Tweets

It's these costs that are motivating a lot of parents to start their own businesses.

If you're a young couple, with 1 child, trying to make ends meet, the bar is just so much higher:

👉 at least $100k/year for most areas (but more likely $150k/year, due to housing increases)

@christophrumpel It took about one year to go full-time on @TransistorFM.

Aug 2018: official launch

Aug 2019: Jon and I were both full-time.

@noahwbragg @megamaker @joshuaanderton Thanks! I’m nervous and excited.

A clean, green future is going to make our lives *better* in many ways; air quality will be a big one. 👍 https://twitter.com/embrein/status/1397278014803570689

@noahwbragg @phuctm97 @ProductHunt Related: https://justinjackson.ca/unicorns

@mariepoulin 🤔 I alway thought you wanted to build a plant army and TAKE OVER THE WORLD.

My friend @hellosunschein is doing some research on "designing a career you'll ❤️."

She's hoping to get 20 more responses to her survey here. Can you help? 🙏

https://form.typeform.com/to/Y5QlLlJU

Twitter also creates "para-social relationships."

These are one-sided relationships that make us feel like we know somebody, because we follow them online.

It can feel like we have a friendship with them, even though they don't know who we are.

Cheech & Chong

@mjwhansen Generally, podcast CPMs (cost-per-thousand-downloads) are at $25.

But there's a lot of variability.

Some podcasts have small "high-value" audiences that charge a lot more. Other podcasts have massive audiences that charge less ($15 CPM).

@stauffermatt Sending you lots of ❤️, always.

Thanks for being “Matt, a real human.” My chats with you have made me a better human. Really appreciate you.

@mattlehrer EXACTLY.

(👊 was waiting for the Dazed & Confused reference)

@bryanl One clear lesson: ego is the enemy.

I’ve also contributed to @shinebootcamp’s campaign. https://twitter.com/shinebootcamp/status/1388161509314875398

Ok. Now I’m getting reports that @spotifypodcasts is having problems!

(Ironically similar to Apple’s issues?)

New episodes not appearing today in Spotify. 👀

Anyone else seeing this? https://t.co/mfNj8KQ64X

@monicalimco I made a step-by-step video with everything I wish I’d known when I got started:

https://youtu.be/N41v30oLM2o

@Shpigford This one:

https://www.currentaffairs.org/2021/04/why-cryptocurrency-is-a-giant-fraud

@tylertringas @marshal 💯

Whenever I hear a politician saying “we need to run government budgets like a household budget” I 🙄

@ianlandsman sad day for me. really disappointing.

@evoterra @ApplePodcasts I've just updated my list of known issues, with all the reports I've received so far from different podcasters.

https://transistor.fm/apple-podcasts-problem/

@JackEllis @michaeldyrynda Yup. My kids are 11-18. Definitely a different stage of life. 😉

Starting a @TwitterSpaces in about 30 minutes (4pm Pacific) to talk about what’s going on with the new Apple Podcasts.

(@nathang will prob join, hoping to have others as well)

https://twitter.com/mijustin/status/1385285260104011779

I found the issue @marcoarment was talking about:

In Podcasts Connect, there's a new checkbox called "RSS feed access."

You now have to *explicitly* allow Apple to expose your RSS feed's URL through the iTunes Podcast API.

Submitting to Apple Podcasts has always had a lot of friction:

- No API for 1-click submission
- You need a valid Apple ID (verified)
- You need to manually copy & paste the RSS feed into a form

It looks like this hasn't gotten any easier in the new Podcasts Connect.

Does anyone know why @hearluminary is being featured under "Paid podcasts" on the new @ApplePodcasts site?

Did Apple acquire them, or are they just a paid podcast partner?

Are they abandoning their app and just doing a rev-share with Apple now? (30% first year, 15% after that?)

@spencerfry This looks awesome! 🙌

Everything is so clear; really great layout.

(This is inspiring me to make a bunch of changes to the @TransistorFM website. 👀)

@BorisTane @TransistorFM We’ve just started using @userlist to send automated customer emails.

Working well so far. 👍

https://www.userlist.com/?via=justin

@bryce @sacca Is there a market for "secondaries" for bootstrapped companies?

(Founders selling some of their stock for liquidity [taking money off the table])

Update: I finally found a vendor classification for "software."

The reason I couldn't find it is they've concatenated the label "Microcomputer" and "Software" into "MicrocomputerSoftwar"

This means searching for "software" yields no results. 🤦‍♂️

So, the category you choose matters (a lot).

Want to enjoy running your business?
Want the business to help you achieve your goals?

A fulfilling, profitable business is highly dependent on:

👩‍🔧 who your customers are,
🔧 and what product you're offering them.

@pjrvs Should I blow dry my hair today, or just wear a hat?

@david_perell just finished listening to your chat with @csallen.

