I’ve spent most of my career moving between two worlds that supposedly don’t belong together: technology and magic.
In Episode 1 of the Hex Code Podcast, Ela Shapira and I finally stop pretending they’re separate.
This podcast exists because we’re both tired of the lie that tech is cold, purely logical, and only accessible to a chosen few. We’re tired of hearing people—especially women and non-technical founders—say “I’m not technical” when what they really mean is “I was never invited in.”
So we decided to build something different.
My First Spell: The Apple IIe
The first time I touched a computer, it felt like magic.
I was a kid sitting in front of an Apple IIe, typing strange words into a blinking cursor and watching something appear out of nothing. No mouse. No icons. Just intention, syntax, and the belief that if I got the words right, the machine would respond.
That moment shaped everything that came after.
Ela had her own version of this awakening. She remembers the excitement of bringing home her family’s first computer—an X386—and immediately wanting to understand how games actually worked. Not just how to play them, but how they were made.
Different machines. Same spark.
Because here’s the truth we keep coming back to: coding has always been a form of spellwork.
You hold a clear intention.
You choose precise language.
You follow a structure that already exists.
And if you do it well, reality changes.
That’s not cold logic. That’s creation.
Coding Is Not About Being “Technical”
One of the most damaging myths in tech is that coding is purely mechanical—and that it belongs to engineers, not creatives.
Ela and I both push back on this hard.
Code doesn’t work unless you can:
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articulate what you want
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break a vision into steps
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understand cause and effect
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tolerate ambiguity
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iterate when things don’t go as planned
Those aren’t “technical” skills.
They’re creative leadership skills.
Coding is just the medium.
Why the Hex Code Podcast Follows the Wheel of the Year
When we designed the Hex Code Podcast, we knew we didn’t want a standard tech show. We wanted something that reflected how creation actually happens—not how Silicon Valley pretends it does.
That’s why each season of the podcast follows the Wheel of the Year.
Because every meaningful project—whether it’s software, a business, or a body of work—moves through the same natural cycle.
Winter: Vision Before Action
Winter is where we begin.
In nature, winter looks like stillness. In creation, it’s anything but empty.
This is the phase where ideas are formed, clarified, and protected before they’re exposed to the world. In tech, this is where most people rush—and where most projects quietly fail.
Winter is:
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visioning
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asking better questions
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deciding what not to build
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sitting with uncertainty long enough to find clarity
If you skip this phase, you don’t move faster.
You just build the wrong thing more efficiently.
Spring: Early Growth and First Forms
Spring is when ideas start to take shape.
In tech terms, this is your early prototype or minimum viable product—the point where an idea becomes visible, but not finished.
This phase is fragile and energizing. Everything feels possible, and nothing is complete.
You’re learning:
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what works
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what doesn’t
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what the idea actually wants to become
Spring rewards curiosity, not perfectionism.
Summer: The Work No One Posts About
Summer is where the romance wears off.
This is the long stretch of building, debugging, refining, and fixing things that almost work. It’s the part of tech creation no one glamorizes because it looks like effort.
I often compare this phase to hiking with a heavy pack. You’re committed now. Turning back would cost more than continuing forward.
Summer is where:
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discipline matters more than inspiration
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consistency beats brilliance
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momentum is built one unglamorous step at a time
Ela puts it simply: this is the phase where you do the work even when there’s no immediate reward.
Autumn: Launch, Harvest, and Feedback
Autumn is the harvest.
This is where you release your work into the world and let it be used, challenged, and responded to. And this part matters deeply, because tech is never created in isolation.
Code doesn’t exist for the developer.
Products don’t exist for the builder.
They exist for the people who use them.
Launch isn’t the end—it’s the moment the work becomes relational.
Feedback, data, and real-world use all inform what comes next. And when you honor that, the cycle begins again—wiser this time.
Technology, Magic, and Sovereignty
At its core, the Hex Code Podcast is about sovereignty.
Who gets to create technology?
Who decides how it works?
Who is told they’re “not technical enough” to participate?
When you understand tech as structured intention—language that brings ideas into form—you reclaim your right to engage with it on your own terms.
You don’t need to become a developer.
You don’t need to memorize jargon.
You need clarity, shared language, and the willingness to learn the system you’re working within.
Why This Matters
If you’ve ever felt locked out of tech…
If you’ve ever struggled to communicate with developers…
If you’ve ever had a vision you couldn’t quite translate into reality…
This podcast is for you.
Ela and I created Hex Code to remind you that creation follows patterns, that structure can support magic, and that you are not broken for finding tech opaque.
You were just never taught to see it for what it is.
Another language.
Another ritual.
Another way of calling ideas into being.
Key Takeaways from Episode 1 of the Hex Code Podcast
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Coding is a creative, intention-driven process
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Technology follows the same natural cycles as all creative work
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Visioning is foundational, not optional
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Launching is a beginning, not an ending
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You are allowed to engage with tech in a way that honors how you think