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Starting a Software Business in Today's Economy?
Ryfar asks: "I'm a programmer with 3 years of experience in C, C++, and Java. With the current low economic trends in the software sector, the small software company I've been working for since I graduated is going out of business. Since it's so hard to get a job at another software company with so little experience, I'm considering the option of striking out on my own with a friend with similar development experience and creating a small software consulting company. Naturally, until we were profitable to the point that we could hire other people to work with us we would be both the programmers and the marketers/salesmen. The question is, Where should we start looking for business? How do we capture the hearts and confidence of potential customers when we don't have PhD's from MIT? Could those here with applicable experience on this subject share with the rest of us?"
What exactly do you want to do?
Use a little logic here, if established companies are going out of business due to the economy (lack of paying customers), how are you going to get work?
Deuteronomy 13:06-9
Get your mcse, its well worth the money you spend on the program, and you have more of a chance of getting a good high paying job. Cisco certification is another well respected degree.
I have always had good luck with doctors and lawyers. Both of these fields tend to overpay for very bad software, and would be thrilled to pay less for better software. Try asking your dentist.
Sounds to me like you don't have a business plan or real idea of what to do... why bother!
This isn't 1999, you know...
Sounds like another creation of a business before any reason to have the business. Hmmm, I suppose that means more money for Office Depot.
How about reading Micheal Tiemann's essay here? It sounds more or less like you. It's an interesting read anyway.
Just start marketing what you do. Basic buisness. Make a web page, make pamplets, glorify your work. Then distribute it around.
I once shot a man who posted too many, "Imagine a beowulf cluster of these"
What percent of those from MIT actually produce anything worth while? I'm not talking about wearable computers or any other nerd stuff. I'm taking real world applications.
Big companies make lots of money. They also like to screw their customers over.
I'm no business genius, but I can put 2 and 2 together: Screw your customers over, and you'll profit, my friend!
Maybe the world just doesn't need another java, c, c++ developer. Maybe what they really need is a worker who can adapt to new situations by thinking for themselves. Most people who consult have spent years earning it. Write some freeware that's actually useful, put your name on it.
Happiness is a slider variable
I'm sure that you could work for an upstanding organization like the RIAA. I hear that they pay very well for anyone with _any_ programming experience to help them.
Their recruiters just can't seem to get ahold of any programmers these days... Can't imagine why...
I know, sounds like a buzzword....but think about it.
What is software meant to do? What is the purpose? To me the best app would be one that allows a person to perform a job that they are completly inexperienced at. Like it or not, Windows is as popular as it is for that reason, it allows people who know absolutly nothing about PC's to use them. Don't get stuck in the rut of creating software simply for it's own sake.
Research your chosen market, find out what is lacking in all the software currently being used, and create something that will exceed it. Ask non-techies what they want out of software, what are their biggest complaints about the software they use know. My company develops software for a select accounting market, but it is so complex that it takes a week of training or more just to get started using it, and none of the training is technical. To me the best peice of software is the one that thinks the way I do, or at least appears to.
If you create a really good app, and are willing to customize it (for a fee of course), you will have more business than you can handle. Don't make the mistake of giving it away either, shareware has been the death of many good ideas, simply because the creator could not afford to develop it any further. Develop the app, take it to the customer. If it is really good, it will sell itself.
experience. If thats the only realy problem getting a job with companies, spend the next few years inflating the portfolio. By then, things might be better with the exonomy, and hey, then you'll have all this great experience and companies will want you. Until then, just look for more mediocre jobs.
I once shot a man who posted too many, "Imagine a beowulf cluster of these"
Raaaaahhhhh! The Arrow-down key messed up my mod choice.. I didn't mean to mod this jerk up! Sorry
Find a reputable consulting firm/group and offer your services as a contract worker to them first. Marketing yourselves directly as independant programmers will be very difficult.
Most companies who are looking for out-sourced programming needs are looking for:
1. Small, one-shot deals (a database, a parser, etc)
2. Maintenance on old code.
3. Supplemental help on a large, in house project without any strings attached.
You will not have time to be an effective programmer and self salesman in a slow economy.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
If you have at least *one* unemployed friend in marketing they can help you determine the needs of a particular customer segment.
(Don't laugh. Folks in marketing do serve a more useful purpose than barbecueing unicorns.)
Once you've built it, find an unemployed sales man (It's not that hard.) to sell it.
--Al
You have to decide what kind of idea you want to make into a business, and make a business plan out of it. If you don't have too many bills racked up, you could run a consulting firm right in your home (or your friend's)...keep your goals small, get a few clients, and see where it goes. You could get some info on how to set up your small-business from a few government brochures.
That's how HP started, outta someone's garage.
Good luck, dude. Ice.
You capitalist pig, trying to profit off of intellectual property. Consulting? Look for free projects that need help and work on those! Sheesh.
The bottom line is, if you are going to take the time to open your own business, you have to be financially stable until it takes off the ground. A lot of people don't have the time to waste on ideas that won't pay them for a period of time(months to even years).
Look for something in the market that people still need/want and work towards making that your goal to create sofware for that application. Otherwise, keep looking for a job.
I know for a fact that the IT fields are pretty risky and unstable these days. But software development ?
I too don't have a lot of experience (5 years), but what I see around me is just so many companies desperately in need of good developers. Just since this spring, I've been contacted by 2 head hunters. Monster.com is *packed* with hundreds of software developer opportunities.
Do I live in an alternate universe ??? In my opinion the software development area is not even close the the problems with the IT area.
start localy in your area, you might want to even add setting up a SOHO network for small businesses along with software consultancy. I have a buddy who began that very business in highschool when he was 16. he now comands a large volume of business and has not needed to advortise. word of mouth has been sufficient.
True capitalism = lots of similar companies = jobs for everyone who wants one.
All I can say is it's probably much harder to start up (even a modest) company for consulting that it is finding an entry-level job.
But if you decide to do it anyways, more power to you and I hope you succeed.
ahem...and if your looking for a good C/C++, Java, VB, C# programmer...:D
why run from Vincenzo?
Open Source Software isn't profitable. Its charitable however... so donate, donate, donate your time money and effort to your favorite potential cheap employer!!!
I found myself in a similar pickle when I was laid off. I am 34 and have about 14 years of programming experience but no MIT type credentials. Anyaways to cut a long story short -- I did not need those credentials and I am doing pretty well -- better than when I was employed . My secret : Open Source. I buried myself in a few selected open source technologies and began to develop marketing collateral and sales pitches. After pitching a few dozen smaller local businesses, I got my lucky break. And now I am building a company around it.
Open source is your best bet if your are starting out. Companies will want you to do a few small projects on the side to validate their own ideas about open source.I learnt that small businesses are aware of the benefit of open source but Microsoft has done a phenomenal job of painting us -- the open source geeks-- as a bunch of untrustworthy slackers. You need to disprove that notion.
So pick a field , research the technology and learn to sell. So dont spend time thinking of cool new product ideas ; dip into the open source pool of products and learn to pitch them to businesses in their language. And contribute back to that knowledge pool.
It's been my experience that the CEO of the company I work for has particular habits in the contractors and consultants he hires. Pretty much, first you need to get your buzzwords down, and be sure to make up a few of your own, that way you appear to know more than them. After your knowledge of buzzwords is down, you'll need to take Used Car Sales 101, the standard for selling your consultancy. Another good thing to do is to set one of you up as the leader, and have the other pretend he is learning from you, make up a buzzword for his position. Most of the consultants are working numerous other Gig's, yet are able to convince him to pay upper management salaries for a couple hours a week of actually being there.
I hope that gets you started, it's a long and treachorous road, with with the right attitude, you'll be selling your "services" like they're going out of style!
I have a small business I run by myself. I develop patient management/tracking system for Eye Doctors. I've been doign this for a few years and let me tell you the secret. Find a market where there isn't much competition. Eye doctors have some software available but it really is poor and overpriced (and most of the people who've used it complain about user-friendliness and such). I offer a simple alternative at a lower price and my client base has expanded by 4 in the last month (I know that seems like very little, but it's not when they bring in the dollars that I'm charging and the time I have to spend on each client). Having a connection inside the industry also helps, hehe. In regards to another post here, there are so many doctors/lawyers using out-dated DOS based software. Someone who could write an equivalent in windows or *nix (if the doctor is willing to switch systems completely) would probably be set. Also, in the doctor/lawyer industry, word of mouth is HUGE so I'm getting calls on my software from people I haven't contacted yet. Just my two bits.
