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> Even when I was getting started, I read a ton on VC funded businesses but not a lot on non VC funded businesses. Any suggested reading for the non VC funded

> Even when I was getting started, I read a ton on VC funded businesses but not a lot on non VC funded businesses. Any suggested reading for the non VC funded business?

ilrwbwrkhv 3y ago
Not a lot that I can find. Essentially businesses are about making bets about what reality will look like in the future. So the better modeling you can do of reality, the more successful you can be. Earnestness is a strong word in my dictionary when it comes to testing ideas these days. I started seeing success when I stopped lying to myself and became earnest after over a decade of failure.
- randmeerkat 3y ago
  > So the better modeling you can do of reality, the more successful you can be. How do you approach modeling? > Earnestness is a strong word in my dictionary when it comes to testing ideas these days. I started seeing success when I stopped lying to myself and became earnest after over a decade of failure. It sounds like there’s something here, but I’m not sure I understand what you mean. By being earnest do you mean being serious about the idea, or is it something else?
  - ilrwbwrkhv 3y ago
    Earnestness is basically intellectual honesty but it takes effort. You think you are being intellectually honest but you are not. You need to peel back the layers. Regarding modeling multiple models overlap is closest that you can get.
waprin 3y ago
Not a successful self-funded entrepreneur but Im working on it and I’ve studied a lot of the greats. DHH and Jason Fried blog and books like Rework Arvid Kahl is a successful software bootstrapper and has a few great books and a bootstrapper newsletter Everything by Rob Walling is focused on software bootstrappers, and his associates brands / YouTube channel, Microconf community etc Indie Hackers podcast , interviews, and website Founders at Work is written by a YC founder but ironically had lots of bootstrapped interviews like Craigslist and Joel Spolsky (Trello) Patio11 blog is classic MJ Demarco is non tech and writes more “motivational” style books about bootstrapped entrepreneurship Once you go down this rabbit hole you’ll discover many more . Especially since bootstrappers love making content about their experiences as it’s marketing and potentially more revenue (what DHH calls “selling your byproducts”)
k1w1 3y ago
We have been able to bootstrap Aha! from zero to over $100 million in annual revenue without any external funding. We have written about some of our experiences at https://www.bootstrap.company/ https://www.bootstrap.company/ and https://www.aha.io/blog/collection/bootstrap-movement https://www.aha.io/blog/collection/bootstrap-movement.
- d_t_w 3y ago
  I run a bootstrapped software company, not at the $100M scale. My interest piqued I clicked, had a look at Aha! (having never heard of it before) and immediately thought - hey I could use this. You got me, ka pai, haha. Any insight on how to navigate inflexion points that seemingly require more capital that cashflow allows? Stay true and spend less? Number 8 wire might not be the same solution today as it once was, that's my worry.
  - k1w1 3y ago
    In a business that is more capital intensive than SaaS bootstrapping is likely to be a lot harder. The beauty of SaaS is that expenses scale smoothly with revenue so you never need large capital infusions. It may be tempting to think "if only I had enough money for a big advertising campaign". But if you are not seeing that small investments in advertising result in corresponding small increases in revenue, then it is very unlikely that a big investment in advertising will result in a big return. When something is working well it is blindingly obvious. If you are having to look hard for signs of positivity then it is not working. Lots of money can only serve to make things appear successful for a limited period of time.
rwalling 3y ago
Zero to Exit Start Small, Stay Small The SaaS Playbook Startups for the Rest of Us podcast YouTube.com/MicroConf Indie.vc Tinyseed.com

> Even when I was getting started, I read a ton on VC funded businesses but not a lot on non VC funded businesses. Any suggested reading for the non VC funded business?

ilrwbwrkhv 3y ago

Not a lot that I can find. Essentially businesses are about making bets about what reality will look like in the future. So the better modeling you can do of reality, the more successful you can be. Earnestness is a strong word in my dictionary when it comes to testing ideas these days. I started seeing success when I stopped lying to myself and became earnest after over a decade of failure.

randmeerkat 3y ago
> So the better modeling you can do of reality, the more successful you can be. How do you approach modeling? > Earnestness is a strong word in my dictionary when it comes to testing ideas these days. I started seeing success when I stopped lying to myself and became earnest after over a decade of failure. It sounds like there’s something here, but I’m not sure I understand what you mean. By being earnest do you mean being serious about the idea, or is it something else?
- ilrwbwrkhv 3y ago
  Earnestness is basically intellectual honesty but it takes effort. You think you are being intellectually honest but you are not. You need to peel back the layers. Regarding modeling multiple models overlap is closest that you can get.

waprin 3y ago

Not a successful self-funded entrepreneur but Im working on it and I’ve studied a lot of the greats. DHH and Jason Fried blog and books like Rework Arvid Kahl is a successful software bootstrapper and has a few great books and a bootstrapper newsletter Everything by Rob Walling is focused on software bootstrappers, and his associates brands / YouTube channel, Microconf community etc Indie Hackers podcast , interviews, and website Founders at Work is written by a YC founder but ironically had lots of bootstrapped interviews like Craigslist and Joel Spolsky (Trello) Patio11 blog is classic MJ Demarco is non tech and writes more “motivational” style books about bootstrapped entrepreneurship Once you go down this rabbit hole you’ll discover many more . Especially since bootstrappers love making content about their experiences as it’s marketing and potentially more revenue (what DHH calls “selling your byproducts”)

k1w1 3y ago

We have been able to bootstrap Aha! from zero to over $100 million in annual revenue without any external funding. We have written about some of our experiences at https://www.bootstrap.company/ https://www.bootstrap.company/ and https://www.aha.io/blog/collection/bootstrap-movement https://www.aha.io/blog/collection/bootstrap-movement.

d_t_w 3y ago
I run a bootstrapped software company, not at the $100M scale. My interest piqued I clicked, had a look at Aha! (having never heard of it before) and immediately thought - hey I could use this. You got me, ka pai, haha. Any insight on how to navigate inflexion points that seemingly require more capital that cashflow allows? Stay true and spend less? Number 8 wire might not be the same solution today as it once was, that's my worry.
- k1w1 3y ago
  In a business that is more capital intensive than SaaS bootstrapping is likely to be a lot harder. The beauty of SaaS is that expenses scale smoothly with revenue so you never need large capital infusions. It may be tempting to think "if only I had enough money for a big advertising campaign". But if you are not seeing that small investments in advertising result in corresponding small increases in revenue, then it is very unlikely that a big investment in advertising will result in a big return. When something is working well it is blindingly obvious. If you are having to look hard for signs of positivity then it is not working. Lots of money can only serve to make things appear successful for a limited period of time.

rwalling 3y ago

Zero to Exit Start Small, Stay Small The SaaS Playbook Startups for the Rest of Us podcast YouTube.com/MicroConf Indie.vc Tinyseed.com