I really enjoyed it! Feels like I got to know you a lot better. 👍

“One-liner wisdom memes” are probably not making us wiser.

(I’m guilty of tweeting those too).

Wisdom comes from discourse, research, experience, long-term thinking. (It’s hard to encapsulate all that in 280 characters)

@benediktdeicke @userlist The user list blockchain

@noahwbragg @coreyhainesco You need both: the MRR leads to consistent freedom. https://twitter.com/mijustin/status/1334273821143040000

Online business owners: how do you handle customer support?

Do you do it yourself? Outsource?

@stauffermatt @laravelphp @LaraconOnline Just sponsored 5 tickets from @TransistorFM!

@iamjoshfrank @jasonfried @basecamp @dhh In comedy, the details matter. 😂

@spencerfry @joelgascoigne @peldi Not $10M, correct.

Still, an incredible business, culture, and founder. 👍

@chasewreeves LONG HAIR SCREENGRAB HOLY SHIT

Love it! (Jealous)

One way to maybe frame this: do you want a “lightweight” or a “heavyweight” business?

Heavyweight businesses have more moving parts, need more people, and (often) have the potential to get big.

Lightweights are simpler, smaller, and less complex.

New poll: which would you prefer?

- A company with you and a co-founder, $2 million revenue
- Solo-founder of a company with 20 employees, $10 million revenue

In particular, this chart, “KfCo2 released per dollar earned,” is misleading. https://twitter.com/kshanikya/status/1366418493831188486

This “counterpoint” article being spread around is full of whataboutism and false equivalencies.

@coreyhainesco I also have my Twitter stats public on @dr's Ilo tool:

https://ilo.so/mijustin/

Anyway, I think this kind of questioning is helpful.

In the science community, they regularly re-examine old ideas, challenge their beliefs, and stress-test theories.

We need this in bootstrapping too!

It's good to look critically at our axioms and ask if they're still useful.

Good point by @ianlandsman:

"When that talk came out, this was a new idea ('building a subscription business takes time to ramp up'). These days, it's a given. Most founders know that if you start at $30 in MRR, it's going to take a while to hit scale."

💯

“Our public guidelines should have been more like Japan’s, which emphasize avoiding the three C’s—closed spaces, crowded places, and close contact—that are driving the pandemic.” https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/02/how-public-health-messaging-backfired/618147/

@derrickreimer @r00k ☝️ it’s still pretty new, but you might enjoy what @jam_systems is doing (open-source Clubhouse alternative that’s web based)

I’ve done a few, and recorded the last one.

@HighFiveRPG @buzzsprout @spreaker @podbeancom @CaptivateAudio 💯

Even Mark Zuckerberg got in trouble for spending too much time on Clubhouse! 😜

"I promised Priscilla that I was only going to be on here for five minutes. Gotta listen to the boss."

It's easy to get sucked in.

Thanks to everyone who showed up today on Clubhouse for "SaaS Club." 👍

A few notes/takeaways:

Do I know anyone at @backblaze?

We're having trouble with B2 again, and really need this resolved.

@Martin_Adams I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention this: doing well financially in my late 30s and now early 40s has increased my overall happiness I believe (contrary to the popular narrative).

Having more money is incredibly freeing.

@VovaZk This probably really depends on you.

For me, I waited way too long to do some internal, emotional work. I’ve been going to therapy since I was 36 now, and it’s really helped (but I have a lot of catching up to do).

@mattlady I’m still figuring it out, honestly.

But doing the emotional work internally feels like it’s setting the foundation.

A strong internal foundation seems to set up healthy intentions.

@v0jta_ Funny enough, I’ve been 40 for 7 months and my low back has been seriously stiff. 😂

(Thanks for all the help @adamwathan 🚀)

Both @crisp_im and @endcrawl are upstarts in established categories.

Neither is offering "bottom of the barrel" pricing, but they do offer a significant amount of value (for a lower cost) when compared to the alternatives.

This is true of all social apps:

The more time and energy you put into the machine, the more the machine rewards you with clout.

@chriscantino @Mr_DannySingh @TwitterSpaces I love all of these ☝️

Especially the distinction between “tipping” and “tickets:”

- Tipping is for real-time rewards (“I love what you’re saying! I’m going to give you a $ tip”)

- Tickets is for pre-selling access to an event (“I’m a fan, and I’ll attend your event)

We'll likely discuss this:

https://twitter.com/JordanGal/status/1131414132605849600

Has "crowdfunding equity" just gone mainstream?

I've now seen multiple companies raise ~$1 million on these platforms.

(Previously, it seemed like crowdfund raises were relatively small. $100k-$300k)

https://www.startengine.com/fanbase

@itsjustamar @earthlingworks @arvidkahl @yongfook @tejas3732 I like “customer led” too. 👍

Don’t ask *why* people believe; ask *how* their ideas would work in practice.

