diff --git a/GNUmakefile b/GNUmakefile
index 28a154e..7162dd5 100644
--- a/GNUmakefile
+++ b/GNUmakefile
@@ -13,6 +13,8 @@ LIBS =
 
 ifeq ($(DEBUG),1)
 CFLAGS += -g
+else
+CFLAGS += -O2
 endif
 
 ifeq ($(VULKAN_NO_STRING_HELPER),1)
diff --git a/src/core.c b/src/core.c
index db616ce..c18958f 100644
--- a/src/core.c
+++ b/src/core.c
@@ -102,6 +102,8 @@ MwWidget MwCreateWidget(MwClass widget_class, const char* name, MwWidget parent,
 			free(h);
 			return NULL;
 		}
+	} else {
+		h->lowlevel = NULL;
 	}
 	h->widget_class	 = widget_class;
 	h->pressed	 = 0;