Hacktoberfest is almost over. How has your contribution journey been so far? Are you confident about contributing to open source projects, or are you still struggling to find your way? If you're new to open source and still feel overwhelmed, that's completely normal.
I know the feeling because I was once a new contributor too. When I first started exploring open source, I didn't understand how to find issues, especially the beginner-friendly ones that aligned with my skills. The open source and Git workflows, the jargon like branch, push, pull, etc., and even creating Pull Requests (PRs) felt incredibly intimidating. I also remember it often took me a long time to click the "Create pull request" button because I was so afraid of breaking the whole project.
For a long time, I believed that grabbing an issue, working on it, and creating a PR was the only way to contribute — and the only thing that would be acknowledged. But I’m here to let you know that that's absolutely not the case. What if I told you the key to a meaningful open source journey is not searching for opportunities but creating them?
This post is based on my personal journey, and I want to share insights that can help you find and create your own unique path in open source.
The Excitement of Hacktoberfest (and What Comes After)
As a project maintainer, I’ve seen a clear trend, especially around events like Hacktoberfest. Everyone gets excited and ready to make their first open source contributions. It's always nice to see so many new faces! However, this excitement can sometimes make it harder for true beginners. "Good first issues"—those smaller, easier tasks perfect for new contributors—get picked up very quickly.
It’s important to remember what Hacktoberfest is about: it’s an event to appreciate, give back to, and support open source projects. It's not a competition to grab and work on as many issues as possible to get to the finish line.
I noticed some people submitted PRs for issues that already had an assigned person, as if they were racing to be the first to submit a PR that would get accepted. But honestly, creating a PR for an issue someone else is already working on wastes your valuable time because maintainers will likely reject it to respect contribution ethics and fairness.
The worst part is seeing that big energy fade away immediately after the event ends. I had this experience where I assigned someone an issue. When I checked in, they replied just as the event finished, "You can unassign me. I’ve already completed enough PRs for Hacktoberfest, so you can give this to someone who wants to work on it." This broke my heart. If they had let go of the issue sooner, someone else could have taken it on, and we could have made progress on our project. This behavior ignores the spirit of collaboration and giving back that open source values.
This experience highlights the difference between participating to gain a reward and making a genuine contribution. It shows that intention matters.
Several years ago, I chose to prioritize meaningful contribution. I focused on helping other contributors rather than hitting the challenge's PR count. In that year, I created a handful of beginner's issues and wrote more blog posts around open source. That's why I didn't complete the Hacktoberfest. But the funny thing is, I wasn't disappointed. Instead, I felt great that I could support many new contributors as they navigated open source.
Now, the question for you is this: are you participating just to complete a challenge, or are you looking to really give back and explore open source more? If you choose the latter, you'll discover that the real journey—the valuable experience and growth—happens when you stay around long after the event is over.
No-Code Contributions are Invaluable
If you love to write, design, test, translate, or even enjoy being part of a community, your skills are incredibly important! These "no-code" contributions are just as important as code. They can get you to the door of open source, help you engage with the project, and get you noticed by maintainers and potential employers. They are highly appreciated and show your commitment and engagement to the project.
You can read my previous blog post, "My First Video Tutorials Contribution for Hacktoberfest," if you want to contribute and know more about no-code contributions to open source.
Create Your Own Path by Spotting and Making Opportunities
You might be wondering how you can create your own opportunities in open source. The path may require patience and determination, but it doesn't always have to involve writing complex code.
Pick a Project You Like: Start by finding an open source project that genuinely interests you.
Explore the Project and Documentation: Spend time exploring the project, its documentation, and contributing guidelines.
Spot the Gaps, Create an Issue:
Missing Information? As a beginner or a newcomer to the project, you have the advantage of a fresh pair of eyes! If you find any instructions that are unclear or missing from the documentation, that’s a perfect opportunity. Create an issue explaining how it could be improved. You can even ask to be assigned to fix it!
Found a Bug or UI Error? Did you notice any issues with the project's functionality or UI? Create an issue describing the error. Be as clear as possible about how to reproduce it. Again, if you think you can fix it, ask to be assigned to it.
Have a Feature or Enhancement Idea? Do you have a brilliant idea that could make the project even better? Don’t keep it to yourself! Propose it through an issue. Explain your idea and why you think it would be valuable. If you're confident you can build it, offer to take it on!
The Power of Monitoring
If you spot a problem but don't know how to solve it, that's totally fine—no one expects you to create an issue and solve it yourself. Create the issue anyway! Keeping track of it is a powerful learning experience that contributes to your growth. When a PR is opened to fix the issue you created, study it. Learn from the contributor's approach, code changes, and the conversations.
The biggest payoff often lies in defining the problem, not just writing the solution. Throughout my open source journey, I created more issues than PRs, and now, as a maintainer, I often review far more PRs than I make. Through this, I gained deep insight into the thought process and solutions that contributors used to fix the issues I reported, and more importantly, it showed that my most significant contribution wasn't in the code itself. It's gratifying to focus on contributions like problem definition and review. This approach perfectly aligns with the spirit of open source: collaboration and support.
Stay and Grow in Open Source
Open source is a marathon, not a sprint. The more you stick with a project, the more you’ll learn how it works.
Why Focus is Key
It's tempting to jump from project to project, but sticking to 1 or 2 projects and contributing regularly to them is better than contributing sporadically to many.
Here’s why:
Deepen Your Expertise and Impact: By focusing on one project, you quickly learn its architecture, codebase, and community standards. This foundational knowledge allows you to move beyond simple beginner fixes and make more meaningful, impactful contributions. You become less likely to introduce bugs and are equipped to tackle important features, transitioning from a simple task-doer to a core part of the project's future.
Trust and Recognition: Regular, consistent contributions build trust with maintainers and the community. They see you as a reliable, committed member, which opens the door to taking on greater responsibilities within the project.
Finding Long-Term Opportunities
Here are some tips on how to find existing opportunities and build that long-term connection:
Search for Labeled Issues: You can find existing beginner-friendly issues tagged with labels like good first issue, help wanted, or beginner-friendly. You can also use the GitHub search bar like this: is:issue is:open label:"good first issue" language:javascript (replace javascript with your preferred language).
Move Beyond "Good First Issues": If you already take a "good first issue" on a project, consider challenging yourself with a more advanced issue the next time. This not only gives beginners opportunities to take on simple tasks, but also lets you improve your skills.
Connect with the Wider Tech Community: Tech communities are valuable resources. Maintainers and active members often share issues that need attention or information about other open source projects actively seeking new contributors.
Observe Pain Points in Project Chats: When you join a project's dedicated community chat (Discord, Slack, etc.), observe the recurring questions and pain points that most folks encounter. For example, if multiple people ask the same question about project setup, it's a clear indication to update the documentation—a great chance to contribute!
Sticking with projects I cared about is how I eventually became an open source maintainer myself. The key lesson was that the path forward isn't defined by how quickly you grab issues or how many PRs you create, but by how consistent and engaged you are.
Go deep into the project and build a strong relationship with its community. You might be surprised at the bigger opportunities that come your way, such as:
Becoming a maintainer yourself, guiding the project's future.
Landing a job because your contributions and expertise stood out.
Gaining experience that opens doors to other tech roles.
Final Words
Forget about hunting for the perfect “good first issue” and start where you are! Let your interest guide your early steps, and focus on consistent contributions. Whether you're coding, fixing docs, reporting bugs, offering some feature ideas, or helping out with no-code contributions, your path is yours to build. Every contribution you make—no matter how small—creates a lasting impact.
Happy collaborating, and enjoy the ride ahead! 🚀
