Survivor bias Failures don't get on HN front page Hey, btw congrats :-)
Not true. This post made the front page (in the distant past):
https://successfulsoftware.net/2010/05/27/learning-lessons-f...
Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
21–30 of 264 posts
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#22It's so, so , so hard to walk the line between persistence (which leads to glory) and stubbornness (which leads to more time following already wasted time.) Congratulations for walking this line correctly. I agree that some sort of market validation is necessary to at least pretend you are on the former not the latter. Those early usage spikes are helpful reminders that there is a business here somewhere. I'll also m…
Thanks. For a while there, it wasn't clear to me which side of the line I was walking.
Something that stuck with me from Poor Charlie’s Almanack is that low expectations are a cornerstone of a happy life. I built this for myself first, so when people actually signed up and paid, it was incredibly motivating. I was thrilled to spend my free time treating those early customers like royalty and building more of what they wanted.
If I had instead come into this with the expectation of quick success, I doubt I would have made it through those early years.
And cheers from one bootstrapper to another. It's not easy, but I can't imagine a more rewarding way to build.
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#23Congratulations! > Back in 2021, I was inspired by the financial independence movement and wanted a better way to plan my own life. I couldn’t find the right tool, so I started building. That sounds a bit like selling shovels to the miners. Which is not a, uh, dig at the project, just an observation.
Everything can be modeled as selling shovels to the miners.
We're all building tools for other people. As long the users like a product, I think it's moot to call it shovel selling.
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#24Congratulations! > Back in 2021, I was inspired by the financial independence movement and wanted a better way to plan my own life. I couldn’t find the right tool, so I started building. That sounds a bit like selling shovels to the miners. Which is not a, uh, dig at the project, just an observation.
Everything can be modeled as selling shovels to the miners. We're all building tools for other people. As long the users like a product, I think it's moot to call it shovel selling.
I think it depends on what the people are hoping to accomplish with the shovels and how realistic it is.
In this case it seems legit.
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#25great timing.
In fact, I was just looking for somethin like this.
Was going to vibe-code this into life, but your price point is spot on and frankly I prefer supporting other fellow entrepreneurs.
The struggle is real, thank you for being a positive light to all who are on this path. Best to you!
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#26It would be just as interesting to hear what mistakes you have made and what you would do differently.
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#27Nice! How did you go about finding a growth marketer that was a good fit with your business?
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#28Survivor bias Failures don't get on HN front page Hey, btw congrats :-)
failure posts are way less interesting than the authors think they are.
Re: Bootstrapping a side project into a profitable seven-figure business
#29Nice! How did you go about finding a growth marketer that was a good fit with your business?
I found him and he originally told me to get lost ;)