The Difference Between Building on AWS and Making Ice Cream

What does building solutions on AWS have in common with making ice cream? On the surface, not much. Yet, if you dig deeper, they share some surprising parallels - and understanding these similarities can teach you a lot about building better software on AWS.

In this article, I will step into AWS's metaphorical ice cream shop and explore what separates quality from average.

Introduction

Imagine that you own an ice cream shop. You are not an ice cream wizard yet - you know one thing here and there, but you start to feel confident about what you do. The possibilities seem endless: you have easy access to every flavor, topping, and combination imaginable.

Meet Scoopy, an ice cream loving customer who just entered your shop. You want to show your worth, and Scoopy has high expectations.

After some time (there were so many options) Scoopy has decided. You deliver the pistachio flavor (my favorite one) in a bowl to Scoopy in just a couple of minutes, with just a few pistachio nuts on top, nothing too fancy. Scoopy takes a bite, smiles, and sits to enjoy the ice cream. He is happy. Mission accomplished.

Making great ice cream requires skill, creativity, and, most importantly, respect for what your customer wants if you want to give a good impression. It's similar to building scalable, efficient solutions on AWS - with one major difference.

To whom do you make ice cream?

You might think, "OK, I do not own my own company and am far from owning an ice cream shop. Then, to whom should I give a good impression with the solutions I build?"

Your customer isn’t just someone who walks into your ice cream shop. It’s anyone who interacts with the solutions you build. Whether you're working as part of a development team, answering to stakeholders, or creating internal tools, the customer is anyone who benefits from your work.

In an AWS context - or even in a generic development universe - your customer could be the end user of your website hosted on an S3 Bucket, the business team relying on your Lambda function to improve operations or even your colleagues who need your Step Function to automate their work. The key is understanding their needs, solving their problems, and delivering value.

Every line of code, every decision you make, is aimed at impressing and satisfying the customer—whoever they may be.

What makes your customer happy

One of my favorites Amazon Leadership Principles is Customer Obsession, the ability to "work vigorously to earn and keep customer trust". Customer Obsession is more than just a principle - it’s a mindset that ensures everything you do is aligned with delivering value to your customers.

Now, let’s reflect on a few characteristics of your ice cream that impressed your customer.

It took you around 2 minutes to prepare it. You put some high-quality Pistachio nuts on top, which was a personalized experience based on your customer needs, and that made the ice cream well presented. Scoopy did not want anything too fancy — and you respected that. He just wanted a nice Pistachio ice cream. Although you could have put some white chocolate on the top (let's be honest, that is a great match), that was not what Scope wanted.

You keep it consistent. Scoopy will not easily find similar ice cream elsewhere: you earned trust. Scoopy will come back for more.

These elements - personalization, attention to detail, quality, and consistency - are what leave a good impression on your customer, whether you're serving ice cream or building software on AWS.

The big difference

Building software on AWS has a lot in common with making ice cream—but there is one thing that differs completely: the unstoppable, unpredictable, time.

If you were in Scoopy's shoes, would you rather wait 2 minutes for an amazing creamy Pistachio ice cream or get an average frozen watery premade ice cream in 15 seconds?

The answer to that is clear. Scoopy was not looking for speed.

As much as you want to impress your customer, it’s important to set realistic expectations. In an ice cream shop, you can promise to Scoopy their ice cream in a couple of minutes because the process is straightforward and predictable. But when building solutions on AWS (or in any software development context) things are rarely that simple.

Here’s why it’s critical to stay realistic:

• Building scalable, reliable, and secure solutions isn’t a quick task. It requires design, testing, and iteration. Rushing the process can lead to costly mistakes or unexpected results. Complexity takes time.
• If a project will take weeks to deliver, be honest about it. Overpromising on speed might impress initially but will hurt your credibility in the long run. Transparency builds trust.
• Customers appreciate timely delivery, but they value solutions that work even more. Prioritize getting it right over getting it done fast. Focus on quality, not speed.

Remember, delivering value to your customers is about focusing on quality and being honest about what’s achievable, and your customers will trust you more for it.

Conclusion

Building solutions on AWS and making ice cream might seem worlds apart, but they share a surprising amount in common. Both require creativity, attention to detail, and a focus on delivering value to the customer. Whether you're making the perfect ice cream bowl for Scoopy or designing an AWS-based application, success depends on your ability to combine the right tools and ingredients to build something that will make your customer happy - no matter what it takes.

But here’s the twist: the difference between building on AWS and making ice cream is that the ice cream is ready in 2 minutes.

What are your thoughts? Do you aim to impress your customers daily? Let me know in the comments below!