Developing software is important, but not a lot of people consider the planning and thought that must be put in before a project is even consider to be put forward. There is a very clever cycle that can be used to make everything easier for software developers.
The first stage to developing a piece of software is to plan it. This may seem obvious, but there is a lot more thought that is needed than first considered.
The main things to consider at this stage is assess the requirements, feasibility and analyse how the you should go about making the software. The requirements of a software would be linked to the function. For example, if you were creating a game software, you would plan the gameplay, story and functions before anything else.
Feasibility is also important, as you have to think about an appropriate budget to work with, and then calculate if you'd be able to complete the project with it.
The second part is the designing phase. This is where you'd create the software, making sure to keep in mind the original plan, and combining all elements of it. In this phase, it is okay to make changes, as the software will have to be tested and analysed.
The testing and analysing will continue, and each time the issues found will be fixed. This is a cycle that greatly improves software, as without testing, there could be many bugs hidden.
The final stage is the delivery of the software. This is when a piece of software is release to the public. However the work isn't over, as the software must be advertised and marketed. This is important, as the money used to make the software is expected to be given back and then some to the creators.
After that, the work still isn't over, as some bugs may have gotten through testing. To fix this, developers moderate their software, and update it to fix it. This is very important for another reason. Say if there was a game that release special items every month, implementing these items would be the easiest way.
There are a lot of other software development methods, but this is the simplest to understand. There are a lot of substages branching off that I didn't delve into, however this is the basic outline.