Back in 2009 or 2010 (roughly), when everyone was constantly borrowing each other's phones, I ran into a problem. Friends would swipe through my photos, notes, and everything else without thinking twice. I loved sharing — but I also wanted some things to stay private.
At the time, real app privacy was almost nonexistent. So I decided to build my own solution.
“A Picture Key. Pick any photo, draw your unique gesture on it — speed, direction, shape — and that becomes your lock. No more forgetting passwords. Just a personal, visual signature that only you know.”
I called the app SecretStuff.
It worked better than I expected. People loved it. It made money, but more importantly, the whole experience — designing the signature-matching algorithm, polishing the UI, shipping updates — levelled up my skills and confidence in ways that helped everything else I worked on.
Years later, AI helped me bring it back — updating the UI while the original algorithm and core stayed exactly as I built them.
AI is prominent & helpful & will help you with your dreams. So I hope this inspires you to succeed in this new AI World.
Key Takeaways
- ✦Surround yourself with positive people that will bring you up, not down.
- ✦Innovation, desire, and thinking different will help you survive anything.
- ✦If you have an idea born from a real frustration, build it.
- ✦Think Different. — Apple / Steve Jobs
- ✦Do or do not — there is no try. — Yoda
“What's your SecretStuff? Go Nutz. — Walter Mak”