Consulting is a different story than development, BUT..
.... similar to the mechanic, rather than the the maker of the product.
It depens on WHAT TYPE of software are you developing.
The current rage of the Open Source movement, caould in-fact kill you ability to sell anything that doesn't already have a decent project on Sourceforge, or have a competivly priced alternative.
I see software developers moving more into a service role within an orginization
The software developer's pay will dwindle (except for the elite) to that of a blue-collar worker, and will be thought of as such, as children whom are now growing up in this computer saturated environment, and whose idols are game developers, rather than the rock stars and comic book artists of the past.
My advice.... stick to CONSULTING.
The number one thing with being a consultant is communication. You have to be able to communicate with the customer, to find out what their needs really are, and communicate to them why your solution is better than the rest.
But it's more than just communicating facts. The customer must a) be confident that you know what you're talking about. They really don't care about your degree. They care that you know what you're doing. The customer must b) be confident that you know his needs. This is where most people screw up. They talk about what _they_ like - Linux, Apache, open-source, etc. They don't talk about what the _customer_ likes. Customers don't like Linux, but they do like security. Customers don't like open-source, but they do like having control over their technology. Customers don't like technology, they like their problems SOLVED. The better you can communicate both the problem you are solving, why it needs to be solved, and are able to quantify how much is being saved, while still being a likable, lovable guy, the better chance you will have.
You need to understand that they way you market yourself will have a big impact. Don't market yourself as a Linux guy or a C++ programmer. You're not. You're more than that. You are an analyst who can analyze and solve problems and can build solutions.
Be thinking entirely in terms of their business - how they do business, how they purchase, how they manage, how they interact with their customers. These are all important things. If you have the cheapest and fastest customer-billing system in the world, but it can't print the company logo correctly, it doesn't cut it. This is their business, and if you treat it with respect, that will go a long way.
Try coming up with a product you can sell - something simple. You don't have to actually sell it, it will just get you in the door so you can see how they do business and what other solutions you can offer them. For example, maybe try selling a ticket-tracking system (i.e. - Request Tracker), and make a sales pitch, but while your there, take whoever you are speaking with out to lunch, and find out what his _real_ problems are that you can solve. And offer real solutions, not just technology.
Engineering and the Ultimate
First, you're one of the brightest in the most vibeant business in the world. A good start!
Second. bigger companies have debt, shareholders, marketing people, inventory..blah blah blah. You have no such encumbrances.
Find an area of speciality and learn all there is about it. Show people how hiring you will save the vast sums or bring them great fortune...
There's lots of opportunities for talented people with determination. In the mean time, keep your costs low and remember to be honest and fair with your clients, but, above all else, get paid.
CM www.cometenergysystems.com Blog: http://caribbeanrenewable.blogspot.com/
This isn't 1999, you know...
Ahh, it isn't!
Sweet, merciful crap!
What year is this!!
God, how did this HAPPEN??!!
Yeah, we get it, but he wants to easily advertise a consulting service that will probably cost them next to nothing if it fails. Get the idea?
why run from Vincenzo?
...I mean, a recruiter. Yes, they take a big piece of your hourly rate, but unless you already have connections to land a consulting gig, it is worth it. Don't try to hustle on your own. You'll end up with a crappy job at a crappy rate.
I'm a programmer with 3 years of experience in C, C++, and Java ... Since it's so hard to get a job at another software company with so little experience, I'm considering the option of striking out on my own with a friend with similar development experience and creating a small software consulting company ...
You don't think you have enough experience to get a job but you think you have enough experience to be a consultant? I guess you will be targetting companies that have no programmers on staff. How many of these need software written? Or by "consultant" do you really mean "temp"? I think we need more info about you business plan, something doesn't make sense, unless you are not going to develop software.
Your only hope as a consultant may be to not do programming. "Fix" PCs for small companies, set up their servers, etc. Much of such work at small companies is the same as or only slightly beyond what many hobbyists are doing with their own home systems and home LANs.
"Naturally, until we were profitable to the point that we could hire other people to work with us we would be both the programmers and the marketers/salesmen."
Not to just be a troll, but this sentence alone shows that you haven't really thought this through.
Think about what are you going to be doing in this business. Keywords do not make a business, friend. I don't hire a "C, C++, and Java" programmer; I hire someone who can create an order invoice system (for instance).
"How do we capture the hearts and confidence of potential customers when we don't have PhD's from MIT?"
Another question that shows you haven't researched your market. Potential customers, again, aren't looking for resume keywords. They're looking for someone who can fulfill a specific need. Better yet, they are looking for someone who can explain things to them without resorting to words like "TCP/IP", "HTTP", "DNS", and "C/C++/Java".
To put it bluntly, if you
a) try to sell resume keywords like "C++" or "B.S. in Comp.Sci" as a business;
b) can't explain things in a simple, non-technical manner;
c) pressure your clients to do things your way ("Oh my God! You're using Internet Explorer! UGH! You want me to code what?");
your business will FAIL.
And most of all, don't be flaky! Make your clients feel like they are your #1 priority, even if they aren't. As a consultant, that is the top complaint I have heard regarding other consultants.
I would write more, but I'm onsite at a client's office right now, doing freelance PHP consulting -- that's what I do for a living. It's not easy to be freelance full-time, and you're definitely going to need to put more thought into it than you have already. If what I have said scares you, and you don't want to spend 50% of your time explaining what an "Internet Explorer" is, do the world a favor and don't go into consulting. If, on the other hand, you enjoy dealing with people, dropping off business cards, and generally showing off your work at every opportunity, go for it. You'll most likely find it to be a much more rewarding career in the end.
Simpli - Your source for San Jose dedicated servers and colocation!
I saw a few others point this out, but I'll chime in to put my weight behind it --- make sure you understnad what you're getting yourself into!
In short, you need to understand that starting a consulting business means you're taking on WAY more than just IT work. There's a lot of really interesting growing for you to do here, but be aware that it's going to hurt!
If I were you, I'd look into whether there are any consulting companies who would work with you to handle some marketing so that you can concentrate on some of the other aspects of growing this business. You'll still have way too much work to do, such as project management, billing, bill collection, account management, and so on.
Final piece of advice: Consider doing this if you're excited about trying to build a business, but DO NOT do this if you're just excited by the idea of doing a bunch of development.
Oh, and good luck!
____DevManager_____
Let's skip straight to . . .
3. Profit!!!
...Is more than possible. We do it with almost no effort after 6 years in business (just two of us). And for relatively competant people there is still a lot of work out there. I went to a clambake last week and talked to 5 people just socially and two of them gave me business cards to call them about projects. I could have talked to more people, but I'm really not very social.)
Number one for going out on you own: have someone else to live off of for at least a year, 18 months if possible. Give it time to blossom because it will take time unless your current contact list is amazing already.
Best thing we did for marketing was to join the local chamber of commerce and volunteer on various committees, some on technology so the fit is nice. Go to the regular events and mingle. If you can't manage to hold up a conversation with a business person, leave time to learn how in your business plan.
Get started by volunteering your services to a non-profit (the WORST to work for, by the way, making it a great learning experience as the organizational problems will be at their max) or to a friend's company or a friend of a friend's company. Whatever. Get out and work! even if it is for free. What will happen is this, after the first three or four jobs where you make people happy, people will come looking for you.
Exude confidence, but not cockiness when you talk to people. Offering free advice that people need to hear is the best way to get them hooked on hiring you. Seem busy and act busy. It is just like with dating, potential dates crawl out of the woodwork when you are already taken because of the way you act, this is true in business as well.
Another thing: people are hiring you more on who you seem to be (how you will be to work with) than you think. It is about 50/50 with what you know (this surprised me).
Be prepared to say "no" to work that is out of your focus. Once people realize you are competent they will ask you to do everything, including basic sys admin stuff. This is where we, personally, draw the line. We don't do Windoze which makes this easier to get out of. It may seem strange to imagine turning down work but you will be constantly learning and you need to specialize to really be effective and you can't specialize in everything.
Buy basic marketing books like "gorilla marketing for the home-based business" and "selling your services for those who hate to sell" they helped me get going.
And good luck!
It certainly is possible to get into the software biz in today's economy. In fact, if you enter from the proper perspective, the slow economy could be be a money maker itself.
.NET.
Rather than writing YASP (yet another software package), you should examine vertical markets.
