How I Built My Developer Portfolio (and Tips for Yours)

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been working on my personal portfolio — a place where I can showcase my projects, share my story, and create a central hub for everything I’m building as a software engineer.

I didn’t want just another static website with my name on it. My goal was to create a living portfolio that evolves with my career: projects, blog posts, and new learnings, all in one place.

Here’s how I approached it, what I learned along the way, and some advice if you want to build yours too.

Start with the “Why”

Before touching any code, I took a step back and asked myself:

What do I want people to see first when they land on my page?
What kind of projects represent me best?
How can I keep this easy to maintain and update? For me, the goal was simple: show my work, my skills, and my personality — all in a clean, professional way.

Choosing the Tech Stack

I decided to go with Astro + TailwindCSS for the frontend.

Astro keeps things lightweight and fast.
TailwindCSS makes styling consistent and easy to maintain.
For content, I used Notion as my CMS, so I can write posts (like this one) directly from Notion, without editing code every time. Tip: Don’t overcomplicate things. Use a stack you’re comfortable with, and focus on clarity, performance, and maintainability.

Content First, Design Second

The most important thing in a portfolio isn’t fancy animations or complex UI — it’s what you show:

About Me → A short section about who you are and what drives you.
Projects → Real, impactful work with descriptions, tech used, and links.
Blog or Insights → Sharing what you learn builds credibility. Once the content was clear, I kept the design minimal and clean — whitespace, simple typography, and consistent colors go a long way.

Add a Personal Touch

Your portfolio should feel like you.

I included side projects, some experiments I’ve built, and a short story of my career journey. Recruiters or collaborators love to see the human side behind the code.

Launch, Then Improve

I’ve learned that waiting for perfection is the enemy of progress.

The first version of my portfolio was simple. Over time, I’ll keep iterating: improving the design, adding projects, and writing more posts like this one.

So my advice: launch it as soon as it’s functional. You can always improve it later.

Final Thoughts

Building my portfolio was a fun project that helped me reflect on my work, organize my projects, and create a home for everything I’m building.

If you’re thinking about building your own:

Keep it simple.
Focus on content first.
Let it reflect who you are as a developer (and as a person). Your portfolio is never “done” — it evolves as you do.