Node.js 7-Day Challenge
Ship your first real Node.js backend app in 7 days — a CLI + API project with persistence, configuration, validation, and clean structure.
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The Challenge
In 7 days, you'll build LBNotes — a small Node.js backend app made of:
A CLI tool you'll run from your terminal
A REST API you'll call with cURL
Both using the same storage layer, so you're not building two separate toys in isolation but a complementary backend system.
By the end, you'll have a project that feels like real backend work with clean structure and predictable errors: input → validation → data → output.
How it works
- 1
Daily emails
Each day for 7 days, you'll recieve an email with the day's lesson description and a direct link to continue the challenge.
- 2
One layer at a time
Each lesson focuses on one practical step of the building process allowing to you make visible progress every day without getting overwhelmed.
- 3
Steady progression
You keep building the same LBNotes project from day to day, which means every lesson compounds and the final result feels like a real app — not disconnected exercises.
- 4
Completion bonus
You unlock an exclusive reward on day 7 upon completion of the challenge.
The Daily Drip
Here's the path you'll follow over the next 7 days.
Day 1 — Set Up the Project
In this first day, you'll set up the LBNotes project and ship a working `lb_notes --help` CLI command.
Day 2 — Build a Real CLI Interface
In this day, you'll add the `lb_notes add` and `lb_notes list` CLI subcommands with basic input validation and clear errors.
Day 3 — Persist Data With Files
In this day, you'll persist notes by saving them to disk in a JSON file and loading them back.
Day 4 — Load Configuration & Environment
In this day, you'll make LBNotes configurable using a `.env` file and environment variables.
Day 5 — Write Your First Express API
In this day, you'll expose your notes through an Express API with a `GET /notes` endpoint.
Day 6 — Handle HTTP Requests With Middlewares
In this day, you'll add note creation to the API with `POST /note` and validate requests using middleware.
Day 7 — Refactor With a Layered Structure
In this final day, you'll refactor the API into a simple layered structure to keep the code clean as it grows.
The Target Audience
This challenge is for you if you want to:
Learn Node.js by building something practical, not just watching tutorials.
Build your first backend project that includes both a CLI and an API.
Understand how backend apps handle input, validation, storage, and output.
Practice writing code with a cleaner structure from the start.
Move from "I can follow tutorials" to "I can build this myself".
Get a quick, guided win before committing to a bigger course.
Why Learn From Me
Hi, I'm Razvan 👋 — Senior Node.js backend engineer, technical writer, and founder of Learn Backend.
It's no secret: learning backend development on your own is extremely hard.
Before becoming a senior Node.js engineer with now over 10 years of experience, I also failed at it for years... and probably for the same reasons you're struggling with it right now.
The internet is full of content, but very little direction. No one tells you what to learn first, what to ignore, or how it all fits together.
This is why I created this 7-day challenge: a result-driven email course designed to give you a fast overview of how backend pieces logically fit together.
So if you're tired of guessing, this content was built for you.