For those that aren't business people, a "vertical market" is one in which your business has an extremely narrow focus. The premise of a vertical market is that a product offering is extremely specialized, in demand, and expensive. Since vertical markets aren't large, vertical market products sell for a lot of money.
I'm going to use a real life vertical market as an example for illustrating my approach. The healthcare medical practice management software market.
Every medical practice, hospital, HMO, etc. need to have highly specialized medical practice management software. This software is produced by hundreds of companies that charge BIG bucks for the pleasure of using it.
So, why NOT write medical practice management software and charge a lot of money for it? Two reasons... the market is flooded with overpriced software, and there's a better approach.
Its the better approach, that becomes really attractive to vertical market customers. In the instance of medical practice management software, practice managers think of the software as a "necessary evil". They don't want to spend big bucks, but they HAVE TO, because there are no realistic alternatives. This becomes even more important in a slow economy, because these people are going to be even less willing to spend big bucks on a new system, when their clunky old systems are still chugging along. After all, its a "necessary evil", and doctors would rather drive new jaguars than buy new billing software.
The better approach would be to develop a competetive software package for whatever vertical market you chose, and then GIVE IT AWAY FOR FREE. Not open source, not "freeware", but a commercially supported, industry standard, software package that they can use for FREE.
So now, I bet you're scratching your head wondering how giving away FREE software will make you money. Well...
The software you design will have built-in services that are of value to the customer. This is the KEY. You charge per use fees for these services!! In the medical practice management example, one valuable service would be statement billing. Imagine the customer's delight, when they could simply press a button in the new software you wrote, and it would communicate with your servers via the internet, resulting in their bills being sent to a printing/mailing clearing house. Bingo!! You just saved them time and money, because preparing bills themselves used to take 2 full days... now it takes 30 seconds, and you've made money because you charged $0.85 per bill you handled.
Not only does the end user get new high quality free software, they also save time, money, and enjoy optimized workflow, all courtesy of your software.
This is the next step in the software industry!! Microsoft is already aiming in this direction with
The trick to making this work is understanding your vertical market. Verticals are strange domains, and its not going to be simple to enter a vertical market. You'll need a few sales guys that believe in your concept, that are willing to 'pound the pavement' and "sell" your free software. You're also going to have to know what services you can integrate with your software that are of extreme value to end users.
By providing these services in bulk, across a few hundred clients, you should be able to provide these services for less $$ than it would cost for them to do it themselves.
Remember, vertical market software is a "necessary evil". In a slow economy, free (or low cost) software with integrated services is highly desired!! There you have it.
Skiers and Riders -- http://www.snowjournal.com
If you don't have a Ph.D then you should set out to develop small utils/libraries and such that are not only useful but well done. Make sure to do a decent job in the design/coding [e.g. modular, well organized, etc..] and write good documentation.
If you have a portfolio of software that shows off your talent people will take you more seriously. That and its a good icebreaker in interviews. When people ask "what interests you have" or related experience you can delineate your work.
Tom
Someday, I'll have a real sig.
First of all, before you do anything, look for a niche in the market that demands certain software and skills that are you willing to offer based on your expertise. ;)
Unless you have a serious amount of contacts it's most likely not to pay off for you. You may get lucky and pick up a couple of contracts here and there, but nothing that can take the both of you to a self sufficient business.
I, like yourself am in the same predicament, however, I also realize that no matter how much time, effort and so forth I put into marketing, developing a solution and making myself available, there is noone willing to buy. In addition, you must be able to overachieve any and all your competitors, which you need to do some careful and intensive searching.
If you don't have something that is revolutionary, meaning something new and exciting that companies can use to save time, money and have an excellent return on what they purchase from you, I don't see a bright future. There is such a flood in IT resources and specifically software, it's difficult to compete, let alone come up with an idea that hasn't already been developed to some capacity and is not freely available.
If I were you, I would consider taking part time university courses for an MBA, or something relative to your field, because a developer with 3 years of experience is not likely to take off now a days.
It's hard critism and facts which many of us are faced with daily, and unfortunately, there is little we can do right now.
If you are serious, look into putting together a business plan and talking with some venture capital companies that can help sponsor your venture. It's not likely that you can gain any serious amount of business without first getting some money muscle. After all, who will want to buy a solution at version 0.01
Good luck.
Hope things work out for you.
If you can find the right distribution channel, you could create a good app and then sell it for $5 to $10 a pop on a cd at the CompUSA checkout lane.
If the app is well-done, you get a good reputation, more money, and an expanding business. Because your starting out with a single app on a cheap CD, you can focus your resources and save alot of money.
Of course, that's they way I might do it.
McDoobie
Don't worry, the MIT CS PHDs are on the corner with the sign, "Will work for food".
1. Don't listen to other people too much. Listen for advice and make your own decisions. Most people will tell you "x can't work". Otherwise they would have to get up and try it themselves. 2. Do your homework. I guess this is what you are doing now, so up and at em. 3. Find a niche and stick to it. Small companies must focus. 4. Don't hang onto a failed idea. Learn what there is to learn and get onto the next idea, don't dwell.
You need a marketing/sales partner who can do this task without driving you to the bankruptcy.
Do you would hire a marketeer to program something? So why a programmer can do marketing?
Think about it.
Lisias@Earth.SolarSystem.OrionArm.MilkyWay.Local.Virgo.Universe.org
Rather than re-typing everything mitzman already wrote, I suppose "ditto" fits the bill.
In my case, it is software and services in the construction industry, which happens to be doing well in Arizona (the construction industry... I've just been at my venture for about 3 months now, fingers cross, and business is starting to pick up). In the general case, finding a need that is not being addressed WELL is probably the key.
It doesn't help to have friends... in my case, family ties have helped get a foot in the door. Anyone out there who needs help with computer ANYTHING is a potential client. To get the ball rolling, don't be afraid to take on something that seems simple to you... those easy ones that you do correctly set the tone and get your reputation rolling in the right direction.
I hesitate to suggest doing some work at deep discount or free rates, but it worked in my case and helped me get some demonstrations of my work out there... so I was paid in marketing value, which will hopefully turn into cash.
Finally, I will repeat something, regarding the outdated DOS stuff.... completely true. You would be amazed, and it is true in so many areas, from my state government (I speak from direct knowledge) to a furniture store that is about to open their second store-- that one couldn't generate a report of their inventory and dump it to a file, only to paper, because they didn't understand much about how it all worked (I didn't want to press them).
A few months ago, I was a bit uncertain about starting something, but I actually have far too diverse a resume (ie I worked in silicon valley and took advantage of the high mobility and salary potentials) to get a job in conservative Arizona, where everyone wants 5-10 years doing the same thing, usually doing something very specific and dated, and sometimes requiring either MCSE certification or a secret clearance.
That's my $0.02, hope that helps, and good luck!
Ive been involved in so many failed software company ventures I couldn't count them all ...
:) :)
:)
#1 - Do *not consider* starting a company unless you know exactly what niche you are going to fill.
#2 - Under no circumstance start a videogame company, if I see one more shitty Allegro/Clanlib game Im going to scream
#3 - Get a day job, a couple close friends, and work nights. That way when you fail it wont hurt as bad
good luck
Religion is a gateway psychosis. -- Dave Foley
The logic you're using, that you should go start your own business because you don't have the experience to get employed by somebody else seems faulty. Convincing an employer of your talents is infinitely simple than convincing a prospective client. The amount of risk to an employer is substantially lower if they make a bad hiring decision than for a company who chooses the wrong developer for their product.
:). Or actually more usefully, work on your MBA. PHD's are nice, but only if you are doing really out there reasearch. Most businesses would rather deal with somebody who has an appreciation of their business needs rather than some egghead theorist :).
Having said that, do either of you have sales experience? While you may both have ample development skills, without being able to land the business to work you'll be screwed. Where do you find that business? I'd suggest doing lots of networking. Getting business through friends of friends is your best bet. If that's not going to work for you, try to find small projects for smaller businesses. You'll likely have to take a lot of the risk of project failure on yourself (why should they trust you). So prepare to have little to no income for a while because until you can proove you can deliver, people aren't likely to cut checks.
Other things to consider. Find a good lawyer to help you in drafting contracts, etc. Find a good accountant to deal with the financial details of all of it. Do you have consulting experience or was your job more of a strict product development role? Consulting is a lot more demanding in the way of documentation, tracking of requirements, etc.
