The other news:
- Your runway is probably 50% of what you think it is.
- Your task is probably 200% of what you think it is.
- It will take 200% of what you expect to get your first customer.
- Your wife will get scared before you do.
- Some customers will take forever to pay.
- You'll probably have to backtrack on your design / architecture.
- When you need to sell, you'll want to code.
- When you need to code, you'll want to sell.
- Your MVP will be missing something critical.
- At some point, you'll question your decision.
- At some point, someone will discourage you.
- You may need to pivot your entire business.
- In a year, you won't be who you are now.
Best wishes!
[EDIT: Changed "less than good news" to "other news". Thanks grannyg00se and untog for pointing out my "less than best choice of words". wasigh, it's all good news.]
In a year, you won't be who you are now.
Unless you mean "you will be the wrecked shell of the person you once were", I don't think that making a startup actually changes who you are. We glamorize it, but a lot of people set up their own business every day and don't change a bit.
1. Your free time is limited. You try to make the most of it. Something like work hard and play harder
2. Your emotions go through a sine curve. You can deal with stress better than most others. That could also mean you get numb to common day problems. You stop working yourself up for small issues. And on the other extreme, you start to think anything is possible if you start applying yourself. Almost everything looks like an optimization problem with 2 or 3 variables.
3. You can no longer say things like "Oh, I don't do that, a sales/PR/designer person does that". You get to do other stuff and realize you might like doing them too.
4. People fail you or you fail people - deals don't go through, you miss dinners/meetups etc etc. It hurts you in the beginning but you get used to that.
May be most of it applies only to young startup people like myself but I sure did learn and change a lot over my time at startups.
People emerge totally changed individuals during and after times of hardships. During disease, financial difficulties, tough assignments, chasing near impossible goals, during times crisis, turmoil and difficulties.
You get to see who is jealous of you. Who envies you , who admires you, who is ready to help, who discourages you. You learn not just about work, but also a lot about people, places, things and life in general.
That is why some people who go through life threatening diseases, fatal failures, harsh financial conditions are so successful, resilient, self sufficient, motivated and hard working.
- Time will now move at a different rate. You will get desperate when things don't happen fast enough, and you will get desperate when things are going to fast. The trick here is to find a good rhythm.
I don't think this one necessarily gets filed under less than good news. Presumably if the guy is uprooting his life like this, becoming someone else is part of the goal.
Thanks EDW!
A lot of conservatives misinterpreted something Obama said as meaning much of what you've said, even though if one reads the entire paragraph, the "that" in his sentence was infrastructure such as the Internet, roads and bridges.
It's just egregious to claim that you alone are 100% responsible for your success, like you don't interact in a world with 7+ billion. You're telling me your business doesn't rely any small subset of those people?
I don't doubt that you work hard, or don't deserve your success.
I though the whole thing was very similar to Carl Sagan's comment - If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe. - and I never thought that Carl Sagan was having a go at bakers.
I'm curious how much of a hacker culture is still left at places like github, Fog Creek, etc.
I'm starting to think the most surefire way to submerge yourself in a hacker culture is to join or start a startup.
The biggest difference between doers and dreamers is simply that: The doers do and the dreamers dream. You've taken a bigger step than 99% of people are willing to take for themselves, so you are already in the doer group. Just keep it up and you'll be successful.
For some, that may work, for others, be careful of what you wish for. This is not a warning to stay away from such companies but when the companies are dominated by young energetic single employees and you're a father of 1 year old child (and maybe another one coming), there lies a cultural barrier between you and the rest of the company (unless you're going there as a Dev Manager).
As people get older, they no longer too crazy about the tech side as they used to be so sometimes conversation becomes dull for both side.
https://raw.github.com/gist/3612652/132c74fbbfc50212f4f93d8e...
If you want to do your own thing that's great, but if you really want to work at one of those companies, let them tell you whether you're good enough -- there's no reason to make the decision for them.
Maybe he should try 37signals or some other company that meets the criteria without requiring relocation.
This hurt made me frustrated when my projects didn't succeed or generate revenue -- I'd ask myself why I sacrificed $X dollars for failure. I could argue I was gaining knowledge, but it sucks to have a negative income. Every day I felt strained to figure out how to make money again, and this stress didn't give me the relaxed atmosphere I thought I would have.
In retrospect I won't quit my full-time job again until I have something that already generates revenue, or a much larger nest egg.
What are my options? Can anyone shine some lights on this issue?
(I know it's a US thing, as those in EU have free health plan and all that.)
You are probably also paying some part of your health insurance as it is (it will often come out of your paycheck pre-tax) You should check if that's going on.
In 2014, Health Insurance operations commence in each state due to the Patient Protection And Affordable Care act. So, if you resigned now, you could get Cobra for 18 months, and then switch to an individual plan.
I had a well paying job in one of the top tech companies. However, I felt unsatisfied with my job responsibilities and disconnected between what I enjoy doing and I was actually doing.
Therefore I took a year off (this month marks about 1 year and 2 months off) to work on my own thing/project. With that said, I hope to share some of my experiences with you.
1) Take regular breaks and avoid burnout
I was working on my project 24/7, from the moment I woke up to the moment I fall asleep ... 7 days a week. In hindsight, that was a recipe for burning out. I was mentally fatigued after 6-8 months into this routine.
Looking back, I should have taken regular breaks from work and not think about the project at all. Maintain an active social life, go on trips, spend time with friends, or as simple as forcing myself to take a day off every week would have done wonders for my own mental health.
2) Maintain your physical health
Physically and health wise, I was in a fantastic shape before I left my job and started on my own venture.
