I've always felt like the black sheep in my family, as I seem to be the only one who speaks my mind about my feelings and thoughts. While I'm an open door, it seems everyone else is a closed door.
So, I set out to solve this problem by creating a journaling app built for families. This app would redefine the concept of family, allowing users to define their family however they see fit and be part of multiple families simultaneously.
I believe in scratching your own itch, and to me, that's the best way to build something meaningful. Instead of chasing opportunities, I prefer to chase the struggle because that's where the most impactful solutions often lie.
As I started creating notes and jotting down my ideas, I dreamed about what this app could become. What if it could one day replace Facebook, serving as a social media app exclusively for tight-knit groups for both work and home? However, I decided to start with the home.
The core idea was simple yet innovative: a journaling app specifically designed for families.
While many journaling apps allow you to record your thoughts, memories, and moods, this app would take it a step further by making it easily shareable and collaborative with your family. By default, your mood would always be shared, and you could also passively let your family know what you need, whether it's support, a vacation, or space.
This feature was what I desired most from my family.
I should've known this app wasn't going to see the light as the darkness of my family would be the last ones to use such an app.
The first version of the app was designed in XD and developed in Webflow. I collaborated with my best friend, who was a full-stack developer, to create the functioning app using Livewire and Laravel. Everything was going smoothly, and the app was weeks away from user testing through a beta phase.
However, things took an unexpected turn when my best friend suddenly went silent and ultimately decided we shouldn't be friends anymore. As a result, the project came to a halt. All the code on Github was gone, and all I had left was the Webflow frontend. I was devastated.
Despite its untimely demise, the app was called Hike, inspired by the idea of a journey at a casual pace. Version 2 of the app had a design that felt like a physical book, and I was very proud of it. Hike will always hold a special place in my heart as a project that could have been my time to shine, taking an idea from conception to an actual product.
R.I.P. Hike.
