Tweets

On Saturday, I published a roundup of this thread:

"Can you bootstrap a startup part-time?"

https://justinjackson.ca/sideproject

@joshvoydik 😍 where is that?

I'm going to have to get @jonbuda to take me there next time I'm in town.

@dennmart Dang. Come to 🇨🇦 and work at @CoWorkVernon! 😄

@bryce indie vc socks please

@dennmart 😱 Did you find out what happened?

@bryce if this is the release of your new free ebook pdf download on making money online with google adwords then i'm in.

@bryce @colmtuite I was forecasting a tool that analyzes your website and just returns a message like:

"This won't make money."

@adamlogic nice. #requestforstartup 🤣

@bryce what is happening on jan 1st i need to plan my calendar.

@NordicEdward @SaaSGrowthHub If you're looking at download numbers, those are highly correlated with when the episode is published.

@Tinnnei 🤣

RT @mijustin: I sent this to my newsletter this morning.

Now, I'm posting it here:

🤔 "Can you bootstrap a startup on the side?"

https://…

@pjrvs 😮

@pjrvs http://vegansuperpowers.com?

@MihaiSterian I think my friend @JamesClear would say that your past habits/efforts definitely contribute to who you are today.

But I don't think you need to be "brilliant" to make it work.

https://twitter.com/jamesclear/status/1048612840615997441?s=21

RT @Shpigford: It’s often overlooked because it’s one of the hardest to positively affect. It’s also usually a lagging indicator, making it…

@MihaiSterian @dhh To me it feels a lot like working out: a few focused hours a day translates into big gains after a year. 💪

So far, @transistorfm's been built on the side this way.

The difference is that in business, nothing is guaranteed. Efforts might not translate into a winning company.

RT @davemorin: “Before you heal someone, ask them if they’re willing to give up the things that make them sick.” - Hippocrates

RT @charliprangley: 🎉 My new blog is live!! 🎉

Check it out and read my 2017/18 income report. https://charlimarie.com/blog

Built on @webflow!…

@parkeragee Yup! We've experimented with some of that.

There's still potential there too. 👌

@horus_kol 🙌

@spencerowland Lol. I love this.

@Beryllium9 I'm using "startup" in its looser context here

I sent this to my newsletter this morning.

Now, I'm posting it here:

🤔 "Can you bootstrap a startup on the side?"

https://justinjackson.ca/sideproject

@corey_gwin @hnshah YOU CAN RUN AT 2X SPEED?!? 😮 🏃‍♂️💨

@MartinCamenius Hahaha. Oh boy. That's a lot of pressure. 😅

@AlanHylands @janelleallen Nice! 🙌

Have you listened to the bonus episode yet?

Great insights from Seth Godin on why indie makers / entrepreneurs might want to give some of their stuff away for free.

To me, this is why podcasting, blogging, livestreaming, video can be so powerful. 👌

@mattmillsxyz 😱

For me, "folding laundry time" is "podcast listening time." 🎧

🤔 When do you listen to podcasts?

RT @joelgascoigne: @asanwal Agreed! Related thoughts:

- A portion of founders today are creating startups because within their circles it'…

RT @joelgascoigne: @asanwal It baffles me how quickly some founders agree to having a boss. Freedom has always been a primary reason I chos…

Really impressed with @natalienagele's leadership at @Wildbit.

Great write-up in Fast Company! 🙌

https://www.fastcompany.com/90277702/this-company-shifted-to-a-four-day-workweek-and-its-going-great

For me, entrepreneurship isn't the end goal.

Ultimately, it's "designing a good life."

@knrz_ Wow! Really great thinking here Kash.

Still thinking about these parts.

@marknca Thanks Mark!

RT @marknca: if you haven’t already signed up for @mijustin’s newsletter, you should! https://twitter.com/mijustin/status/1071090936191451136

You can listen to the whole interview on @Gimletmedia's "Without Fail" pod:

https://overcast.fm/+OxAzTjPhw

@thepodcasthost @hamstu So true.

