The Birth of Bit: Making Ideas Happen

Let's face it, we all have ideas. In the space we work it is nearly impossible not to. They key is having the ability to take the leap and transform an idea into a reality.

In this talk, Scott will share his experience taking coderbits from an idea to a successful product used by thousands of developers. The focus will be on presenting those experiences in a way that provides practical tips to empower you to take your ideas and make them real.

Transcript

1. The  Birth  of  Bit   Making  Ideas  Happen   Sco7  Smith   @sco7ksmith95  
2. Sco7  Smith   Founder  of  coderbits   h7ps://coderbits.com/sco7  
3. DON’T  FEAR  THE  REAPER   “I  must  not  fear.  Fear  is  the  mind-­‐killer.  Fear  is  the  li7le-­‐ death  that  brings  total  obliteraEon.  I  will  face  my  fear.  I   will  permit  it  to  pass  over  me  and  through  me.  And  when   it  has  gone  past  I  will  turn  the  inner  eye  to  see  its  path.   Where  the  fear  has  gone  there  will  be  nothing.  Only  I  will   remain.”   -­‐  Frank  Herbert,  Dune,  1965  
4. Fear…   “Why  are  you  telling  people  about  it?  Won’t  they  copy  it?”   “What  will  you  do  if  someone  makes  the  same  thing?”   “Isn’t  it  be7er  to  keep  it  a  secret  unEl  it  is  done?”   “Why  would  they  use  yours  when  they  can  make  it  themselves?”   “Can’t  a  larger  company  with  lots  of  resources  out  compete  you?”  
5. Ideas  are  worthless   •  They  are  cheap   •  Most  people  have  them   •  Usually  not  unique   •  Aren’t  tangible  
6. Four  types  of  people   1.  Those  with  ideas  &  the  inability  to  execute   2.  Those  with  no  ideas  &  the  ability  to  execute   3.  Those  with  ideas  and  the  inability  to  execute   4.  Those  with  ideas  and  the  ability  to  execute  
7. Acceptance  brings   Freedom  from  fear  that  an  idea  can  be  stolen  or  lost  
8. A  CONVERSATION  WITH  THE  REAPER   Communicate  with  your  potenEal  users  
9. CommunicaEon   •  AcEve   •  Passive  
10. AcEve  communicaEon   •  Share  your  idea   •  Ask  for  opinions   •  Request  feedback   •  Engage  people  and  discuss  
11. Passive  communicaEon   •  Observe   •  Listen   •  Read  
12. I  SAW  IT  FIRST   Establish  ownership  early  
13. Ownership  will  be  viewed  differently     Only  ma7ers  when  successful     Establish  ownership  early     Signed  contract  at  the  very  least      
14. DON’T  FORGET  THE  MILK   Importance  of  your  significant  other  
15. Inclusion   •  They  will  feel  they  are  a  part  of  it   •  Excellent  resource  to  brainstorm  and  bounce   ideas  off  of   •  Shows  you  respect  and  value  them  
16. Belief   •  Proper  inclusion  will  foster  a  belief  in  you  and   your  idea   •  Provide  moEvaEon  during  difficult  Emes  
17. Support   •  Include  them  from  the  very  beginning   •  Respect  and  acknowledge  the  sacrifices  they   are  making   •  Make  sure  their  needs  are  met    
18. Balance   •  Achieve  balance  between  your  work  and  them   •  Communicate  and  listen   •  When  you  are  working,  work   •  When  you  are  with  them,  be  with  them  100%  
19. SHOW  ME  THE  MONEY   Funding  your  startup  
20. Funding  opEons   •  Bootstrapping   •  Friends  and  family   •  Loans   •  Crowd-­‐funding   •  Angel  investors   •  Venture  capitalists  
21. Bootstrapping   Pros:     1.  You  keep  full  control   2.  No  loans  to  make  payments  on     Cons:     1.  Risk  of  losing  your  own  money   2.  Chance  of  running  out  of  money   3.  May  not  have  the  capital  needed  to  grow  big  
22. Friends  and  family   Pros:     1.  You  keep  most  control   2.  Choice  of  giving  up  equity  or  incurring  debt   3.  They  want  you  to  succeed  and  may  help  you  along  the  way     Cons:     1.  Give  up  equity  or  incur  debt   2.  Risk  of  losing  their  money   3.  Risk  of  strained  relaEonships  if  things  don’t  go  well   4.  They  may  feel  more  inclined  to  interfere  with  your  idea  