Good luck to you, but I'd recommend going back into the job market and trying to build your exeperience. Work on that PHD
This sig has been temporarily disconnected or is no longer in service
xbox-linux.sf.net
h p
here is a screenshot
http://xbox-linux.sourceforge.net/screenshots.p
Finally!
now where can i buy a mod chip..
keanmarine.com
I work for a small IT company and my boss has over 20 years expirience. Now we hold on to our customers because we deliver. We usually gain customers by word of mouth and usually take over from inexpirienced hacks who totaly destroyed the network.
Business and Retail are two different fields. Retail usually buys on price, they don't care that the motherboard is a piece of s*$! just it's cheap. Business on the other hand will get mighty pissed if the computer they just bought needs fixing after just one year.
Also it is unethical as a professional to pass yourself off as a consultant when you don't have the expirience. Remeber those professional ethics classes at uni? Don't pretend to be someone who has 15 years expirience when you only have 3. That's why there are so many unemployed "IT" people out there. They don't know jack. And those who do, still have a job. In our expirience it has been god-damn difficult to find someone GOOD to employ
You will need solid patners (1-2 people). Because of that you guys will encourage each others. Also test how focus and strong you want to start the company.
Start with easy and small jobs, in many case small jobs will give you big jobs later on.
Find a part time job, before you 100% sure.
Business Plan and Marketing Plan. Write them and do it.
All the best and wish you luck.
Think small. I'm assuming (I hope) you are located in a large city (as this market is the most likely to offer opportunites and the one I'm most familiar with). Take small contracting jobs. There are plenty positions out there for coders-for-hire. Look for opportunities in the financial industry (banks, brokerages and exchanges) as they are under the most stress for tech projects. Bring yourself to play as an individual contractor and then work that to bring on your co-workers. Play on what they are looking for, probe for their weaknesses, and try to fill them in an interview. If you have some credentials, or can make something believable up, go for it. Talk intelligently, probe in the interview to find their needs. Lie as neccessary, but not beyond your means. Remember, if they had a sufficient number of competent people working for them, they wouldn't be looking for contractors. The ends (if you are capable) will justify the means (this is a balance between shifty sales people and street-side technologists).
Compete against PhD's from MIT?
:)
Those people are too smart to enter the business world in today's economy. They're competing to get grants from their educational institution of choice.
After my first job as a programmer went bankrupt (in 1980), my fellow programmers and I toyed with starting a business. We sounded a lot like you. It was hard to get a job, so we would just start a company. Can't be that hard, right. We'd do a better job than the boneheads that put our last company out of business, right. We were programmers, by god, we could do anything if we set our minds to it!
Twenty plus years later I am glad I decided to get another job. I've learned a few things I'll share with you for free that I paid dearly for:
1. You don't know everything when you are 25. Or 35. Or 45.....
2. It is more important to be a businessman than an engineer if you want to be successful.
3. Learn how to write a business plan and execute what's in it.
4. Learn what all those funky financial reports mean, how to create them, and why you're business life (and personal life) depends on them.
5. Become a marketeer. If you don't know how to get a message across to someone, or how to figure out what to charge, or who your competitors are, or what the barriers to entry for you company are you will fail.
6. Become a salesman. Not necessarily work in sales, but be able to sell your idea to investors, to partners, to employees, and to customers.
7. Learn to take responsibility. If you are a procrasinator, you will fail as a entrepeneur. In a startup you are the boss, even if there are five or ten of you. You have no support organization, no secretaries. If you don't do it, it may not get done. Remember, you will have employees, and they will depend on you for their livelihood. What you do and do not do will affect and possibly destroy people's lives. If you are not up to that level of responsbility, get some more experience until you are.
8. Learn to learn quickly. As I mentioned above, you will be doing many different things, some of which you have never done before (and may not want to do again). Figuring out what to do quickly will give you more time to do the important stuff.
9. Management is important. Learn scheduling, people management, budgeting, and espcially how to help others deal with change.
10. Figure out a way to buy a business that is profitable already rather than build one from scratch. It's always easier to make more money and get more financial backing if you are profitable. After twenty years that's what I am doing right now, buying an existing profitable business.
If you are dead-set on going ahead, remember one thing. The successful super-geek programmers were the ones that team up with solid, smart business people, i.e. Gates-Ballmer, Joy-McNealy, Andresson-Clark, etc. Who's your partner going to be and do you trust them absolutely with your life.
You have "so little experience" that you don't think you can get another job, yet you want to sell yourself as a software consultant?!?!
Am I completely missing something here???
Bud, go work for another company or two for a few more years before you start selling yourself as a consultant. Make sure it's in a big company too, so that you find out what's it's like to work for someone other than a "small software startup." You're eyes will be opened to a number of new experiences.
It's much more likely you'll get a good paying new job that can get you more experience in this industry than it is for you to find business as an individual contractor with your amount of experience. There are good contractors and contractors who just think they're good. Make sure you're the first and not the second before you try striking out on your own.
Good Luck.
Lyell
+1 Insightful, -1 Troll. What can I say, I'm an Insightful Troll.
Anyways, one of the first gigs I got was free work for a non-profit arts group here in NYC (Gen Art). I was able to build my portfolio, and make useful contacts that led to paying jobs.
Sometimes it sucks to not have stable finanaces, and sometimes it's great to have a flexible schedule.
Here's what I do: Bitty Browser & Andromeda
I did something similar to what you're planning about four years ago. I'm still in the business, although there have been a couple of close calls in that time.
I've made a lot of business mistakes, and even now I'd still call myself a pretty poor businessman, but I've learned enough to be able to consider expanding the company and employing permanent staff.
The best advice I can give about getting work is to look at the fringes of industry - the areas where the big software houses are too inflexible to reach. Find an industry which is a good fit for other skills you may have, and learn the sofware they're using. A lot of these peripheral organisations are using ancient purpose-built programs which are in desperate need of customisation/upgrading.
You're not going to have much success if you try to write a better word processor or web browser, but if you can modify process control software, or laboratory management systems, there are a lot of SME's out there who'll pay you well.
Good luck...
"I've got more toys than Teruhisa Kitahara."
Starting a well capitalized business in the best of times is difficult, but even in the worst of times it is possible to succeed in business. It will take more work than you think it will, but also probably the most rewarding work you can do. Before you start, I suggest that you read something similar to What Color is Your Parachute, it is an excellent review to help you make sure that you are ready to be in business for yourself. If you are ready and able to start a business, pick something that you really want to do, and focus in on it. You unlikely to succeed if you try to do everything for anyone. Currently anything related to integration or web services is en vogue, if that floats your boat. Another possible idea would be to get into something similar to what your old company did, especially if you can get some of the old customers, it might be large enough to susutain a smaller business.
Before you start the business, you or the other founder should take a class on accounting. Your local community college is very likely to have something that you can audit, take at a reduced rate for no grade. This will be quite helpful, especially if neither of you has experience with bookkeeping. Get something to keep your books, Staples has Peachtree for free after reabate, or GNUCash might be enough in the beginning. Related to accounting, the one thing every failed business has in common is that they all ran out of cash. Profits don't matter, its how much cash you pull in, your suppliers will not let you spend retained earnings. Keep a close eye on your cash position, and know whether you are making cash or spending it at least monthly. Finally, if you decide to go into business with another person, spend the few hundred and let a lawyer either create the articles of incorporation, or partnership agreement. They know many more potential problems than you or I can imagine, and should have some advice for how to structure the company to minimize them.
More frankly, it is extremely rare for a business to be profitable in the first year. If you and your partners do not have enough save to meet each of your personal expenses for at least 6 months stick out for anything you can find to come up with a little capital.
Some of the better ideas I have heard to drum up business are:
1. Help some folks with their PCs first, then eventually you might meet a small business owner who needs help with a bigger project.
2. Give a talk and be willing to answer questions about IT to your local chamber of commerce or businessperson's association.
3. Advertising. One of the places you might consider is talk radio, most of the audience is less techincal, usually wealthier, and more likely to own a business than the average American.
The advice about finding a salesperson is excellent, we geeks are not usually the best at selling things.
Do not try to get too big too quickly, you will kill your cash flow as you grow. But realize that the way businesses make money is through leverage, either charging more than it costs for your employees, or on the financial side, through the use of debt. I doubt you will find a bank willing to offer you a loan early in the life of your business, but be extreemly careful regarding debt. Non-debtors never go bankrupt, they may not succeed, but the lender never has to come after assets if you do not owe them anything.