For me entrepreneurship isn't the end goal, but rather "designing a good life."

When asked, "How do you know if a company is going to be successful?", @Caterina answered:

"Find a parade and get in front of it."

❤️ this idea.

RT @owendesign: @mijustin My first year in business we did $5k in revenue, the next we did $15k... this year we’ll do $2M. It’s ok to grow…

Didn't get my newsletter done yesterday, but hoping to send it tomorrow morning.

Sorry it's late!

@destroytoday @cushionapp Perfect. 👍

Just made the change.

@destroytoday @cushionapp Jonnie, I'm writing a summary of this now. Can I include this? (Is it accurate).

Any other color you'd like to add would be 👍

@theleviallen The Patreon I do with @jonbuda for our podcast has been growing nicely. 👌

http://patreon.com/jonjustin

Great way for superfans to support the content they ❤️.

@adamwathan @steveschoger It's 2018 and we're still trying to fit digital stuff on pretend pieces of paper.

RT @adamlogic: I was clueless about the meta tags needed for social previews in Twitter, Facebook, Slack, etc. Thanks @mijustin for recomme…

RT @FORSBERGtwo: Awesome writeup on the importance of asking the right questions for marketing and website copy! Glad I could be a little p…

@jasoncoxADD Thanks. 😄

@tristanbailey @Shpigford @CasJam Yup, here's my whole setup: https://justinjackson.ca/livestreaming

RT @adamlogic: Speaking of @mijustin, I finished writing up our experience doing a marketing-for-devs immersion day last month. If you're a…

For those asking:

Yes, my newsletter tomorrow will be about this twitter thread:
https://twitter.com/mijustin/status/1068773791952584704

👉 http://justinjackson.ca/newsletter

@kardan lol. true.

@jimmyjacobson We were talking about a possible meetup space in Vegas for @megamaker.

RT @smithtimmytim: Hire this human. He’s incredibly thoughtful and kind. https://twitter.com/wiseacre/status/1070789492058062850

@flaviocopes Nice! Yes, I'm loving the small town life.

@kwuchu I'm so curious about this whole interaction. 😄

Was it the negotiation that impressed you most?

@bkorte @iChris Worst feeling was getting off the school bus, rushing inside, only to discover someone had picked up the phone and ruined it all while you were away... 😭

@iChris In the old days that would take 30 years to download.

Now THAT’S test-driven development! 🔪

@JordanGal @CartHook @ReChargePayment This was a good talk Jordan! Really enjoyed the in-depth look at checkout pages (and those "source-specific" checkout flows). Lots to learn there!

@daviswbaer @earnestcapital Thanks Davis!

@adamwathan is this your book on potty training, for new parents?

RT @daviswbaer: Love this podcast episode by @mijustin

For anyone who has ever had questions about raising money, but maybe was afraid of…

@neilgorman @TransistorFM Nice! Listening to your first episode now.

Good sound and production quality! 👍

(Also, good use of narrative with the lightning/fire story)

Yesterday on the podcast, @jonbuda answered some listener questions, and we talked openly about revenue, splitting equity, and the challenges of running a software company.

🎧 Listen here:
https://overcast.fm/+MBmWK0xps

Definitely check out the bonus episode too!

https://twitter.com/janelleallen/status/1070306098647851008

@iChris Chris, every time I edit my own podcast I lose 5 years of my life.

@jonbuda and I need to get back on a schedule so that you're performing your audio magic on our show again.

Alright! Just published it now:

https://share.transistor.fm/s/d0704090

@LashaKrikheli Yeah, our "real" editor (@iChris) uses something fancy, but I really like Screenflow. (Ripple delete FTW!)

Editing today's episode of "Build your SaaS." 👨‍💻

Hoping to publish this tonight! (Sorry it's late)

You can get it here: https://saas.transistor.fm/subscribe

@allanbranch I had this incredible time with my family up at Silverstar for the "Christmas lightup" last week.

I also had to debug a database problem on an old WordPress site for hours.