“As people struggled to explain their ideal tax legislation or health care plan, they grasped the complexity of the problem and recognized gaps in their knowledge.”

"How do you track marketing campaigns and what's working?"

I track almost everything in @getRewardful (both affiliate campaigns, and internal marketing campaigns).

https://www.getrewardful.com/?via=justin

Their podcast artwork and music were so fun I made them this public service announcement. 😂

🎙️ Podcast review #4: @jbrcpod

💯 example of a good podcast website and good show art
✅ I give a few promotion ideas as well

Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9P1j7Vz7-k&list=PL5PYemLqUixaGbr1kzaszPV4h8gc8khJH&index=5

"There is truth and there are lies. Lies are told for power and for profit."

@nickjmauro @EspreeDevora 💯

If you’re curious (or skeptical) about Modern Monetary Theory, this ⁦@Radiolab⁩ episode provides a good overview: https://overcast.fm/+KkROuc

BTW - if you have a site/guide/YouTube channel related to podcasting, please DM me. 😎

Generally, you're either in a low-volume business (with a high price), or a high-volume business (with low prices).

And (again, generally):

👩‍💻 Most consulting/services businesses are low-volume/high-price
💾 Most SaaS/digital products businesses are high-volume/low-price

@simonsarris “Being apolitical is a luxury many cannot afford.” – @sol_orwell

@arvidkahl @tylertringas +1 to “outsides judging things they have no idea about.”

Also: @JordanGal and @CasJam really pioneered the podcast format that so many of us use now.

It's one of my favorite bootstrapped podcasts. I almost always leave thinking "I've totally felt that way," or "That's such a good idea. I should try that."

http://bootstrappedweb.com/

@BarrettABrooks Related: https://twitter.com/aprildunford/status/1341093673782702080

@cgenco @chrisachard @buildyoursaas @IndieHackers In 5 years, all of us will be doing OnlyFans.

@tylertringas 💯 agree with the sentiment.

(Although, good business ideas can come from working in an industry, or serving a category of clients)

@alexisohanian @pizzahut Here’s my Delta Hotel name tag from college. 😜

@joinrepublic @jmj @ScottHickle @RobinhoodApp 😞🇨🇦

@mattwensing You should have bought the dishwasher first! 😄

For me, the joy of “having arrived” often lasts a long time.

I’m glad to have had the journey, but journeys aren’t always joyful! Often they’re stressful, painful, or difficult.

But once I arrive at my desired destination, it makes the journey feel worthwhile.

@ShaanVP https://transistor.fm/

@taylorotwell @andyjh07 Don’t people know that your only “inner circle” is George Soros?

@danwaterfield @wesbos @syntaxfm The great @JimGaffigan agrees with you. (But you’re both wrong)

Sometimes, you get lucky.

You build something because you want it, and when you release it, it turns out other people want it to.

(This is especially true for tech products where the market is other tech folks who are similar to you)

Another example: Tesla stock.

Their increase in stock price isn’t based on fundamentals (Tesla’s business isn’t getting better).

It’s just more people are seeing other people buy the stock and therefore want that same stock.

(This behavior seems built-in to human DNA)

@adamwathan Lol.

Christmas shopping is stressful. 😬

I need a @ratiovernon cookie and drink. 🍪☕

"Inertia" explains why the podcasting industry saw a huge bump during the initial lockdown.

Folks were like: "OK! Now's the time. I'm finally going to start that podcast I've been dreaming about."

The lockdown disrupted them. It gave them the momentum they needed.

@pascallaliberte Folks are discouraged from going inside. Face coverings are mandatory. 🤙

@ninjaparade 👋

@spencerfry @Shpigford +1

If people are used to paying $19/month for a thing, you can't just magically sprinkle "value-based pricing" on it, and expect them to pay $99.

Even if your quality is better!

@marshal Omg.

I’m very bullish on @TransferWise. (Wish I could invest)

Excited to see @nickd & @lovevalgeisler's podcast on Transistor!

Check it out on:

🍎 Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/finding-clarity/id1541724637?uo=4

🌥️ Overcast – https://overcast.fm/itunes1541724637/finding-clarity

🔍 Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/show/366Qh9VfZO7pZB0rBlbQUc

Like I was playing conga drums or something and asked him for money, and he said "nah" so instead, we took a photo. lol

@tylertringas Previously, the idea with annual plans is that you could pump all that “up-front cash” into more customer acquisition (namely, with ads).

But recently, it’s felt like paid acquisition channels aren’t working as well, so there’s been less of a drive for annual plans.

@arvidkahl Yes! I’m joking here, but we do have good chats about it.

That being said, so far my kids want to be:

- a Physics teacher
- a Professor of linguistics
- an engineer in space
- a farmer or wood worker

So basically... the exact opposite of me. 😂