Have you noticed how most websites and apps kind of look… the same? Same layouts, same vibe, same safe patterns. Sometimes I wonder if people just copy what already works instead of trying something new. Or maybe the truth is simpler: it’s easier to follow the formula than to invent from scratch.

And now with AI tools everywhere, it feels like we’ll see even more of this. Anyone can spin up an app in a weekend. Which is amazing, but it also means the average software out there will keep getting more, well… average.

So the real question is: in a sea of lookalikes, which ones actually last?

For me, it always comes back to the basics. The software that sticks isn’t the flashiest. It’s the one that solves a real pain point so well that everything just feels natural. The kind where performance is fast and snappy. The kind where features don’t feel like extras stacked on top, but exactly what you need, nothing more, nothing less.

And here’s the thing—building that kind of product never happens by accident. It takes craft. It takes experience. And most of all, it takes heart. You can feel it when a tool is made with care. There’s a quiet difference between something that was assembled quickly and something that was built with soul.

I keep coming back to that. In a world full of average, maybe what really lasts is the work that feels alive.

Makes me wonder: am I building with enough heart myself?