Adding a UI to my projects

I’m a backend person first. For a long time I was happy writing APIs and services and leaving the UI to someone else or to a minimal CLI. Eventually I wanted to ship something end-to-end—something people could click on—so I had to get comfortable with the frontend.

The hardest part wasn’t learning a framework or CSS. It was changing how I think about state and flow. On the backend you have requests, responses, and maybe some background jobs. On the frontend you have components, user actions, and a tree of state that has to stay in sync. I started small: one page, one form, one API call. Then I added a bit more.

These days I do both. Backend is still where I’m most at home, but I can build a simple web UI when the project needs it. If you’re in the same boat—backend-first and curious about the other side—start with a tiny app that talks to your own API. You don’t need to become a design expert; you just need enough to ship something people can use.