Are there really any single founders? In most successful single founder companies, there are few people who effectively does cofounder like stuff. In this case initial recruits would just not have the cofounder title, but the same work.
Also initial recruits will stick around and will give their best only if they have enough incentive, which is equity(a cofounder thing)
Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
31–40 of 243 posts
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#32It's not magic. In the past I thought I need to be really innovative, have my own product, be rich, be a business man from top to bottom, have cofounders etc. etc.
I was going straight from software freelancing to founding my own company (also switched countries to Cyprus) and created a Limited all on my own. Still working for clients and I have this legal person (Limited) now acting as a shell for me on a legal side but beside that: nothing changed.
Cofounders are like a marriage... you should be 101% sure about them ;)
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#33Serial single founder here. Start building and start selling. If you can’t deliver a product to a paying customer solo then you’re not cut out to be a sole founder.
I agree with this except switch the order. First, start selling. Then start building. It is so easy to waste so much time building something nobody wants, and you won't know until it's too late if you try to sell it afterward. Selling first will inform your decisions on what to build.
The advice makes sense, but isnt it a bit of chicken-and-egg? How do you sell something you haven't built? (or is it really .. build a little, or enough to illustrate; then 'sell' to validate and seek market fit; and then finally truly build?)
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#34Are there really any single founders? In most successful single founder companies, there are few people who effectively does cofounder like stuff. In this case initial recruits would just not have the cofounder title, but the same work. Also initial recruits will stick around and will give their best only if they have enough incentive, which is equity(a cofounder thing)
Equity isn't the only incentive.
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#35Earlier quoted context omitted.
I agree with this except switch the order. First, start selling. Then start building. It is so easy to waste so much time building something nobody wants, and you won't know until it's too late if you try to sell it afterward. Selling first will inform your decisions on what to build.
The advice makes sense, but isnt it a bit of chicken-and-egg? How do you sell something you haven't built? (or is it really .. build a little, or enough to illustrate; then 'sell' to validate and seek market fit; and then finally truly build?)
for me, at least, it feels like "selling first" means getting product feedback first.
so, setup a landing page with a "send us our email so we can tell you when our tool is read!" form and see if it attracts people.
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#36Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's easy to say. I can deliver the product, but I'm worried about sales taxes, VAT, compliance with laws, administration, support, etc.
Being a founder means solving all these problems everyday as a background task (usually by hiring a lawyer, payroll firm, accountant, etc). A mentor can help you with the basics and the timing for hiring professionals.
This, plus, just start. There are lots of things you won't know, always. You'll need to dig in and figure out what you need to know. Outsourcing is a good option for things if you have the money. However, you need to understand what you're paying for.
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#37Serial single founder here. Start building and start selling. If you can’t deliver a product to a paying customer solo then you’re not cut out to be a sole founder.
That's easy to say. I can deliver the product, but I'm worried about sales taxes, VAT, compliance with laws, administration, support, etc.
It might be tempting to get a co-founder with these skills but it's better to buy them. Instead, look for a co-founder with marketing/sales/tech profile.
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#38If you want to attract people, you need to either pitch the idea in public (or build an MVP) to gather attention and possible partners. Or find people with similar interests and reveal the idea to them. You could also find someone through networking or [1] forums. Show a good idea, with good leadership and people will follow... [1] https://indiehackers.com
+1 on indiehackers being a fantastic resource for strategies and motivation once you filter out the multi-person companies. I'd also add in http://levels.io - Pieter Levels is a good steward for the 'maker' movement also https://twitter.com/levelsio
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#39Earlier quoted context omitted.
I agree with this except switch the order. First, start selling. Then start building. It is so easy to waste so much time building something nobody wants, and you won't know until it's too late if you try to sell it afterward. Selling first will inform your decisions on what to build.
The advice makes sense, but isnt it a bit of chicken-and-egg? How do you sell something you haven't built? (or is it really .. build a little, or enough to illustrate; then 'sell' to validate and seek market fit; and then finally truly build?)
Or, even better, build a minimal MVP (1-2 weeks dev time) and use this to attract attention and get feedback.
Re: Ask HN: How to found a company as a single founder?
#40ideas have no values, implementation does the very same idea could be implemented in different ways, some would work, some other would fail the only way to be sure is to build it and ship it, eg. "does my implementation provide value to customers or not?" it does not have to be big, it does not have to be perfect, it does not have to be complete (avoid the features creep), but the implementation itself or the product…
> ideas have no values
Fully fleshed and well-justified ideas worth hell of a lot.