Lastly, (Is this the third time I have tried to close, I am beginning to sound like a pastor)good luck especially if you decide to venture forth in the the exciting world of business.
Degaussing scares the bad magnetism out of the monitor and fills it with good karma.
Use tiny advertisements in newspapers!
I've seen other posts stating this, but I will
reiterate it... it all comes down SALESMANSHIP.
You may be the best programmer in the world, but
if you cannot communicate clearly with the customer,
figure out their needs while making
them feel confident in your abilities, and then
follow that up with a very professional looking
proposal... you will not succeed as a consultant.
I've been an independant consultant for over
seven years. I've met plenty of programmers
that are probably more skilled than me, but they
were unable to hack it as an independent because
they never could get the hang of customer
relations.
It also takes quite a while to build up a list
of industry contacts and repeat customers. Many
places hire contractors only off of a 'preferred
vendors list', and getting on one of those can
take some work. Hand out your business cards
liberally, and hang onto every business card you
receive (or better yet, enter them into a database).
Join your local chamber of commerce.
Volunteer to teach some free technology courses.
Develop and release some useful free software and
use it as a hook to draw traffic to your website.
Never pass up an opportunity to market yourself.
After you find the customers, be sure to manage
things correctly. Never work without a signed
contract. Include late fees for slow payment.
Get a good accounting package or at least a good
accountant. Build up a warchest of money to
ride out the slow periods (I'm glad I did).
Thats about it. Only time and a lot of work will
reveal if you have what it takes to be an independent consultant and (more importantly) if
you actually enjoy it.
Thad
First of all. Good luck. You will undoubtably find it hard going for the first year or so.
:) Once again, bon chance.
Open Source can provide you with a cost/time effective way to solve a clients problems. Solving problems for customers will feed the good ole word of mouth virus.
Organisations are always looking for solutions to their IT problems, even in a slow economy. Help them understand what they need, and then help them to get it. For a fair price.
Most OS projects will fit 80%+ of a client's requirements, customers will happily pay to have it fulfill 100%. Contribute your code to the CVS to gain avoid getting yourself a reputation as a leech and your talents will come to a wider audience too.
Target the less crowded markets, and tailour an existing solution to fit it more closely. Document & improve the GUI. O/S s/ware often lack both - and customers LOVE pretty pictures.
Offer your services to organisations that are themselves are client-facing - other consultants, accountants, lawyers etc. or that have a strong community themselves, i.e. doctors. Find a 'popular' company and 'donate' your services for 'labour only', i.e. FREE software.
Once you've got a few references customers in a given market, you're reputation as a problem solver will grow. THAT reputation is what customers want in a consultant. A magic wand to make their problems go away.
We've done that an seen an increase in business as result. We solve problems, not build software. If solving a problem requires additional coding, so be it. But at least we're not re-inventing wheels.
Start small. Projects you can pump out fast and charge a minimal amount for, but do your best work on these, really polish them and make them shine. Be prepared to work a LOT of really long nights, and on boring shit like web design. This is not to make money, it is to build a base of clients who will recommend you to other people. The better your reputation, the more money you can charge for your time.
Where to look for clients? Everywhere. Friends and family. The net. Newspapers, yellow pages, and bulletin boards. People you meet on the street. (I'm serious.. face to face has a really magical quality to it that makes people listen to you 100x more than a phone call, fax, or email) Carry a really cool conversation piece that demonstrates your talent (example: a graphics demo on a PDA)
Want to know what people want in today's economy? (Well, always, really) To save money. To get businesses to spend money on you, you have to demonstrate how what you can do for them will save them money. Show them how they'd be fools NOT to buy your software.
And make you you put a lot of work into building a truly reusable code base, it pays off huge in the long run.
"Mind, as manifested by the capacity to make choices, is to some extent present in every electron." -Freeman Dyson
Get a list of potential customers. They are going to be project managers in corporate IT shops for the most past. Worst case, get a list of companies and hustle the switchboard operator and the secretaries. Find people that might hire people with your skills. If you can team up with a few other people and pitch more than just yourself, so much the better. When you get a prospect on the phone, don't start talking about yourself. Ask questions. What is his job? What projects is he working on / planning? What technology does his team use? What skills are needed? Does he ever use outside help? 99% of the time, they will tell you to buzz off. 1% of the time you'll get a meeting or interview. 1 our of five of those will get you work. So plan on 500 calls! Have a good resume ready. Take notes. Ask if you can call back in a few weeks / months. Send material: resume, business card etc. Follow-up. When a project manager needs a contractor, he's going to call the guy that he's talked to and blown off three times in the last six months. Contacts you make tomorrow will yield business two years from now. People will hire you if thay think you have the necessary skills and they like you, so be likable. You should be coming out of your shoes with enthusiasm. Practice your pitch. If you feel embarrassed because you feel like you're "over the top", f' it, take it up a notch. If nobody hangs up on you or tells you you are an asshole in the first 25 calls, you aren't making an impression at all. This is not to say you should be obnoxious ... but don't be afraid to let them know who you are. Laugh, tell stories, talk to prospects like they were your friends over a beer.
I have done all of this, beginning almost twenty years ago. I have founded and sold three businesses and netted over $20MM. I'm not BSing, even a little. And by the way, I have never ever had a job title with the word "sales" in it. I am a software architect and developer. But if you're turned off by the notion of selling, get over it. We all sell all the time. So figure it out. Get good at it. Take the Dale Carnegie sales class - among the best there is for geeks who don't get it. Read books by guys like Zig Zigler (Of Vegematic fame). Don't bother with all the heady stuff about consultative selling and customer satisfaction.
Go for it! And two last points: you don't need an MIT degree. NEVER EVER apologize for not having one! And for the mook whose advice was, "If you have to ask for advice, you are going to fail," I have one word: LOSER!
Good luck! This is how it starts for all of us.
are you kidding? 3 years of experience??? People straight out of college are getting jobs you should be able to find one. I only have about 4 1/2 years of experience, I was laid off 3 weeks ago and I have contract work to do and people calling me (probably about to accept a job) and my strong points are Perl and PHP.
Seriously if you know C and Java you have it made, you might have to relocate but there are hundreds software jobs out there. I'd suggest going to ComputerJobs.com or to Monster.
I'm not saying you shouldn't start your own company, I don't know anything about the local economy where you live but I'm going to say that with 3 years experience and your skills you shouldn't have too much trouble finding a job.
The Anti-Blog
I think you said it already...Since you don't have your PhD. at M.I.T, maybe it is worth trying to get that! Seriously, higher education firms (i.e. colleges) (particularly those emphasizing training in technical and finanacial fields) often experience huge increases in applications and admitted applicants. When the economy is good, one doesn't need an education, when it...isn't...you better be as qualified (or more) than the next guy. Plus, you can defer your student loans (which can also pay for rent and board in many cases) until you leave school or the economy is better. If M.I.T. isn't your cup of tea, try waiting out these slum years in a large university where you can get lost in the plethora of students, organizations and professors who are trying to spend as much time in their idyllic, disconnected world as possible.
It's not that there are no jobs, it's that the jobs which exist are being given to sons in law or cousins. I've been trying to get a freelance Web design contract for a month now but they would rather pay cousin such-and-so $20 a month to do a site that damages their image than pay me a few thousand dollars to set up something that would have people knocking their doors down.
== Paul Rickard, Editor of The Microsoft Boycott Campaign ====
I am a programmer who ended up out of a job. My resume was great, but businesses aren't looking at what you can actually do anymore or what skills you have. So I decided to start my own business.
DataDino is a product I developed that is similar to Toad, but allows you to connect to multiple databases. We've sold a few copies so far and expect business to gradually pick up. Here are a few things I learned:
1. It takes time. If you can't hold out for more than six months, you'd better try working double shifts part-time.
2. Your success is partially dependent on how well your business is known. If people know you, they'll trust you and buy your product.
3. Try to have an open-door policy. With DataDino we use Bugzilla to allow people to request enhancements and new database support. People like this because it gives them feedback that you as a company actually listen to what they have to say.
4. You'll be tempted to pack a lot of helpful text into your web page and advertising materials. Don't do this. Try to pack actionable items into as small a space as possible. (e.g. I used to explain what Java Web Start was before I offered to option to run the program. Now there's just a big red plunger that says GO.)
5. Marketing is a hellva hard thing to do. It's challenging and one wrong step can tarnish your company's name. Make sure you are getting the biggest bang for your buck off of every advertising dollar, and make sure that none of it is likely to offend your users.
