Finding a good developer is a lot like searching for a needle in a haystack—if the needle could talk, charm you, and then vanish just when you thought you had it.
I remember when I first set out to build my startup. I spent weeks sifting through developer profiles, determined to find the perfect fit. Finally, I found someone who seemed ideal—impressive portfolio, glowing reviews, and a friendly vibe. The first few weeks were great; the developer was responsive and made rapid progress. I was thrilled, envisioning the launch of my app in no time.
But then, things started to change. Responses became delayed, and progress slowed to a crawl. Excuses piled up—family emergencies, health issues, internet outages. Every week, there was a new reason why deadlines were missed. I tried to be understanding, but my project was falling behind, and my dream felt like it was slipping away.
After countless sleepless nights and stressful conversations, the developer stopped responding altogether, leaving me with a half-finished app and a drained budget. I was back to square one, except this time, I was upset, jaded, and unsure if I wanted to carry on with the project.
So, why finding a good developer is so hard? It’s not just about the technical skills—why do I hear it from others too, that finding someone who’s reliable, communicative and honest is rare? For every one great developer, there are dozens who will overpromise and underdeliver. Is it down to personal skills or they get offered bigger jobs? What’s the main reason?
Getting the “make me a millionaire but I will only pay you basic rate” vibe on this one. The real story is, developers are like cats. You can’t make them do anything; they’ll do it if they feel like it.
Nice story but there is a lot of missing details. Maybe the project was a challenge and a drain, maybe the client was over-demanding (peace lewis), maybe passions or work ethics didn’t match, maybe the dev didn’t have all the complex data upfront to properly forecast timelines, maybe the budget was low and they had to take on extra work to cover basic costs. It can be a lonely, low appreciation, stressful job! But a few weeks in, it’s easy to spot the energy vampires
Setting realistic expectations from the start can mitigate many issues, but this requires a lot of experience. That’s why expert developers cost more and don’t need micro managing. But it’s triky with so many developers seeking long-term contracts, distinguishing between genuine talent and those who are just good at marketing themselves is tough.
“Stressful conversations pushed the developer to quit and stop responding”. I think that’s the key point here. Managing people is hard work. It’s why project managers exist.
Main reason is freelance developers can get stolen by any other companies if the pay is not good enough, project is small or too slow pace. Need more checkin meetings to keep project and progress on track.
Experience devs will know how to manage workloads better. A big risk taken when going for cheapest options or without timelines, milestones, and risk planning.
Hi all! Yes, finding a good developer shouldn’t be too hard if you are going through the right channels and get solid references. Agree with both your goals needing to align.
