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Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

freelancersticker.com

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Re: Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

#41

Post by spqr »

elmuchoprez wrote: post #20

I'd be very curious about the viability of clients who approach you in a coffee shop. Seems like you'd get an awful lot of, "So hey, I have this idea that's like Facebook and Youtube combined and I think it could be the next big thing". That's not to say you won't ever find a good client in a coffee shop, but I suspect it has a lower viability rate than a Craigslist ad, and at least on Craigslist I don't have to spen…

Two years ago almost to the day, I was sitting in a gym waiting area while my 6 year old son was attending a baseball clinic. I had a 1400+ page Wrox programming book that I was going through when a guy walked up to me and said, "Hey - are you in IT?" His son was attending the same baseball clinic.

Long story short, I am still working full time at the investment bank I've worked at for the last 7 years but I have also been working 15-20 hours per week for him from home on nights and weekends on side programming projects. This has gone on for 2 years now and is exceedingly lucrative.

Don't discount the happenstance meetings in public like this. Some of the people you meet will be crackpots with an idea and nothing else, but experience will help you filter them out.

Re: Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

#42

Post by rocky1138 »

josefresco wrote: post #33
maresca wrote: post #4

If you are working, do you necessarily want to be bothered?

If you don't want to be bothered, why would you be working on a coffee shop? Libraries (or pretty much anywhere else) offer more privacy for real work.

I find I work better in places with hustle and bustle. It doesn't mean I want to talk to other people or be interrupted.

Re: Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

#45

Post by spqr »

fchollet wrote: post #25
justinph wrote: post #19

"My laptop is full of valuable code. Please come steal it."

Excuse me. Stealing a laptop for the valuable code it contains?

Rick: What ya got there? Laptop Thief: A Macbook Air Rick: How much ya want for that thing? Laptop Thief: $900 Rick: Wow. It's a tough economy, best I can do is $90. Laptop Thief: Wait, there's Ruby code on it! Rick: In that case I don't even want to do it, but I can go as high as $91 if it helps you.

Re: Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

#46

Post by pizza »

setrofim_ wrote: post #21
jiggy2011 wrote: post #2

This just looks like another generic meaningless sticker that people stick all over their laptops. If you really want people in coffeeshops to approach you try something more personal and direct. "I'm xxxx. I build websites/applications, feel free to say hi,let's chat!" or whatever.

That's a lot to put on a sticker -- people aren't going to read that. Maybe something a bit snappier, e.g. "Freelance coder: available for gigs" or something. I would question, however, whether putting a sticker of any kind is gonna help you score gigs. I mean, if you were looking for a coder, would you really approach some random guy/gal in a coffee shop based solely on a sticker on their laptop and knowing nothing…

It's more than usual, but most people don't stop reading small bits of text mid-sentence. Plus, serendipity is a wonderful thing.

Re: Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

#47

Post by Facens »

JVIDEL wrote: post #29
elmuchoprez wrote: post #20

I'd be very curious about the viability of clients who approach you in a coffee shop. Seems like you'd get an awful lot of, "So hey, I have this idea that's like Facebook and Youtube combined and I think it could be the next big thing". That's not to say you won't ever find a good client in a coffee shop, but I suspect it has a lower viability rate than a Craigslist ad, and at least on Craigslist I don't have to spen…

You forgot the part about the idea being worth one hundred billion dollars!

And the part where you sign an NDA

Re: Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

#48

Post by drizzo4shizzo »

Killah911 wrote: post #18
maresca wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Velcro would work.

Now that's a neat Idea, you could be a billboard when the time is right and take it down at other times... You might even get more creative and hook up your smartphone or tablet as a display on the other side with whatever wording you want. Maybe a scrolling marquee app. Heck, you could advertise whatever you want on your display at that point. If it then becomes a trend, one could pay people small amounts of money f…

The velcro yes, but please, please no on the other idea.

Next time I can't find a table to eat lunch at Panera the guy entrenched at a 4-person table for hours with a laptop and single coffee cup is going to try and make me read ADS? This... would be unwise.

Re: Show HN: we like to work from coffee shops, so we made this

#49

Post by dkrich »

I'm truly amazed that this made the top of Hacker News. A $5 decal that advertises services. We've officially come full circle. I hear that people have even tried approaching potential clients and talking to them and once one crazy person actually spent money on soliciting business in a printed periodical with somewhat widespread distribution.
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