#114 Tips for wanna-be bootstrappers, Funding for bootstrappers, What is a bootstrapper?
Back in December, I shared about being a maker vs a bootstrapper.
Bootstrapper: Have a quest to make a sustainable living from a project
This year I have been paying attention to my interests, things that intrigue me and trying shit (aka experimenting). I also think about creating something I want and know how to build because I built it for myself or someone I care about . I just trust in the process more now, I guess.
A founder is spending 60 months of their best years in their startup (instead of their career). That is a substantial upfront investment; it’s like a seed round, but instead of money, it’s your life.
I heard the above quote this week and it just reminds me of the risks we are taking when we build startups and why it should feel right. It shouldn’t feel like a get rich scheme, because the odds are stacked against you anyway and in my experience, doing things to try and get rich quick, never work.
Checkout the latest on my Sister’s site here
Prototyping
CSS Scan - The fastest and easiest way to inspect and copy CSS
Would you be willing to pay a one off £40 to be able to inspect CSS faster?
Insights
Not many bootstrappers talk about this but 37 Signals (poster-child of the bootstrap world), which had shunned venture capital in the past, took investment from Jeff Bezos through his Bezos Expeditions fund 2 years after they launched the product.
The Bezos money didn’t go into the company, it went into their bank account.
Priviledge, that Bezos money removed a lot of the stress/risk that come from bootstrapping a product and doing it all on your own. What if that ideology leads to burnout, bankruptcy or not being able to go the distance
The crux of the piece is this: bootstrapping a business is hard, and everyone’s journey is different.
What's your hourly rate?
How much do you make per hour?
Maybe if a task you don’t enjoy is taking up more than your hourly rate should be automated. Because of this kind of thinking I switched from shopping at Aldi to using Ocado
Revenue Forecaster by Baremetrics
Forecast and predict your SaaS revenue with the Baremetrics Revenue Forecaster
Focus on your own shit
Quit worrying about what everyone else is doing. Focus on how you’re helping people.
There’s only two things that will improve your situation:
Concentrate on your users, audience, customers, fans.
Figure out what they want. Develop a deep connection with them.
Improve your skill, expertise, competence, product.
How can you get better? How can you make your product better for the people who use it?
This is a web page.
You might think that building a web page isn’t rocket science, but if you’re thinking about building content, understanding the basics really helped me to understand how websites help us communicate.
It wasn’t this exact article I read but it was along similar lines. If I find it again, I will reshare it.
If you’re a web designer, I challenge you to think about the words first. Instead of starting with a style guide or a Photoshop mockup, start with words on a page.
What do you have to say? If you don’t know, there’s not much use in adding all that other cruft. Just start with one page, with a single focus. Write it and publish it, and then iterate on that. Every time you’re about to add something, ask yourself: does this help me communicate better? Will that additional styling, image, or hyperlink give my audience more understanding? If the answer is “no,” don’t add it.
Four day week. Three months in.
This Founder, clearly inspired by the 4 hour work week, shares progress after trialling it in his less than 20 person design studio in London.
So far, I’m happy to report, it has definitely proven to be a positive move. Our team has been more energised, and Fridays have been used really well to improve the four days we work. There has certainly not been any dip in output.
The Coinbase Mission, Vision & Strategy
YouTube video
CEO of Coinbase shares for the first time the Mission/Vision publicly
Coinbase is an enabler of economic freedom…even the poorest people in the world have access to the internet and smartphones.
So everyone can have a bank in their pocket.
Limited at the moment, but these are some of the lending
Enable crypto investing
Earn crypto
Spending (they have even launched a Crypto card)
Lending
Makers
Today at Apple - Apple
Want to create and build more? I think that Today at Apple is an amazing opportunity to learn in a cool workspace that many people should consider. I personally have been to sketching classes there.
Netlify: All-in-one platform for automating modern web projects.
I got recommended this for hosting, especially if you want to send a preview to your clients.
TinySeed: The Startup Accelerator Designed for Bootstrappers
Great to see that bootstrappers have an Accelerator option designed for them
TinySeed is the first startup accelerator designed for founders who would traditionally bootstrap.
Earnest Capital | Early-stage funding for founders
Great to see that bootstrappers have a Funding option designed for them
Early-stage funding for bootstrappers, Indiehackers, calm companies & earnest founders
"Backlogs make you feel guilty" – Jason Fried on how to build software
Jason Fried:
Exactly! Backlogs are horrible. [The system we’ve figured out at Basecamp] eliminates that. Each cycle is about six weeks. After each cycle, we decide what we want to do next. We don’t look to the past to figure that out. We talked about it. ‘What do we want to do next?’ Not: 'what have we put on a list to do next?’ What do we want to do next? What do we feel like we’re confident that we can pull off in the next six weeks. What’s the most important next thing? What are we know really well that we could do? Those are the questions, not 'what’s next on a list.’
Every spreadsheet is an amazing app waiting to happen.
For getting quick validation of your product - sometimes you want to build something quickly. Checkout Glide which uses Google Sheets to build websites and you can manage the content easily.
Thanks Sam
Culture Chat
Klarna rakes in $460M, becomes Europe's second most valuable VC-backed company | PitchBook
Been hearing about Klarna who are growing fast. They allow you to Shop Now, Pay Later and are growing their team, improving their product.
They are in my Culture section because Snoop Dogg has invested. They raised $460 million at a $5.5 billion valuation, securing its title as Europe’s second most valuable VC-backed business and most valuable in the fintech sector. Get your coins bro
Harambeans An African Entrepreneur Alliance | We Are Harambeans
We are an alliance of determined entrepreneurs who are building Africa’s future.
Dope moves
Big up to Vitae London 🤝 and all the investors who put money to make an impact. The Founder got the attention community making moves who reached his target of £75,000 on Seedrs.
WE HAVE HIT 100% // Thanks so much to everyone, if you haven't invested yet be sure to get involved before we close the round:
https://t.co/FhBPvHLGDJ