This week reinforced a simple truth: once your foundation is strong, pivots stop being scary.
I launched EasyAccessQR.com, an easy and simple QR code generator with analytics tracking and A/B testing.
The repo is live at github.com/nearbycoder/easyaccessqr.com.
The pivot was the point
EasyAccessQR did not start from a blank editor.
The codebase reused the same stable foundation patterns I had already proven in dailystand.dev.
dailystand.dev is still active. This was codebase reuse, not a replacement.
Instead of rebuilding the platform layer again, I reused a base that already had the essentials wired:
- auth
- user management
- billing
- testing
- setup scripts
When these systems already exist and are stable, the work shifts from “can I get this running?” to “what experience am I building next?”
How I executed the transition
I removed .git, re-initialized the repository, and reset direction around the new product.
Then I prompted Codex with clear constraints:
- where the product was headed
- what needed to stay
- what could be deleted as fluff
That mattered. A pivot fails when it keeps too much legacy behavior alive.
The goal was not a re-skin. The goal was a clean product with a different job to be done.
Why this is faster than starting over
A lot of teams underestimate how much time “non-feature work” consumes:
- account and session flows
- billing edges and subscription states
- test harnesses and CI confidence
- setup scripts that make environments predictable
If those are solid, you can move quickly on the actual product differentiation:
- the core workflow
- the language and positioning
- the interface and conversion flow
That is what this pivot proved in practice.
Design quality and avoiding AI sameness
One pain point in AI-assisted frontend work is visual sameness. If you lean on the same prompt patterns or frontend skills repeatedly, designs can start to converge.
To counter that, I used screenshot references from Mobbin and had Codex rework the design flow end to end. That gave the site a cleaner, more professional feel with its own look and rhythm.
What shipped
- Product: easyaccessqr.com
- Repo: nearbycoder/easyaccessqr.com
- Layoff log week 2: Week 2: The Pivot to EasyAccessQR.com
- Project page: EasyAccessQR.com
The bigger takeaway for me is clear: invest heavily in a resilient base once, and future pivots become execution exercises instead of rewrites.