(Or, Live and Let Learn)
I know this isn’t a normal dev blog. I don’t know what a normal dev blog is like, but I know this isn’t it.
Yesterday, after exhaustive testing on my Pixel 7 Pro, I released Tailor (Android version) to closed beta testers. I added myself as a closed beta tester under a different email address. I downloaded the app. Amazing. I can’t believe something I made is out there in the Play Store—a real thing that people can download and use.
Then I immediately saw that user authentication was broken. Nobody can register an account. Nobody can sign in. The very first thing you do—broken.
A real developer would have understood what happened immediately. I didn’t. I’m not a developer. I’m a creative remote worker with ADHD. I’m the person who needs the app, not the person who’s qualified to build it. But I’m the person who’s building it, so here we are.
I paused the track. I emailed my beta testers and asked them to hold off. I sent this image with the email because, I mean, fair.
And I almost scrapped the whole thing. Not because it wasn’t fixable. It was fixable. I fixed it. It’s fixed. But because the experience poured gasoline on the flame of my impostor syndrome and said, “See? You’re unqualified for this. You’re incapable. This wasn’t a bug somebody might find after days of use, an edge case—this was the registration route and it broke. You need to quit. Right now you only have eight beta testers hoping for this. Quit before you raise any more hopes.”
But I told that voice to STFU and I got down to work.
The auth route works now. The testing track is unpaused. We’re back up and testing. It was a 24-hour delay. And I learned something important—something I obviously should have already known if I were a real developer, but the main thing is I know now. The iOS beta rollout will go more smoothly.
By happenstance, I had a meeting later that day with someone who is beta testing my app. (The meeting was for an unrelated reason.) She acknowledged the emails she had seen and reminded me that I’m only human, and that she and my other beta testers understood that.
My partner, a real developer, told me that everyone can make this mistake. A good friend, another real developer, told me this kind of thing happens all the time. The perfectionist in me doesn’t want to believe them. I told that voice to STFU, too.
So the beta is live on Android. I learned a valuable lesson about testing the live release before telling others it’s ready. I’m testing on iOS today. The iOS beta is coming.
And I still have test spots, by the way. Lifetime pro access for closed beta testers. That’s what you get in exchange for putting up with my missteps and showing me grace.
What Tailor Closed Beta Launched With
- The full core loop (set intentions, sprint, unpack your sprint).
- Backlog to track your tasks, projects, and intentions. Tailor can help organize your backlog, help you break big tasks down into smaller ones, or pick something to work on.
- Memory cards; Tailor writes a memory card of each sprint after your debrief. Over time, Tailor will offer insights on your focus habits based on your debrief history.
- Five environments for your sprint (silence, campfire, forest, rainy window, cafe).
- Eight doubles, each with their own personality to mix and match with your mood.
- The custom double builder (more on that below).
- Four themes to change the look and feel of the app to suit your mood.
The Custom Double Builder
Before I go, let me tell you about the custom double builder because honestly this is my favorite feature. I would have launched beta a week ago if I was willing to let this wait for V2 but I wasn’t.
The app comes with 8 doubles: Tailor, the default, Charlie, Pax, and others. They have different personalities, different strengths. Ade is businesslike and I love using it for knocking out administrative tasks. Sage looks deeper and helps you think through your motivation (or lack of motivation). I love to use Sage for tasks that I’m avoiding—it helps me get to the bottom of my avoidance behavior.
But you can also make your own custom double:
- Give them a name
- Upload an avatar for them (optional)
- Describe their personality
- Give them a backstory for the model to draw on (optional)
- Choose their tone (formal, casual, direct, gentle)
- Let the model know what this double should always or never do (optional)
- Choose how the double responds when you push back on them
- Set the way you wan them to open each sprint setup and debrief
So if none of the doubles are exactly what you need right now, or you just want the joy of sprinting with your favorite fictional character or OC.
I have room for a few more beta testers, by the way. If you’re interested, the signup is right here.
—Catherine, trying her best to be your dev