I highly recommend two tasks to get you going. The first is to attend a StoresOnline seminar when they come to your area. These guys make money off of people with successful online businesses, so their seminars are very helpful. You might want to check out this link before you buy into their offer tho.
The second is subscribe to SiteProNews. There's a lot of helpful statistics and info that pours out of their articles, so you probably want to check it out.
Good Luck!
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
Go open a lemonade stand. Given your experience (or lack of it) that's about all you are ready for. It's pretty obvious that you haven't the first clue on starting/running a business and 3 years java/c++ experience isn't going to impress too many people.
How about just hanging a sign around your neck that says, 'will code for food'. Sometimes the truth hurts....
Umm... Gorilla marketing?
You really didn't give enough details for us to adequately answer your question.
For example, if you are an extraordinarily talented person, you might be able to hold your own after three years experience (hell, I've known high school students who could run rings around me and I'm three years out of college!). However, most people can't. Running a business takes a special type of person who doesn't give up easily and is knowledgable enough to have good intuition about a market and make shrewd decisions.
I've often thought about starting a business, too, but I haven't the confidence nor a marketable idea. Perhaps one day I will. Perhaps not, but my gut feeling is that I will know if that day comes.
If you know that your skills are highly marketable or you have a really good hunch about an untapped market, why not? If you are really just unsure and toying with an idea, you might be better off riding on another company for a while until you can re-evaluate going on your own.
Vote in November. You won't regret it.
...how does horseshit like this get posted?!? you can't possible have learned much in three years to be a valuable c/c++/java programmer, so where does that leave you? up that creek, mon ami. tough shit is all I have to say.
I have been running a software business for 3 years now and it is going great. I started straight after finishing university, which most people advised against, but I believed in what could be achieved, and it has been great. Most days when I am working I just smile because I don't feel like I am just a cog in a machine (maybe I still am but perceptions are important too) rather I feel like I am in control of my future in a way an employee never could.
I am not saying it will definately work, or it will definately fail.
I think with enough determination, and some trust in God (your real source and provider), then you will do just great.
Jamie.
A business is a tough thing to do. Striking out on your own means you need to have a deep and thorough understanding of various markets and customer needs, what they are willing to pay for solutions, and whether or not you can offer anything of value. That and a plan to turn a profit.
In short, companies will not likely hire some wet-behind-the-ears company to do work for it, unless the principals at the company have decades of experience. Of course there are counter examples, specifically the auto companies, that seem intent on firing older IT staff in favor of younger, less talented/experienced/clueful folks. Sad.
The importance of a business plan for any activity that you undertake cannot be stressed enough... Who will your customers be? Who are your competitors? Why should someone choose your service over someone elses? Why do they need your services at all? What are your strengths and weaknesses... You need a budget & a plan - how will you get the word out about your company? Are you going to compete on price? Quality of service? Finding a niche and servicing that market is probably a good way to start... Don't try and be everything to everyone... Owning your own business and toughing it out is no easy matter... Be prepared to save every cent you make, and put in long hours (your competitors are working harder than you... are you smarter than them?)
A quality business plan will take a couple of weeks to put together, and involves calling your competitors to gather intelligence... and potential customers to determine if there is a market...
Be persistent, and prepared to work hard, and you will succeed...
Platform independent bug tracking software
The software developer's pay will dwindle (except for the elite) to that of a blue-collar worker, and will be thought of as such
.... and they get paid rather nicely to 70k +.
if an IT position is going to become blue collar it will be the hardware guys. everyone can switch a harddrive. not everyone can make a fast effiecient app. with few or no bugs. let alone an app that uses something like oracle or db/2
on what planet ? here on this rock called earth good developers take years to get good. yet alone "elite". developers pay will be more like that of doctors and lawyers. as they provide a service that takes time to become good at.and in case you didnt notice a ton of the projects on sourceforge aren't even 1.0. and i dont think company X wants to run software that bombs out every 5 min (most people had enough of win95 type crashing) .
and dont try to say open source doesnt make money. it doesnt make money the same way as closed source - thats a given - but thats also A_GOOD_THING.
and coming from somebody who works for a "service" based company i can tell you the developers make the apps we use to track cases, find docs etc
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe." --Albert Einstein
I take comfort in knowing that there is somebody else out there who is having the exact same life experience as I am.... I just hope yours turns out better. Regardless, here is my story, I hope you can gain at least some wisdom from it.
I graduated with a BS in CS in May 1999. I started my career immediately out of school hacking C++ for a fortune 500. I left after a few months to join a start-up embedded systems company. At the time, I felt that this was my ticket to fortune and glory (after all, when I joined this start up in the middle of 2000, the Dow had just hit it's all time high. It seemed every 20 year old with a CS degree moving to Mountain View or San Jose was becoming a paper millionaire). When I interviewed with them, the Engineering VP reassured me that I was going to become financially secure after the IPO from all of the stock options they were waving in my face. So in my naive enthusiasm I jumped at it (wouldn't you?).
6 months pass, I show up to work one brisk Monday morning in November of 2000, only to be told that I had been laid-off along with all the other engineers and marketing people. They weren't able to secure any more venture capital, and the seed money had dried up. When I started, I was employee number 12, during that 6 month period they ballooned up to 40-something (I lost count) just before the lay-offs.
(I'm almost to the point of the story) So my roommate was also hacking code for them (he was writing Linux device drives and such, he had much cooler tasks than I did) and laid off that same morning. So we headed back to our apartment, played some Counter-Strike to cool off, and tried to figure out where we go from here... That's when we had the idea to start our own software consulting company. We had both worked with consultants, and we both felt that we were as competent and experienced as any consultant we had worked with. So we got out selves a lawyer and an accountant and started Treknetix Software out of our apartment. Our plan was to just write anything for money, then as we get settled in, we would find a specialty to focus on. Well, it turned out, finding clients is at least ten times more difficult than actually engineering a software system. We ended up getting a few contracts, mostly web work. We did a lot of LAMP (Linux Apache MySQL PHP) sites. It was during this time that I migrated completely away from Windows and to Linux %100 of the time. But we just weren't getting enough work to pay for rent and lunch meat each month. Slowly, I started to dig into my savings to support myself. I kept telling myself that I'd just borrow from saving now, and everything will be all right after things start really picking up. Well, of course they never did.
With only $14 to my name, I moved back home with mom and dad at the end of 2001. I created a resume, and started applying for jobs like mad. When that didn't work, I went to professional recruitment firms... my college's career office.... local networking events.... nothing worked. I tried all the "best practices" for finding work, namely, treat it like a full time job. Spend at least 8 hours a day looking into positions and sending out resumes. My roommate went off to graduate school... I think I'm going to follow, there is just no work to be had.
Do I regret starting Treknetix? No way! I learned so much about working with non-engineering managers. I've really broken out of that "anti-social" programmer mold from my experience working with clients. This is a good thing. Now only if I could apply this somewhere else.... (bitter anyone?)
My advice to you. Try it. But, if you can, move somewhere you don't have to pay rent, or get married to a rich girl first. DON'T TRY TO LIVE OFF YOUR SAVINGS! I can't stress this enough. That's the only regret I have since graduating college. I should have moved home immediately after the layoff.
This has gone on longer than I would have liked. So to make a long story short: SOMEBODY HIRE ME!!
http://resumes.dice.com/thomasmis
Check out my podcast: DreamStation.cc Video Game Show
I don't know what planet you're on, but I had no trouble whatsoever getting work with only 3 years of experience. Try completing lots and lots of applications. You might be surprised.
But I also learned that the most difficult part of getting a business going and making it self-sustaining is marketing. Word of mouth will be your most powerful marketing tool, as others have suggested. However, in my experience, lead conversion is the most difficult part of building the business. Once someone expresses interest in your services, you have to convince them to actually lay down the cash to have you do the work.
One book I've found very helpful is "Managing the Professional Service Firm" by David Maister. This book really brought home to me the reality that as a technology consultant, you really are in the service business, and as such your marketing efforts have to be an integral part of everything you do.
Another thing I discovered is that getting someone to let you do work for them is not the same as them actually paying you in a timely manner. Developing a billing procedure that lets you provide deliverables in stages, which are tied to invoices, might be something to consider. We've been doing that for the past few months with much better results than the "build it, bill it, wait for weeks and weeks to get paid" process, which really sucks. It may seem like a minor detail, but cashflow can be a real problem when you need to buy a development tool or some service, and suddenly you find that you don't have the cash because your clients have been late in paying you.
