You begin a personal project with a clear feeling but few concrete decisions. As you work, new possibilities appear. The project expands until you cannot tell which parts are needed for the first finished version.
Write who the project is for, what it should do and what the first version includes. Use ordinary language. A garden record for your own planting decisions needs a different level of detail from a guide you intend to share widely.
Keep the first version small enough to finish
List the essentials and place optional additions in a separate note. Choose a finish condition you can check, such as a working page containing one season's records. Give yourself a review point after completing that version.
When a new idea appears, compare it with the brief before adding it. You can change the brief if the purpose has genuinely changed. Record that choice so you are not moving the finish line simply because another feature sounds interesting during a difficult part of the work.