I'd like more of the former. 😄

@leogdion Yes! @IncredibleCulk did a good overview, but I wanna go DEEEEEP.

@StephenWilson @flyLAXairport Airport karaoke is the podcast I've been waiting for.

@EricCozart Do much spandex and rollerblading

@EricCozart ok cool, so you'd listen. 😉

@adamwathan @steveschoger maybe if you ate more vegetables your vocal chords would be stronger 💪

I could easily do a 10 episode podcast series on the movie Hackers.

@adii It's true.

BUT...

Whenever I'm in NYC, Chicago, Portland, Vancouver... I feel like:

"IT'S SO EASY TO MEET WITH PEOPLE HERE." 😆

@adii I feel the same about living here, in the mountains, in British Columbia, in a small town.

1. Quality of life feels so good here.
2. Online it feels like I can connect with so many amazing people.

@brennandunn @dohertyjf I should. But how long are these guys going to keep playing the sports ball?

@dohertyjf @brennandunn sorry, how do you mean 301 redirect my name?

(And yes - I've got NBA + NFL players with my name. They get a lot of search traffic + backlinks 😭)

@iamashley beautiful

This is a good one.

(An Ode to Partnership)

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/12/10/the-friendship-that-made-google-huge

@awilkinson Cool. Just subscribed.

@rrhoover @ellenhuet Jesus

@asmartbear @arlogilbert My reference for that history is here: http://www.doeswhat.com/2012/09/26/interview-with-ben-chestnut-mailchimp

2001: "Turned it into an email newsletter app."
2005: "Noticed it was doing more rev than our agency."
2007: "Went full-time as a product company."

@asmartbear @arlogilbert Are you saying 2 years is too long of a runway for bootstrapped startups, or "about right?"

Also: isn't the decision to go "full-time" contextual? For Basecamp full-time meant $40k salaries.

RT @StephenLJohnson: @mijustin @TopoMaps took 5 years to support me full time and then another year to support an additional full time empl…

RT @JeffBargmann: @mijustin Took 6yrs to move Fences from pet project to general availability. And then 6yrs hacking on back-burner to find…

@Chik Happy birthday! 🙌

You'll be one of the coolest people I know at any age. 😁

RT @janelleallen: My interview with @mijustin goes live on Wednesday. Listen, this episode is gooooood. We talked so much that we had to re…

@theivandrag @Shpigford @TransistorFM @jonbuda @Baremetrics Thanks. We're just trying to grow slow and steady.

@arlogilbert In the bootstrapped world, it's normal for companies to take 3, 4, or 5 years to achieve success. 😁

I'm not encouraging people to "persistently pursue what's not working" but rather to start small, and steadily grow ideas that have good fundamentals. 👍

@arlogilbert When you said "MailChimp is an extraordinarily rare example," I thought you were implying survivor bias, so I flipped it and asked: "Ok, what factors contribute to startup failure?"

I think the factors that contribute to business' success can't be developed overnight.

The beauty of having side-projects is that it's OK if they fail!

Instead of heaping unrealistic expectations on our ideas we can let them live (or die) on their own merits.

To have a chance of catching the big fish you have to catch (and release) a lot of little fish.

@ZoCodes The beauty of having side-projects is that it's OK if they do fail.

Instead of heaping unrealistic expectations on our ideas we can let them live (or die) on their own merits.

RT @Shpigford: Stoked that @TransistorFM (@mijustin & @jonbuda) have joined @Baremetrics Open Startups!

https://transistor.baremetrics.com

View near…

@arlogilbert BTW - I'm not saying folks shouldn't "ship early" (or ship often).

I'm saying that success doesn't happen overnight.

It takes time for even the best ideas to evolve, find their place, and start growing.

@arlogilbert To prove our points, we would both need to look at startup graveyard and ask:

"What are the causes of business failure?"

I think it's:
- founder burnout
- running out of money
- hiring the wrong people
- having bad fundamentals

☝️isn't this what happens when you rush?