This week I caught up with a buddy who’s a software developer. He’s been working on a software idea that he hopes will become a large business. The scope of the project is sizable, so he’s had to hire a few developers to help him get it over the finish line. He shared with me that he’s learned a lot from the experience, the main thing being that he doesn’t want to work on any project that he can’t build by himself. He doesn’t want to manage other developers. He just wants the freedom to work on software ideas he’s curious about, launch them (and hopefully get revenue), and move on to the next project.

As I listened to my buddy, I thought about the indie hackers I’ve researched. The notable ones have one-person shops that have built a portfolio of several companies that collectively generate several million dollars in revenue each year (usually, one of them contributes the most revenue). From what I’ve learned, indie hackers love the process of building but also love new challenges. They don’t want to work on something indefinitely. They want to be individual contributors and work alone so they can move really fast. And most importantly, they want freedom—they want to be in the driver’s seat of their own lives.

I’m pretty sure my buddy is an indie hacker, but he might not realize it yet. I have a lot of respect for indie hackers. I think it’s amazing that they can do what they love; build cool, new stuff; turn it into companies; and generate enough revenue to give them financial freedom (in some cases, serious wealth). What I respect most about them is that everything they do is on their own terms.  

Not every software engineer wants to work at or build a large company. Some just want to continuously work on new ideas they find cool and be in control of their life. They don’t want to rule the world; they just want to live in it the way they see fit. I love it, and I think the indie hacker movement is a great part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem that will likely get much larger and well known in the years to come.