Also, treat the business process as you would a technology process. Constantly critique your business efforts and try to learn from your mistakes. As obvious as this sounds, a lot of small business people simply don't conduct any form of self-evaluation or process critiquing.
Don't let the naysayers get you down. It takes a lot of courage to go out and start something on your own. There will always be people sitting smug in their salaried positions, ready to sharpshoot you. But they'll never know what it means to put yourself out there on the edge and go for it.
Finally, for the financial and legal matters associated with starting a business, check out Nolo Press. Their books are very thorough and have been extremely helpful to us in negotiating the often frustrating local, state, and federal paperwork shuffle.
Best of luck!
Read the EFF's Fair Use FAQ
I started a small company 3 months ago, basically because of the same thing you're experiencing, myself a coworker from the other company started our own, and we're doing great, we work shorter hours and get paid much more, we've grown profits by more than 100% each month, and we're on track to do it again this month. (and no we're not doubling from $0, we're doing quite well thank you.) Mind you, we have only done a very small amount of software consulting (1 job), we focus more on turnkey server solutions, and networking/security... but thats just us.. its definately possible, and its great!
Whatever you end up doing, don't even THINK about it yet. See recent stories on /. re: companies claiming all IP created by employees during term of employment. If the company you work for now fails and your new idea takes off, the investors and whoever from the old company might come claim some of the action. Who knows, they might sue you not only for your new idea and all profits but also for goofing off planning this new idea instead of working harder at the struggling company. So make sure you document all thoughts concerning whatever new idea and date them AFTER you leave the current company.
Nobody cares about websites. Get a real job.
I am in a similar situation having been laid off a while ago and I too have considered doing some consulting work. It is awfully tough though because you won't be alone and so few companies are willing to spend. Some reccommendations:
1. Work out of your home, keep expenses low and your rates very reasonable. You need to have a very attractive pricing advantage over the larger, more established out sourcing firms.
2. Even though you are working out of your home, you need to look professional and not a fly by night venture. If you live in a basement apartment or the low rent district of town don't advertise it. Also don't use a PO Box. If necessary hire the services of an office front where they offer admin, mail and boardroom services. Have your mail sent their and pick it up or have it forwarded to your place. Whatever you do, make sure you look professional and as good as the other guys.
3. Define a very small target market or a very small set of services you wish to sell. Become a Java consultant not a Java/C/C++ consultant. Even better would be a Java web developer or a Java enterprise software developer. Choose whatever you know best, learn to know it better, and market only those skills. You will need to market yourself as being 'experts' in that field as opposed to a couple of smart guys who knows a lot about software development and can do whatever people may ask. If you try and be too much you will come across as not being an expert in anything and right now I think companies are only interested in talking to the experts.
4. Read books about sales and marketing strategies. Few "techies" really understand what sales are all about. We've all heard and told the jokes about sales and marketing people. Be prepared to become one. When approaching a company, try to figure out what services they might need and focus on solving their needs as opposed to what you can do for them. They aren't interested in what you can sell them, they are only interested in having their problems solved. If you don't think you can solve their problem, forget about it. Don't waste your time on a potential contract you likely can't/won't get.
Other than that, be prepared for a lot of work but have fun. Don't expect to make a million dollars. If you are only in it to get rich, you will certainly fail. If you enjoy what you are doing you are more likely to be successful.
Companies shouldn't expect to make money directly off of open source projects. Open source should be looked at to fill gaps. One of the keys to a company that produces software is to focus on what really makes it money...A good case study would be something like Quickbooks from Intuit...Why do people buy Quickbooks? I doubt its because of the internal database it uses. So why should Intuit spend money on developing a database when they could use something from the open source community? I see the open source community as this huge excellent toolbox where I can pull solutions to problems that I shouldn't be focusing on. However it should be expected that anyone who uses the toolbox should also make sure to take care of it and continue to improve it.
Don't start a business just to buy yourself a job.
As someone who has been where you're thinking of going (I had an independent contract programming company for 6-7 years and am heading down that road again), be sure to spend a few bucks up front to talk to a CPA and/or lawyer.
Find out how you should set up your business (corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, etc.) and have the accountant/CPA show you what you have to do to keep the taxman happy. I know that I wish I could have just spent my time writing programs, and have the money take care of itself, but that isn't going to happen.
Talk to your wife's buddies, talk to your former boss, if someone says they're not looking to hire, you should ask "Is there one other company you know of that might need our help?" You are surrounded by a network of people, use it.
We'll be launching our network contact manager (peoplelinking) in a month or two as one way to visualize your contact network, keep track of callbacks, and other fun.
In the mean time, we've created a site where you can network with others like yourself using our data engine.
Mike Johnson father@bigattichouse.com http://www.bigattichouse.com/peoplelinking/
meh
I don't know what to say - it's been timely like this for years.
How can an Open Source software company make money in today's economy?
********
By selling solutions, not software. The software "product" idea is going away. In it's place, there will be numerous tools developed by people building solutions for others. If you sell a a product that you obtain for 0 cost, people won't need to do business for you. But if you sell solutions that consist of free elements that you put together to solve business problems, you will be paid well. In fact, the business usually won't care how much you pay for the pieces, as long as you deliver the full package.
Those solution providers will release the tools they develop themselves solving business problems as free software. Why? Because they recognize that it is important to maintain the environment that allows them to be successful.
The legal environment is a good analogy. Legal knowledge is free. All court cases and laws on the books are accessible at zero cost. However, lawyers are one of the highest-paid professions. Why? They put the pieces together (which were obtained at zero cost) to create a valuable solution for the client (getting out of jail, etc.)
Engineering and the Ultimate
When visiting prospective clients you must dress in a mannner that will assure the client that you are a professional. If in doubt about what is expected you can't go wrong with a business suit. Its stupid, but people will judge you on how you dress in the first few seconds that they meet you.
Anarchists never rule
Start small is right.
The biggest mistake you could make would be to start out thinking you're going to get 40+ hours per week of work knocking down your door straight out of the chute. Unless you already have several clients and/or opportunities in the bag, you're most likely to find yourself without serious cash inflow for a long period of time.
The best thing for me has been to have a solid working relationship with a client or two. They provide me as much work as I want and allow me to explore other opportunities as they come along. Granted, this leaves me without a lot of need to actively market myself (I am known solely by word of mouth), but it has created a great way to bridge myself until I am able to get more work.
I can't imagine starting a consulting gig without having an already established relationship with some business. If you can live on a little less to start out, but keep the bills paid with enough work from this one business, then you could easily spend say 3/4 time working to pay rent with the remaining going to foster new business relationships.
And, don't dismiss straight out being hired by another company, all the while building up contacts and side business until you've got enough to break free and make a serious go at it. Likely it is that the company you would be hired by would be your first and most loyal business client when you're on your own.
Oh, and don't think for a minute that because the economy is down makes it any easier. I would definetly say that the slow economy has made it even harder as a freelancer. Most companies are in sphincter lock when considering spending money on consultants. I believe that most companies will not likely be using consultants for some time while they hunker down to withstand the current slump. Once the money is flowing again though, we should be in good shape. (though, of course, the slow market might be just enough niche where you can get some consulting work due to company layoffs and low price points)
Adam
Beware of geeks bearing formulas.
Agreed, I did this in the last downturn and that is excellent advice.
Go for the small to medium sized companies. When they ask questions, answer them with out charging for your time. You'll make your money when you do the software. Don't talk over people's heads and match your dress to the business, pin stripe suits for banks and blue jeans and baseball hats for garages. They will trust you more quickly and be less likely to hold back money or information later.
It takes an average of 5 sales calls to make a sale. So spend lots of time visiting and re-visiting local businesses.
Sign up as a software re-seller for some software you like that is related to what you want to be doing. It will help get your foot in the door, and th commissions can be quite high.
I understand your point, but please consider again, this is the future. In an age where the majority of the population has computers and are literate, many "kids" will pick up a language --- or future language that is much more abstract from the hardware (Java and VB come to mind), via school or a book.
... the only difference is there are far less people with these skills today, but it will be commonplace in the future.
Please consider the following analogy:
Anyone can drive a car, most can change their oil, tires, and on oftimes alternator, battery, or major components. -- Average consumer -- analagous to the present skill set of the future average joe.
