at least partially) led to her current role, bestowing animation superpowers at GreenSock!
So, go forth, and create a trailing mouse cursor. Or a confetti component! A real-time drawing pad, or some hardware to show the current state of your coffee machine. Really, anything that gets you excited to build!