I see a lot of developers obsessed with building the next “AI-powered SaaS startup.”
They spend months planning, perfecting, waiting for the “right idea.” Reading frameworks. Taking courses. Waiting for inspiration to strike.
Meanwhile, I ship small tools. Boring tools. Tools people actually use.
the tools i built
Quick Chess — play chess without leaving your code editor.
Quick Symbols — insert special characters (°, ℃, μ) without googling.
YT Snap — extract YouTube thumbnails in one click.
X Location Reveal — see where a tweet was posted from.
Tab Time Machine — restore closed tabs with scroll position intact.
None of them are glamorous. None of them went viral. None of them required VC funding or a grand pitch. Some generate a bit of revenue through tips and ads. Most just solve a real problem for real people.
why small tools win
You can build them in days, not months. No need for perfect architecture or months of planning. Quick Chess took me 8 hours. Done.
You validate the idea with real users immediately. Ship it, see who uses it, listen to feedback. No guessing.
You generate revenue while improving. While you’re iterating based on user feedback, people are already paying or using them.
You build credibility. Shipping matters more than talking. When you have 5 shipped products, people believe you.
You compound. Tool #1 → Tool #2 → Tool #3. Each one feeds into the next. Your personal brand becomes “the person who ships.”
the contrarian take
Spend less time planning. More time shipping.
Your first tool doesn’t need to be perfect. It needs to solve one problem really well. Do that. Release it. Listen to feedback. Improve.
Repeat 5 times. Now you have 5 income streams, a body of work, and a brand.
That’s the path forward.
— kshitij