The most important thing is consistency. Pick one idea and stick with it (I'm a hypocrite here), and work on it every day for years.
It's hard to keep anything going only during weekends as you spend 90% of your energy just trying to find momentum.
Re "But after one day of programming for my job, I am exhausted and I cannot extract any brain-juice any more. And if I try to work during the week-ends, I can't rewind enough for the next week" -- I had exactly this problem too. It depends a lot on your other commitments, but after years of failing to do anything productive in evenings and weekends (evenings, too tired; weekends, too easy to procrastinate), I partially solved this by spending 30-60 minutes every morning on side projects. Waking up earlier was hard, but I managed to get into the habit of spending some time in a cafe on my way to work. The change in environment (not home) and the very limited time (often I only have one well-defined goal for a morning session) makes me super productive.
I still battle with consistency, but I create a lot during these times. One thing I'm working on is a guide on how to start your own company in 30 minutes a day. It's still at idea stage, but there's a (currently partially broken) website slowly being pieced together[0]
> I partially solved this by spending 30-60 minutes every morning on side projects. Waking up earlier was hard, but I managed to get into the habit of spending some time in a cafe on my way to work. The change in environment (not home) and the very limited time (often I only have one well-defined goal for a morning session) makes me super productive.
This is a great tip... for every important goal that you would like to pursue. I started to run twice a week at 6:00 am, and the habit to get out of bed early provides an opening for other activities to spend an hour on the other three weekdays (whether that is reading, writing, meditating/praying, exercising, journalling).
BTW, it helps that I've got some running friends waiting at 6:00 am on Wednesdays and Fridays. That 'social obligation' to show up is also a good reason to get out of bed, knowing that some friends are waiting for me.
I struggle with consistency and I saw someone on HN recommend the writings of Barbara Sher.
I'm currently reading "Refuse to Choose! Use All of Your Interests, passions, and hobbies to create the life and career of your dreams". I haven't got too far in it yet but learning about "scanners" made me feel hopeful about my inconsistency.
I also read As a Man Thinketh by James Allen this morning which might be the complete opposite. That book recommends IDing your crazy dream and doing all it takes to make it a reality.
It's hard to keep anything going only during weekends as you spend 90% of your energy just trying to find momentum.
Re "But after one day of programming for my job, I am exhausted and I cannot extract any brain-juice any more. And if I try to work during the week-ends, I can't rewind enough for the next week" -- I had exactly this problem too. It depends a lot on your other commitments, but after years of failing to do anything productive in evenings and weekends (evenings, too tired; weekends, too easy to procrastinate), I partially solved this by spending 30-60 minutes every morning on side projects. Waking up earlier was hard, but I managed to get into the habit of spending some time in a cafe on my way to work. The change in environment (not home) and the very limited time (often I only have one well-defined goal for a morning session) makes me super productive.
I still battle with consistency, but I create a lot during these times. One thing I'm working on is a guide on how to start your own company in 30 minutes a day. It's still at idea stage, but there's a (currently partially broken) website slowly being pieced together[0]
[0] https://startyourown.co/