The Past 5 Months: Learnings
Something that no one ever told me was that being a solo founder requires creating intermittent reinforcement and rewards for what you are accomplishing. It requires building systems of behavior in even the most minute ways to ensure that you are moving forward and not stagnating.
I’ve learned that — when alone — I’m good at short bursts of a few days of hyperfocusing, but after that I have trouble maintaining morale. So, I’ve implemented a better schedule of work for myself moving forward that is more consistent and based in discipline, rather than solely motivation.
In order to do this, I’ve created healthy habits for myself, which I have been following for about three months, a PivotalTracker with all the goals and epics for the MVP and written specs for what I want to accomplish, and met with a local outreach group to get the word out about Pragma.
I participated in YC Startup School this year again and gleaned some valuable insights into sales, building product, metrics, and how to lead.
ISO Moar Community
What I’ve discovered is that I can’t do Pragma or any startup alone. I need a community of like-minded people around me to contribute to and have my work recognized in ways that are meaningful. This is why Flatiron School meant so much to me. It is a community of like-minded folks who encourage one another to strive for greatness, to reach their goals.
I’ve discovered that, between crippling imposter syndrome and my introverted nature, the ability to build this community from scratch for Pragma in an authentic, good-hearted way consistently would take a longer time than the runway. However, I’m embracing my introverted nature and celebrating the time I’ve spent diving deep into startup mode solo these past few months.
Moving Forward — What I’ve Learned and the Future
Ultimately, I’ve learned that Pragma will take a long time to monetize and build. Time I don’t have right now. My runway is shorter than the amount of time I’d need to monetize and raising money to elongate runway has not been as successful as I would need, though I do appreciate the support of those who have contributed!
As a result, I’ve decided to delve back into blockchain development in order to bootstrap this project further. I’ve applied and received a scholarship to the Consensys Academy that will begin in Oct. 30th and end in graduation in January 2020.
I’m excited to be on the forefront of tech.
After January 2020, I will be looking into full-time blockchain developer roles and will have community and connections with mentors that I need to make this happen.
I’m honored to have the continued support of the coding community around me and friends and family through these trials and tribulations and learnings. I’ve already started studying on Blockgeeks.com and reading Scott’s notes on Github about Consensys Academy when he went through it.
Overall, I’m looking forward to contributing to the blockchain world in 2020.