Start with an idea you love and then learn how to write it. Repeat this enough times and you'll either develop a marketable skill (a particular programming lan

Start with an idea you love and then learn how to write it. Repeat this enough times and you'll either develop a marketable skill (a particular programming language, platform, etc.) or you'll write something that others can use and you'll just have to put a pricetag on it. Things like iPhone apps, Facebook apps, etc. have made it allot easier, in my opinion, for a developer to bootstrap their own business, but I would focus on writing something you're passionate about because you won't require the financial motivation (which is unpredictable) to keep at it. If you truly desire the results of your own work, nothing (including any classical definition failure) should be able to stop you from completing it.