

I'm finally doing it: bootstrapping my start up. - jwwest

I'm a long time lurker on HN, but this is my first thread. I've always dreamed of starting some sort of startup since I was 11 years old. Of course life happens, and before I know it I'm a month away from my 30th birthday.<p>So finally deciding to go for it, I sat down and came up with a very engaging idea and roped my wife into co-founding with me and handling financial duties. We haven't incorporated yet, however I'm currently in the middle of a coding tear on 1.0 and I honestly couldn't be happier. Knowing that I'm potentially building my own destiny rather than defaulting to working for someone else the rest of my life is a big motivator.<p>Do I want to get rich? Well yeah, but even if I don't, being profitable will be just fine. In fact, I'm building my company in one of the worst areas for technology startups: DFW.<p>I have a day job that I'm very happy at, so this is just a nights/weekend thing until we can achieve critical mass. Despite my great job, I still feel the pull of the entrepreneur and am looking forward to launching a beta in a month or two.<p>It was either get a tattoo or start a business.
======
peteforde
Congratulations and happy trails!

I do have some cautionary advice, though... I say everything here without
knowing you, your wife or your idea.

First off, make sure that you read this article and follow it unless you have
a good reason not to:

[http://startuplawyer.com/startup-issues/if-i-launched-a-
star...](http://startuplawyer.com/startup-issues/if-i-launched-a-startup)

Specifically, both you and your wife should have vesting shares. After all,
there's a reason that most people do not start up with their loved ones - they
say that the best family business is a sole proprietorship. This isn't a
corner store and you and your wife might find your marriage taxed by this
radical twist on your relationship.

Would you start up with your wife if you weren't married? If not, then my
polite suggestion is that you hire your wife and give her lots of equity for
her contributions. Taking on a business partner is an incredibly important
decision, and if you wouldn't hire her otherwise then it's a potentially
questionable decision now. I wouldn't belabour this point but you didn't
explain her background.

The other thing is that it pays to startup with a good idea. I'm a big
believer in MVPs and pivoting and trying things until it works... but the fact
remains that most ideas are terrible and it's hard to tell when one of your
ideas is terrible. Most people around you are inclined to tell you how great
an idea it is, because they can see in your eyes that you want them to love
it. This is an extremely dangerous confirmation bias because you can and will
waste your valuable energy and enthusiasm.

In short: seek people that you can trust to give you honest feedback on your
ideas. Steve Blank's 4 Steps to the Epiphany is worth the kudos it receives.
And most important of all: make sure all founders have vesting shares.

~~~
cognition
On that last point, I always found that an undiplomatic stranger are best
sounding boards. Sycophants are as valuable as an overdue bill.

------
jacquesm
Hehe, smart move on your part. Steady wins the race. Ping me when you're ready
to launch (email in the profile) and I'll send you a bunch of traffic. No
guarantees of it will convert or not, that depends on a lot of factors but if
it won't help it certainly won't hurt.

Being in a 'bad' area is also an advantage, if you can make it there you will
be virtually without competition.

Happy coding!

~~~
heliodor
When you have something to show, submit it to <http://alphalist.co>. No, I
have no relationship with them. I just signed up as a user.

------
patio11
Congratulations. Don't worry -- location is overrated. I met a few folks with
successful software businesses in the DFW area when I was there for a
shareware conference.

(And besides, it can't _possibly_ be worse than the Japanese hinterlands, and
this town can still pack a room once a week with software businesses which are
successful for a broad range of "successful".)

------
pxstock
I'm 43 (and a HN-lurker as well) and I am edging towards starting mine too.
Having two kids and a house, I think I know how you feel. Must be as scary as
it is exciting. Hopefully I will be able to 'join' you soon.

In the meantime: all the best to you and your start up!

And you said it well: I hope we get rich, or at least be profitable.

------
codelust
Congratulations, irrespective of whether you sink or swim, this will change
you from here on.