However, my health quickly deteriorated because I neglected my physical well being. For example, I exercised less and eventually none at all. I ate less than I should (I would go as far as eating 1 meal per day). My sleeping schedule quickly fell out of whack.
Take good precautions and maintain a good physical and mental health. This will go a long way in preventing you from falling into a negative feedback loop and damaging your well being.
3) If you build it, they will not come (think about marketing)
I gave vague thoughts to marketing while working on my project. I demoed my product to my close friends and family. They loved it, so i thought, if I build a great product, users will automagically show up. Boy, I was wrong.
It is good to develop a plan on how to reach your protential users and/or customers. Think about SEO. Think about finding a niche or community of [potentially enthusiastic] users to whom you can demo your product. Think about finding bloggers who can help you spread the word.
4) Everything will take twice as long to implement
Think a feature will take a week to implement? It will probably take two weeks if not more. I saw the iceberg effect firsthand while developing my own product. So be careful, be cautious, and plan accordingly.
5) Just ship it. D@mn it.
You will always notice issues, flaws, bugs, and imperfections within your product. As creators/founders/makers, we all do. However, we can spend eternity tinkering and fixing those issues, but our product will never ship.
Therefore, you should give yourself a rough deadline or an idea as to when you'll ship, no matter how imperfect your product is.
6) You'll need to hustle after you ship
Shipping is only half the battle. It is unlikely that tens of thousands will show up on your front step after you ship.
Therefore you'll need to go out and hustle. You'll need to think about things like marketing, customer acquisition, customer, retention, customer service, and so forth.
This is my current mentality (I fear being in my confort zone), glad you share it... Anyone has an opinion on this type of behavior? Is this a good or bad habit on the long term?
Taking risks increases your chances of being successful. Not the only way of being successful.
You will be surprised how many people are rich working in big corporates by just saving and investing well.
A "smarter" way to resign voluntarily, in Holland, is to gather proof with regards to your mental state/wellbeing, e.g. if there's a track record of you being "overspannen" (tr: burnt out) you would, with the right evidence, still be able to apply of unemployment benefits. Instead of quitting, call in sick, make an appointment with your Dr. and if he/she signs the appropriate paperwork, you can dissolve your contract "amicably" (ontbinding met wederzijds goedkeuren) which, in some cases, would allow you to retain the right to apply for WW (unemployment benefits).
Just in case you are in the US: depending on the state you live in, one may still qualify for unemployment benefits even if you quit yourself for "good cause" (it's actually somewhat similar to the Dutch situation, ie you need proof of undue stress, demands by your boss exceeding your contract, changes in job description/responsibilities, health reasons, family reasons, unsafe working environment, etc. etc.). Details vary by state, see http://jobsearch.about.com/od/unemployment/a/unemploymentoff...
Note: I've been self-employed for 10+ years now. Love it now, but many of the points outlined elsewhere are extremely valid... Don't think lightly about this decision. It's a big change, and despite the admiration for the entrepreneurial spirit in the USA, the deck is really stacked against you (think: healthcare, taxes, etc. etc.)
Stay focussed. Give yourself small goals and take it one day at a time. You'll come out of this a changed man. Good luck!
Maybe, this fact is what makes founding startups, and (as a smaller form of the same), freelancing more profitable than jobs: most people think it is much harder/scarier than it really is, so supply/demand shifts. Everyone wants a job, and there are only so many jobs around, so you have to compete in price. Fewer people want to freelance, and everyone wants to get a specific job done without long term commitments, so it's much easier to breathe in freelance field. When you create startup i.e. innovate, you are in the blue water.
On monday, I start down a new road :)
There are more than enough nice companies in the Netherlands to go for. I like the same as you; small teams, hacker culture, getting things done. I found that in my companies over the years, but there are plenty of those around depending on what you want to do. Even in slightly bigger teams, it can be hacker culture; q42 (den haag) comes to mind.
Just take some time to talk to people and search around, apply for some stuff! Succes!
Edit: you can of course just start something for yourself; it is very common in NL (ZZP) and it works really well. On your own it's not hard to find gigs, but you have to like that kind of thing. More interesting is to do this with a few like minded folks, work on freelance jobs at companies for a few days a week and in the rest of the time make a niche offering. For instance Jurg van Vliet (9apps) would be someone who did something like that well in the cloud hosting niche.
The same suggestion was made to me on twitter. I will surely have a look!
I'm trying the same since July. One of the important lessons I learnt on the way - be super-serious about organising your time. July & half of August flew away in a jiffy as I was trying to do/learn too many (mostly new) things at the same time. I'm trying to form habits around the way I spend time, not letting new ideas distract me on a daily basis.
You've been working in a jungle of roles for 8 years, bet that bit wont be hard. Good luck again :)
The first company that comes to mind in the Netherlands for me is Booking.com. If you're looking for contract work to get started, could be worth talking to them?
I would also strongly suggest contacting http://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=jacquesm. He lives in the Netherlands, has started multiple startups, and is a generally wonderful person. If you can prove yourself to him, his network could be an incredibly valuable resource for you.
I've had contact with Jacques before. I will surely contact him again. Tnx
I will be at his position soon, although i started sharpening my skills a year back and trying out some part-time freelancing right now. I am actually thrilled that i will be able decide what to do 24/7.
For me freedom is the ability to win/fail, without the need to explain anybody once u do so.
All i can say is best of luck and keep us updated on your journey.
You have a great family, a great wife. Let chase your dream ;). Try your best and wish you luck.
It will be a tough journey ahead, but the courage to resign is a first step. There's a tonne of work that needs to be done so remember to stay FOCUSED. :)