How to Plan a Coding Project Before Writing Code

TL;DR

Planning a coding project starts with getting crystal clear on why you're building it, who it's for, and what makes it valuable, because that goal determines every later decision. From there, write simple user stories, sketch data models, ruthlessly cut features to an MVP, and draw a basic wireframe on paper before touching code.

Transcript

Today I'm sharing with you my complete process for planning coding projects. This is the same system that I use whether I'm building a YouTube tutorial, creating a client application, or working on my own side projects. And here's the thing. Most developers jump straight into code without proper planning, and that's where the projects get messy. Sc... Read More

Key Insights

• Most developers jump straight into code without proper planning, which is where projects get messy, scope creep starts, and you end up rebuilding the same thing multiple times and wasting hours.
• The goal of a project determines every later decision, including the tech stack, features, and even how the code is written, so getting the 'why' wrong makes everything else harder.
• The same developer takes a completely different approach depending on the goal: a YouTube tutorial emphasizes clean, digestible, understandable code, while a client project must work flawlessly, be thoroughly tested, and solve a business problem.
• User stories are simple, non-technical statements describing what users can do, like 'the user should be able to upload a file,' and a typical project ends up with about 10 to 20 of them.
• User-centric design forces you to put the user at the heart of every decision and prevents realizing weeks into development that a critical feature like authentication was forgotten.
• Defining data models is stack-agnostic: you figure out what information to store and how it relates before choosing between databases like MongoDB or Postgres, because all software really does is move, present, and store data.
• An MVP requires becoming ruthless and cutting roughly half of planned features by asking whether each is absolutely needed to function, because scope creep kills more projects than bad code ever will.
• A stupid simple paper or iPad wireframe catches user experience issues before any code is written, following the principle that paper is cheap but code is expensive.

Questions & Answers

Q: How do you plan a coding project before writing any code?

Start from your goal by getting crystal clear on why you're making the project, who it's for, and what makes it valuable. Then write simple user stories describing what users can do, define your data models and their relationships, cut features down to a minimum viable product, sketch a basic paper wireframe, and think about the project's future. The process moves a vague idea to a clear, executable roadmap and, according to the creator, saves hundreds of hours.

Q: Why is planning important before starting to code?

Most developers jump straight into code without proper planning, and that's where projects get messy. Scope creep starts to happen and you end up rebuilding the same thing multiple times. The creator learned this the hard way after wasting countless hours on projects that could have been done in half the time with better planning. Good planning takes a vague idea to a clear roadmap you can actually execute and has saved the creator hundreds of hours of development time across every project.

Q: What is the first step in planning a coding project?

The first step is to start from your goal by getting crystal clear on three things: why you're making the project, who it's for, and what will make it valuable. Most people skip this and then wonder why their project feels directionless later. The creator writes down or deeply considers these answers because the goal determines every later decision, including the tech stack, features, and how the code is written. Getting this wrong makes everything else harder.

Q: What are user stories and how should you write them?

User stories are simple statements describing what users are able to do with your application, such as 'the user should be able to upload a file,' 'create an account,' or 'view a dashboard.' They stay non-technical, avoiding details like REST API endpoints, validation, or authentication, which come later. This user-centric design puts the user at the heart of decisions. A typical project ends up with about 10 to 20 stories, some core functionality and some nice-to-haves, giving a full picture of what you're building.

Q: How do you define data models when planning an app?

Defining data models is completely stack-agnostic, so you don't think about MongoDB versus Postgres yet. You figure out what information you need to store, how it relates to other data, and what those relationships look like. For a simple blog, you might have user, post, and comment models, where users have many posts, posts have many comments, and comments belong to users and posts. Sketching relationships and fields on paper catches issues early, like a missing category model, before building schemas with real production data.

Q: What is an MVP and why does it matter?

An MVP, or minimum viable product, is the absolute minimum version of an app that still provides value to users. At this stage you become ruthless, going through user stories and features and cutting roughly half by asking whether each is absolutely needed for the app to function. For a task management app, the MVP might be just creating, completing, and deleting tasks, with no categories, due dates, or collaboration. It matters because scope creep kills more projects than bad code ever will.

Q: Why should you draw a wireframe on paper before coding?

Drawing a stupid simple wireframe on paper or an iPad, using basic rectangles and stick figures without worrying about colors or fonts, helps you understand the basic layout and user flow. You map where the login form goes, what happens after a file upload, and how to navigate between pages. This catches user experience issues before writing any code, revealing problems like confusing navigation or too many clicks. The creator cites the idea that paper is cheap but code is expensive, so use as much paper as needed.

Q: How does the goal of a project change the developer's approach?

The goal determines every decision, so the same developer takes completely different approaches for different projects. For a YouTube tutorial, the goal is something digestible that helps people learn while building a solid, extendable foundation, so the emphasis is on clean, understandable code over showing off advanced techniques. For a client project, the goal is much different: it needs to work flawlessly, be thoroughly tested, have a clean design, and solve the client's specific business problem. That's why nailing down the why is essential.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The creator shares a nine-step planning process used for YouTube tutorials, client applications, and side projects. Most developers skip planning and jump into code, causing messy projects, scope creep, and rebuilds. This system takes a vague idea to an executable roadmap and has saved the creator hundreds of hours of development time.

• Steps one and two focus on clarity and users: start from the goal by defining why you're building, who it's for, and what makes it valuable, since the goal shapes every decision. Then write 10 to 20 simple, non-technical user stories capturing everything a user should be able to do.

• Later steps get concrete: define stack-agnostic data models and their relationships, ruthlessly strip features down to a minimum viable product that still provides value, sketch an ugly paper wireframe to map layout and flow, and consider the project's future, such as whether it needs to scale to thousands of users.