I was in your shoes a bit over 2-years ago and still going at it, so, if I
may, give you some pointers.

1\. Before you leave your full time job, model your expenses for as long as
you can (did that for six months) and make sure you have enough to see you
through both good and worst case scenarios. This will also tell you where the
stop-loss is for you.

2\. Have a list of people who you can lean on for emotional and intellectual
support. It only takes one bad day to pour cold water on all the good days.
Make sure that you have people who will keep you moored on both the good and
bad days.

3\. The first month is the toughest one and nothing in the world prepares you
for it, especially if you have been securely employed for close to a decade.

4\. Make sure you are doing what you enjoy doing & aim for revenue that will
take you out doing things that you don't enjoy doing at the earliest.

Good luck, again :)

------
laran
I wish you the best. I"m 35 and have just started my 3rd. The first two
failed. But man did I learn a lot. I have a good feeling about #3. And I hope
you're successful as well. Don't look back.

------
jcr
DFW == Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)

A startup in an airport? --Way Cool! ;)

------
jtnt
I know you're excited, but before you get too far on the coding, do some
research. I can guarantee you that your idea/product, while possibly genius,
doesn't 100% match up with what people need (will pay for), and if you code
before talking to real potential customers, you will either a) waste time
building features no one actually wants (will pay for), b) not build features
that make people do want (will pay for). Notice a trend here. ;) So...

\- Talk to 10-20 people in your target market who are not your friends to
verify that there are people out there who will actually _pay money_ for what
you're building

\- when people say they will pay, ask them what specifically makes it worth
paying for

\- when people say no, ask them specifically what is missing that would make
them pay for it

\- look for similar ideas that have failed/succeeded and look at why they
failed/succeeded (wrong features? poor marketing? no real market? poor timing?
etc.)

Few other things...

Product is important, but so are marketing and distribution.

If you ever get the urge to make an investor deck, stop yourself. Make
yourself a sales deck instead. It'll work either way, and sales are much more
important.

Mentorship can be more valuable as money.

Entrepreneurship is a rollercoaster ride, man. So prepare yourself for that,
and reach out to others for help when you hit the dark spots. We're here for
you.

Most of all, GOOD LUCK!

------
kevinelliott
Congrats! I run a startup too, at the age of 32, and my wife helps me out when
she has time (data entry, marketing tasks, brainstorming, etc). It's exciting,
but hard work with long hours. After all, you've got to manage finances,
licenses, supplies, taxes, development, design, environments, IT, marketing,
invoices, inventory, reporting, etc etc.

At some point you may actually need to take the plunge and work fulltime on it
if you want to really make it a success, but until then have some fun!

------
jhrobert
I'm 45 and I'm starting mine too. It's never too late.

------
shangomoons
>I'm building my company in one of the worst areas for technology startups:
DFW.

Beg to differ. There's a plethora of resources in the DFW area for startups.
They just don't have a centralized location/leader. There's Tech Wildcatters
(incubator), CoHabitat (co-working space and just a great group of people that
hang out there), Startup Happy Hours in Dallas (you can meet LOTS of people -
lawyers, founders, angels, VC's, other startups, etc.), launchDFW (covers
startup news in DFW; disclaimer: I write articles for them), etc. Lots of
resources, it's just not easy to find them all the time because it's such a
spread out area.

------
thesnark
What would the tattoo have been? :)

~~~
rmc
"My other midlife crisis is a startup"

~~~
geekfactor
^ awesome ^

------
komlenic
Do yourself a favor and bookmark this post to re-read when the demons come.

------
bconway
Congrats! Best of luck in your endeavor.

 _Well yeah, but even if I don't, being profitable will be just fine. In fact,
I'm building my company in one of the worst areas for technology startups:
DFW._

True, but you're only a few-hour drive from one of the best, if that helps. ;)

------
donniefitz2
I love your optimism. Getting on with the dream is a good feeling and it's
great to get fired up. I work for a major airline and I'm curious about your
product.

