Startup to Something

Marc hit a snag with devise and dynamic roles, delaying the shipping of the MemberRow MVP. Matt hit a milestone with his Webflow proof of concept and is on the road to interview customers. The guys talk through setting expectations with yourself and how to have a sense of urgency but also treat yourself with kindness.

Marc is coding his brains out on MemberRow and is close to shipping his alpha to his first customers. Matt is almost done working through the technical uncertainty for his Webflow tool MVP. The guys discuss online communities and how interesting and annoying NFTs are.

Marc invested in a rails SaaS template and is using it to great effect to code his face off on MemberRow. Matt is experimenting with Webflow’s APIs and hitting technical problems that the guys discuss.

Marc is coding up a storm for the MemberRow MVP while support requests begin to ramp up for PowerImporter. Matt is diving into his latest project: helping Webflow users break the 10,000 row limit. The guys discuss Matt’s new project and how to take it to market.

Marc is seeing a big response to the launch of MemberRow and is interviewing beta customers. Matt has finished his big deliverable for his freelancing client and is returning to normal life. The guys discuss MemberRow and what the best course of action is for next steps.

Marc has announced his newest addition to the WAP ecosystem: MemberRow (https://memberrow.com) and Matt is busy stressing out about delivering value for his freelancing client. The guys discuss MemberRow and its role in the WAP stack and plans for taking it to market.

Marc is getting set for the launch of his side project and the new version of rails is making local development really painful. Matt Is having trouble setting boundaries and is fighting with feelings of guilt. The guys discuss scoping for Marc's launch and how to start putting out the word.

Marc is overcoming both the technical and mental hurdles for his next move for PowerImporter and Matt is getting his ducks in a row for his next project. The guys go over a plan for goals for the next month of Matt's project.

Matt has had a spiritual awakening around goal setting, and is learning to work backwards from them. Marc is coming out of summer mode and building proof of concepts for new entrants into the PowerImporter ecosystem. The guys discuss staying authentic on social media and trying out surfing in the local river.

Marc is returning to normal life and it's giving him a surge of productivity. Matt is getting interesting opportunities and is trying to understand how to evaluate if they are right for him. The guys discuss how to set goals and to use them as a framework to evaluate decisions.

Marc has support under control and is getting time for deep work as his vacation looms and he considers businesses that fire their customers. Matt is considering working for a more senior entrepreneur as a way of learning and mining for new ideas- or is he avoiding the pain of uncertainty?

Marc is busy with support and his deep work on his side projects. Matt is in the middle of moving, and preoccupied with finishing his R&D consulting. The guys discuss opportunistic entrepreneurship and how that relates to their unfair advantages.

Matt is dealing with deadlines for his SRED consulting and it’s eating up his time. Marc is feeling stuck- it’s difficult to get motivated to take on new commitments when the nice weather and freedom of his family is drawing him away from his computer. The guys talk about business-finance literacy and the ways that starting a business is hard.

It’s summertime and the guys are feeling the pull away from their desks into the beautiful outdoors. Marc has been contemplating white labelling and how it fits his strengths and Matt is seeing a pattern in how his time is being split between indie hacking and freelancing.

Marc is planning a Notion importer and having fun brainstorming marketing ideas. Matt is interviewing more developers but is feeling like he isn’t making progress. The guys discuss partnerships and Marc gives some tough love around the discoveries Matt has had around developers and remote whiteboarding.

Marc is finally winning the war on support and has time to ship improvements to PowerImporter. Matt has been interviewing lots of developers and shares some of the things he’s learned. The guys discuss interview tactics and the consequences of finding customers who aren’t a perfect fit.

Matt has been doing lots of customer interviews and learning a lot about developers doing remote work. Marc has had enough of the support grind and is figuring out what opportunities to say no to. The guys bond over a mutual distaste for the typical FAANG interview process.

Marc had another support heavy week and is looking for ways to ease his support burden so he can maximize time building. Matt is interviewing every developer in his network and hungry for more. The guys discuss doing customer discovery, the demands of social media and staying authentic while being a good community member.

Marc is dealing with affiliate programs for his soon to be announced side project. Matt is experiencing a flurry of activity around consulting and trying to finally finish it off. The guys discuss The Mom Test and have a coaching session around Matt’s growing fear of talking with people to do customer discovery and Marc's desire to create space to celebrate his wins.

Marc is gearing up for a side project to help market PowerImporter and is trying to sort out referrals. Matt is bad at taking vacation and trying to figure out how to rest while being in a holding pattern. The guys discuss ramifications of GDPR and what remote work will look like post-pandemic.

Marc is investigating side projects as additional offerings for Webflow users and thinking about a new marketing project. Matt is shutting down fbars.app and is taking a vacation, contemplating what is next for him. The guys discuss affiliate programs and how to tackle reading books.

Marc is taking a break from marketing to do product development and loving it. Matt is thinking what to do in the next few months after his consulting finishes up and he decides what to focus on next. The guys discuss playbooks and how to not repeat past mistakes.

Matt and Marc are both feeling burnt out and are trying to figure out how to plan for and get some rest when global pandemics rob them of their usual healthy habits. With summer coming, there's a big opportunity to recover from this long year.

Matt finished his initial Facebook ads run and has lots of thoughts about how it went and what he learned. Marc is continuing with copywriting but is having a hard time finding people to hire to help him. The guys try to figure out what a meaningful vacation looks like as the weather improves for summer.

Marc and Matt attended Microconf remote last week and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. This episode is a recap of their experience, and ideas for how to apply some of the takeaways.