23. Loans   Pros:     1.  You  keep  full  control   2.  You  are  not  risking  your  own  money     Cons:     1.  Can  be  hard  to  obtain  and  may  require  assets  to  back  the   loan   2.  Debt  can  hamper  you  and  the  growth  of  your  business   3.  You  can  lose  assets  if  payments  cannot  be  made  
24. Crowd-­‐funding   Pros:     1.  You  keep  full  control   2.  You  get  to  pre-­‐sell  your  idea   3.  You  get  validaEon  about  your  idea  and  markeEng     Cons:     1.  May  not  work  well  for  all  ideas   2.  Services  take  a  percentage   3.  You  will  need  to  pay  taxes  on  campaign  earnings  
25. Angel  investors   Pros:     1.  You  are  not  risking  your  own  money   2.  Can  provide  needed  business  contacts,  investors,  and  customers   3.  Can  provide  guidance  and  share  experience  for  building  a   successful  business     Cons:     1.  Give  up  equity  for  capital   2.  There  may  be  conflict  when  different  views  on  what  should  be   done   3.  May  receive  pressure  to  perform  and  produce  
26. Venture  capitalists   Pros:     1.  You  are  not  risking  your  own  money   2.  Can  provide  even  be7er  business  contacts,  investors,  and  customers   3.  Gives  the  business  credibility   4.  Can  provide  guidance  and  share  experience  for  building  a  successful   business     Cons:     1.  Give  up  equity  for  capital   2.  Don’t  generally  consider  startups  at  an  early  stage   3.  They  will  enforce  their  will  on  the  business   4.  May  force  change  or  direcEon  you  do  not  want    
27. PINCH  THOSE  PENNIES   Spend  your  money  wisely  
28. PosiEon  yourself  for  long  term   success.  When  the  money  runs  out   so  does  your  startup.  
29. Microsoj  Bizspark   Requirements     1.  Developing  sojware   2.  Privately  held   3.  Less  than  5  years  old   4.  Less  than  $1  million  annually     Benefits   •  Free  MSDN  subscripEons  including  Visual   Studio  UlEmate   •  $150  in  credits  per  month  for  Windows  Azure   •  Network  partners,  investors,  and  mentors   •  Community  of  peers   •  Good  for  3  years  
30. Amazon  Web  Services   Free  Tier     •  750  hours  of  Linux  and  Windows   Micro  instances  per  month   •  5  GB  of  S3  storage   •  750  hours  of  Micro  DB  instance   per  month   •  Lots  more   •  Good  for  1  year  
31. Free  and  low  cost  services  
32. Coderbits’  expenses  for  June,  2013  
33. PUCKER  UP  FOR  A  KISS   Keep  it  simple,  stupid   “Simplicity  is  the  ulEmate  sophisEcaEon.”   -­‐  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  circa  1500  
34. Don’t  try  to  do  too  much   •  Mediocre  quality   •  Confuse  your  startup’s  message   •  Overly  complicated  
35. KEEP  YOUR  EYES  ON  THE  PRIZE  
36. Consequences   •  Your  idea  will  never  be  complete   •  Builds  discouragement   •  Leads  to  lack  of  future  pursuit  of  ideas  
37. Don’t  lose  your  new  idea     Document   Forget   ConEnue  
38. HIGHS  AND  LOWS   Weathering  the  storm  
39. The  price  you  pay   •  You  will  be  criEcized   •  You  will  receive  disrespect   •  Your  idea  will  be  bashed   •  People  will  try  to  tear  you  and  your  idea  down  
40. The  silver  lining   •  Meet  amazing  people  worldwide   •  People  will  evangelize  your  idea  for  you   •  Make  new  friends   •  Establish  business  contacts  and  partners  
41. Thicken  your  skin     Ignore  the  asses     Make  criEcism  construcEve  
42. TRUST  IN  OTHER’S  SKILLS  
43. IniEal  concepts  
44. Result  of  not  trusEng  
45. Final  result    
47. DON’T  ROLL  YOUR  OWN  
48. Time  is  enemy  number  1   •  Just  because  you  can  do  it,  doesn’t  mean  you   should   •  Do  the  things  that  are  necessary   •  Use  what  already  exists   •  Take  advantage  of  open  source  soluEons  
49. MARKETING  101   Promote  your  idea  
50. Ways  to  promote   •  Social  media   •  Meetups   •  Events   •  Conferences  
51. Wrapping  it  up   •  Go  for  it  and  DON’T     •  Give  up   •  Falter   •  Get  discouraged   •  Get  distracted  
52. Thank  You   Slides  and  companion  arEcle  linked  in  my   coderbits  profile:     h7ps://coderbits.com/sco7