4 ms·

If you want to save money just...don't spend it. Adding some things that are not already here. * You do not need to go to a Starbucks for every meeting. * Unt

If you want to save money just...don't spend it. Adding some things that are not already here. * You do not need to go to a Starbucks for every meeting. * Until you reach profitability your time is not worth much. Apps that save you time are not worth paying for unless you spend that time pursuing profit. * You do not need an office. Work from home. Work from a co-working space if you must. * You probably do not need new technology. I still do everything from a 2 year old Dell (big mistake) that is falling apart. Likewise, unless you develop iPhone apps you do not need an iphone 4. * If you are working from home you don't even need a smartphone. Prepaid is way cheaper. Way cheaper.

rumpelstiltskin 16y ago
We're doing (or not doing) all of the above, except for the office. We tried the working from home thing, but the productivity drastically suffered. We realized it's better to spend a couple grand a month and have a place where everyone shows up everyday to work and our productivity shot through the roof. This was, of course, for our team. YMMV.
- milkshakes 16y ago
  Have you considered renting residential space instead? Where I live, you could rent a 4 bedroom apartment for that kind of money
  - ams6110 16y ago
    Watch zoning on this. A mean-spirited neighbor could get you kicked out and fined if you're operating a business out of a residential apartment. If one of you actually lives there you're probably safer.
kenjackson 16y ago
One point I disagree with is: * Until you reach profitability your time is not worth much. Apps that save you time are not worth paying for unless you spend that time pursuing profit. Your time is always worth a lot, assuming you're productive. My view is that if you're serious, get the best tools for the job, but use common sense. I've NEVER met a founder of a startup company run out of money because of apps or tools. At my last startup we had a policy of "get whatever will help you be more productive, period". On average we spent 2k per developer upfront and about $500/year for apps and tools. That was for everything. Dev tools, office apps, services, books, etc... One side benefit was that devs never complained about not having tool X and it generally helped morale, even more than free food (which actually costs more).

rumpelstiltskin 16y ago

We're doing (or not doing) all of the above, except for the office. We tried the working from home thing, but the productivity drastically suffered. We realized it's better to spend a couple grand a month and have a place where everyone shows up everyday to work and our productivity shot through the roof. This was, of course, for our team. YMMV.

milkshakes 16y ago
Have you considered renting residential space instead? Where I live, you could rent a 4 bedroom apartment for that kind of money
- ams6110 16y ago
  Watch zoning on this. A mean-spirited neighbor could get you kicked out and fined if you're operating a business out of a residential apartment. If one of you actually lives there you're probably safer.

kenjackson 16y ago

One point I disagree with is: * Until you reach profitability your time is not worth much. Apps that save you time are not worth paying for unless you spend that time pursuing profit. Your time is always worth a lot, assuming you're productive. My view is that if you're serious, get the best tools for the job, but use common sense. I've NEVER met a founder of a startup company run out of money because of apps or tools. At my last startup we had a policy of "get whatever will help you be more productive, period". On average we spent 2k per developer upfront and about $500/year for apps and tools. That was for everything. Dev tools, office apps, services, books, etc... One side benefit was that devs never complained about not having tool X and it generally helped morale, even more than free food (which actually costs more).