For me, the heavy lifting here is being done by you having a network of people that recognize you as the right person to build the thing they need (productivity

For me, the heavy lifting here is being done by you having a network of people that recognize you as the right person to build the thing they need (productivity tool in this instance). Based on my (limited) experience with startups I would rather have this than a network of funders or great developers or almost anything else you can accumulate before you start.