At the same time, you have a long road ahead. A startup is a major commitment
and it's anything but easy. There will be many ups and downs and it can be
emotionally draining.

The key is to press on when that enthusiasm (it really does feel great to get
started) wears off and it gets tough, and it will. Make it through the peaks
and valleys and you might have something.

I hope things go well for you.

------
IdeaGuy
I recently visited DFW area and it was wonderful. Although I'm sure tech may
not be high on the list their, with all the growth I saw I would expect many
of the other up-starts could utilize the new tech.

I'm not sure what your startup entails, but I would recommend reaching as far
towards Austin as possible. The city is really having what could be compared
to a small Renaissance. Art, music, and innovation are all there. Now all they
need is a startup from HN.

*That is how I would approach the situation.

------
chipocabra
Good luck man! I'm sure if you just keep at it it'll work out fine.

But a word of advice, be careful that you and your wife's relationship won't
be jeopardized by working together. I don't know either of you but from
observing my friends it could put an untold amount of pressure on your
relationship.

Your wife will essentially stop being your soother and turn into a business
partner(one you live with D:) and thus another source of pressure.

------
mhinze
> I'm building my company in one of the worst areas for technology startups:
> DFW

I want to change that. Are you in FW, D or in the middle?

~~~
techsupporter
I, too, would be interested in knowing this. I live near FW, but work near D,
so it would be great to make other technology contacts in the area. It's
interesting to hear that DFW is one of the worst areas for startups. Perhaps
our notoriety for incubating restaurants is more attractive?

------
hkarthik
I'm also a DFW resident and doing the same with my wife as a co-founder as
well. We should start a club or something ;)

------
Skywing
DFW isn't bad. You just can't sit at home and expect to have other
entrepreneurs walk up to your front door.

------
atomical
DFW?

~~~
brudgers
Dallas - Fort Worth, Texas Metropolitan Statistical Area:

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas_Fort_Worth>

~~~
proexploit
May not be well known for startups but be thankful it's a big city and there's
still some activity. (DFW is 75x as big as Iowa City, my home).

------
MikeCapone
Congrats, best of luck. When things get hard, take a step back and remember
why you're doing this.

~~~
mapster
that's what she said

------
raptrex
Congradulations and I hope it goes well. Sorry to hijack but I have a quick
question for everyone, should you tell your employer that you are making money
on the side with the startup and/or have a side buisness?

~~~
SkyMarshal
Is there any reason to volunteer it?

------
znt
Good luck on your journey. If this is the first startup experience for you,
I'd like to ask you about if you've done any customer development? (Talked to
potential customers)

------
shooperman
It's very inspiring to read your post. Being 12 years your senior and still
sitting on the sidelines, this could just edge me over to starting on my
startup idea!

------
Geee
Good luck to you! I'm at a similar situation, I actually started implementing
my first startup a while ago (finally)!

------
acconrad
congrats! here's a list of articles i've curated since august that may be of
use to you in these early stages:

<http://www.delicious.com/acconrad/startup>

------
belehe
I wish you good luck! Always inspiring seeing others who take the leap...

------
SeanNieuwoudt
Really awesome to hear that! Please do keep us posted on progress :)

------
justnearme
Best of luck! It's never too late the follow your ambitions!

------
jcmarquezh
Do you happen to be a Horned Frog?

------
mrphoebs
Brilliant, keep us posted.

------
jparicka
Good luck with that.

------
Swizec
Perhaps a stupid question, but why get a tattoo OR start a business?

Personally I have my startup's logo tattooed ... it seemed only fitting.

~~~
jwwest
I dunno, figured I had to do something a little risky once in my life.
Besides, it makes a great punchline.

------
Mz
Congratulations. Getting the wife in on it is a very good move.

------
lclaude01
Getting a tattoo can be painful, but not following your calling can be
astonishly agonizing.

Thank you for being.

------
catnipers
What ever you do make sure if it fails make sure it won't hurt you financly
don't bet to much on it in the begining

