This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Urvisha Maniar
I’m not a developer, but I work around a lot of them — enough to know that devs build things for fun, for curiosity, for frustration relief, and sometimes just because the idea wouldn’t leave their brain alone.
And honestly?
I think that’s one of the coolest parts of tech culture.
Because while companies talk about roadmaps, features, and customer needs…
developers quietly build things that solve their own problems first.
- Tools no one asked for.
- Tools no one paid for.
- Tools that make life easier in a small, personal way.
- Tools that probably have three users max — the dev, their laptop, and sheer chaos.
- And those tiny personal inventions?
- They fascinate me.
🔧 Everyone builds something for themselves at some point
Over the years, I’ve heard devs casually mention things like:
- a script that renames 200 files in one go
- a personal dashboard to track mood + sleep + caffeine
- a tiny AI bot that generates commit messages
- an automation that rearranges Google Drive
- a CLI tool that reminds them to drink water
- a mini database because existing ones felt “annoying”
- an internal tool that became… half of their company later
Some of these tools are brilliant.
Some are chaotic.
Some should honestly be illegal.
But every single one is a window into how developers think.
🤝 Meanwhile, I build… frameworks in my head
Since I don’t code, my “personal tools” look different:
- systems for evaluating ideas
- questions I ask before I let myself get excited
- ways to check if something can scale into an actual business
- templates for positioning + messaging > “is this useful or just cool?” filters
and mental models that save me from chasing unrealistic ideas
Developers debug code.
I debug ideas.
Different tools.
Same energy.
💬 Now I’m curious: what have you built for yourself?
Tell me about the thing you built:
- just because you wanted to
- just because it made your life easier
- just because existing tools annoyed you
- or just because you could
It doesn’t matter if it’s tiny, messy, half-finished, or completely ridiculous.
I’d genuinely love to know what personal tools devs create when no one is watching.
Drop yours below — I’ll be reading every single one. 👀✨
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Urvisha Maniar
Urvisha Maniar | Sciencx (2025-11-18T12:51:28+00:00) What’s a Tool You’ve Built Just for Yourself? (I’m Curious.). Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/11/18/whats-a-tool-youve-built-just-for-yourself-im-curious/
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