(Apologies for being glib, and apologies for not being the exact answer to your question.)
Don't date, don't marry, don't have kids.
I approached my relationship, and later my family, with the same zeal that I approached side projects. As a result, I have very little time for side projects.
What does make a successful side project for me, is approaching it with the goal of learning something new, not finishing it.
Every other year or so I get really into something, but I've only finished one thing that had a very short-term result, It was a simple experiment where I wrote up results instead of trying to have a tool, framework, or product.
Don't date, don't marry, don't have kids.
I approached my relationship, and later my family, with the same zeal that I approached side projects. As a result, I have very little time for side projects.
What does make a successful side project for me, is approaching it with the goal of learning something new, not finishing it.
Every other year or so I get really into something, but I've only finished one thing that had a very short-term result, It was a simple experiment where I wrote up results instead of trying to have a tool, framework, or product.