Can relate. Last year I learned HTML+CSS+PHP and then built and ran a radio station called Radio Lemmy. It was the whole package. Even built programming blocks and brought on DJs. I did this all in under three weeks.
And then two months later I got lost all motivation and shut the entire project down. Didn't even make a post in the community for the station. One day the station/website existed, the next day it didn't. I feel guilty for fucking off, but I'm too embarrassed to go even check to see if anyone made a post asking what happened. Even created a new account in a different instance to hide. I'm pathetic.
Fucking ADHD. I'll never have any accomplishments in life because I lose all motivation to carry on the moment I have to actually put in work to make the dream a reality. I've always wanted to run a radio station ever since I was a kid, but it stopped being fun and started feeling like a job way sooner than I wanted it to. I'd love to reboot the concept but I know I'm just going to get tired of it and ghost the listeners a second time around... *sigh*
At some point you will just stop trying, knowing you will run out of motivation mid way anyway. It's liberating in a way, knowing the only thing you can expect from yourself is consuming media.
Damn that stings, but honestly your "failure" is more than I've accomplished even in my successes. Like I just wanted to make a roguelike game, but managed to make a bad roguelike engine that no one uses, not even myself. And I'm still calling that a win.
I know you weren't trying to solicit advice, but have you thought of getting other people involved in running the radio station? Then you can participate when you have the energy, and take a step back when you don't?
Also I have plenty of podcasts, essayists, and newsletter writers that I like, who have a very inconsistent cadence, and it's fine. It's a happy surprise when I see they're back online.
You could have somebody waiting in the wings to pick it up when you lose interest. You would then not have to run and hide when your motivation flagged.
A lot of people can't start a project easily, but can maintain and extend.
Just a thought.
Reddit (now Lemmy) singlehandedly made me as un-creative and unproductive as I am now (more accurately it's my tendency to get addicted to stuff like this led to this, but please let me have this)
I have to get all of my (non money earning) work in the morning before even opening my phone. As soon as the social media gets going my motivation to do anything creative and engaging drops.
I've tried focusing on creative/artistic communities to try and inspire myself.....but it just doesn't work. I think the passive intake of media ends up scratches the same itch in a much less fulfilling way.