A mechanic can rebuild a car. -- Analagous to the future maintenance programmer.
An Engineer can design an entirely new car -- Analagous to the software engineer or systems architect who designs the software, who will probably still see his pay remain steady as this is a highly intellectual position.
NOW.. consider the rising popularity of Open Source and the following observation:
"The computer is to intellectual property what a matter replication device will be to the physical world" -- me
One can believe that software will be more and more a service vehicle, than a product. Just as people are employ mechanics to keep their fleets running, so will they employ programmers, and architects (because of the unlimited supply of digital resources) to maintain and/or improve their digital tools.
Open Source WILL win out on propriteary software, and benifit all involved, this is inevitable in a world where concepts and ideas are freely produced, copied, and modifiable via our intellectual property replication devices.
I know it's kind of zen, but it's working for us. It's the idea of using an opponent's strength against itself. While it seems off topic, or something form a completely different direction, think about when the movie studios do well. They're having a great summer this year, but the past few summers they were worried about why they weren't making boffo bucks. Why? Because during a recession people ALWAYS want to be entertained.
//e in 65C02 assembler when the //e was still used in mnay businesses!). An opportunity popped up where a local business man who deals with people in financial trouble. I dropped the DV film business plan immediately, took a week to learn perl, and told him I could provide him with the information he wanted.
I started by wanting to create a digital film company (I have a lot of experience writing scripts and wanted to produce them). I haven't done any programming in over 10 years (the last programming I did was on an Apple
I put a dream on hold because I realized the business this person is in BLOSSOMS in a recession. And now a few of us are providing data for him. He's backing us to market this service to people thoroughout state and we've already contacted people he knows in nearby cities. Next week we will be rolling out version 1.0 and beginning to deliver our service to businesses nearby, but not near enough to be competing with our initial contact.
This particular business has two STRONG advantages over many other businesses: 1) It's based on providing services for companies and people that do well during a recession, and 2) We aren't selling the program, we're providing a service, so instead of being paid 1 time for a program, we're paid monthly for our services. (Like the way M$ wants to move from selling Windoze once to making it a subscription based service.)
There've been a few bumps -- including the fact that the head programmer (me) hasn't programmed in over a decade. I think that, in the long run, has helped, since we haven't been "boxed in" by preconceived notions or software business experience. Instead of deciding what types of programs to supply, or analyzing a market, I listened. I did not jump until I saw something that was a long term demand. I also made sure the service I was providing would basically not be effected by recessions (and, in fact, business is better BECAUSE of the recession).
I have to add I also learned from on of the local big companies. In Richmond (VA), Philip Morris is a huge employer. When a recession comes, people may not pay the rent, but they'll shell out bucks for smokes. While it is possible to take advantage of the trends of a good economy and provide luxeries, it's important to make sure your company's base services are not dot-com flashes, but something that meets basic needs that people will pay for, even if there is a recession or depression.
(BTW, based on our current client list and the people asking to subscribe, we expect to be profitable within 6 months.)
It might seem annoying or below you, but there are a huge amount of small businesses that are not on the web and want to be. I can't tell you how many times people have approached me about creating/maintaining their business' website. These people have no idea what the internet is, but they want to be on it but can't afford the cost of "professional" web design. You could make a killing by marketing directly to these people.
It's not glamorous and it's not exactly programming (unless someone wants an online front-end), but it's an area of the market that has been virtually untouched because small businesses can't afford the high prices that silly corporations pay. The only drawback is that "webdesigner" doesn't look that good on a resume anymore.
The first thing you discover is that spend more time chasing the next job than you do working the present job. As there are two of you, the one with the best people skills should play marketer.
If you're really doing a software business, the money is years away. The potential upside is higher, but the problems are much more difficult, and you may not make any money at all. I've done two shrinkwrap products that sold modestly at retail, but the big money ultimately came from licensing the intellectual property inside them to larger companies.
Marketing yourself as a consultant is just another way of having a job, but without benefits or job security.
Seriously. Put your software skills to work improving the efficiency of some other business -- such as selling real estate, or fixing cars, or making toasters. But the outlook for the software industry is poor. If any market with revenues of more than one million dollars per year arises, Microsoft will try to take it. And if they don't, watch out for your "colleagues!" A large number of irrationally zealous programmers are now out to destroy the livelihood of anyone who dares to -- Heaven forbid! -- license his or her software for money. Write an innovative software product -- one that changes the whole world for the better -- and before you know it, the FSF will be giving away a GNUish equivalent that destroys your market. (If they don't, then Microsoft will.) There's really not much hope for new software businesses nowadays. It's a shame, because it was long my ambition to start one. But I'm not Quixotic enough to attempt it in this environment.
Sorry, but watching true innovators (little guys) being put out of business (or at least having their market drastically stolen) by a certain company in Redmond has made me change my previously optomistic view. Having worked at a dotbomb wireless company and having friends at MP3.com.. just further cemented my current theory that the "little guy" in software today rarely gets his due.. For the USA to continue to be the great contry that it is, we need to encourage innovators and "little guys", not encourage the current "bodyshop" mentality (Imaging if the silicon valley boys hadn't been able to fins a market without it being whisked away from them? What about HP/Cisco/etc..?)
Other startup companies...
Winamp (Microsoft produced mediaplayer and put it on the desktop)
Netscape (Microsoft productd IE and put it on the desktop)
Winzip (MS is now including a zip application in it's filesystem)
Real Networks (MS has cloned their technology and they are almost out of business)
Their are a zillion others (some not so small) ie: Word Perfect/Lotus/Novell/Sun (java is the new target)...
But as you all know, they are NOT a monopoly...
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= - The Celtic - =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
"Legal knowledge is free. All court cases and laws on the books are accessible at zero cost."
Baloney.
It takes tens of thousands of dollars to furnish even a minimal law library. A single multi-volume treatise like Witkin's "California Procedure" can run you $1100 easily. Cases on-line? Lexis/Nexis and Westlaw cost an arm and a leg themselves.
Your analogy is simply dreadful.
(When I think of how much money I've sunk into programming books over the years, I *wish* you were right about knowledge being free.)
"Imaginary solutions to real problems."
I know at first you are probably not going to take me too seriously, but If I were you I would think about it first before discarding the idea quickly. First you have to ask what industry has the most money to upgrade, streamline and basically do all the other stuff that current Industries can't do because of captial. This idea came to me from the article in megarad which discussed what DEA agents found in one of the main drug cartels headaquarters in South America - an AS400 that was data mining the local phone system for info and that was 4 or 5 years ago. Listen man, the cocaine industry alone does more than a 100 billion dollars a year in business that is always looking for neafty and even more technologically advanced techniques to protect business and make the whole process more effecient. One cartel is even hiring MIT graduates to build their communication systems that so far have not been intercepted by our own lackluster DEA. Maybe working for the Cartels for a year or two could finance a more legit operation in the U.S.. But if you are worried about loosing your values getting involved with something illegal remember that our own government has a budget of 1.8 billion a year to act like they are trying to stop drugs. There is to much money in the profit of fighting the drug traffic that they will intentionally never be successful.
On a different note, the main reason most of the current failures in large companies is in fact occurring is because of the serious amount of mismanagement. Worthless executives are getting payed 100's of thousands of dollars to do nothing but set around and make useless decisions. Here's a good comparison. One C.E.O. = 20 million a year in stocks, perks, and cash. Compared with 400 S.A.J.'s (Smart Average Joe or Jane) making $50,000 a year. In my book there is no possible way that one Harvard executive could out perform 400 well educated individuals. So always remember to not get flashy, not to get greedy and don't fudge on your financial reports and all should be just fine. GOOD LUCK GUYS!!!
Java is rapid startup language. It's very fast: a manager of new project will find quickly Java developer (after the bubble there too many of Java developers on the market), quickly model a working prototype (OOP is quick with Java) and find that Jav sucks - it is not scalable up, it is not scalable down, Java interface to databases tends to be very hardcoded, Java is too much OS-independent (so independent that it is too hard to do any useful thing with OS from Java). So, you Java skills have some chance only at moment after the project jast started and before the manager will understand that it's time for something real. And that moment is very short - Java makes all process very rapid.
I advise you something radically different. Begin from a small hardware shop. Take orders without payment with next day of delivery, buy spare parts where they are cheaper, assambly PC, deliver it, take a cash and again and again. Some of customers will start to ask you to install a network, a server, a database. Next natural step - they order a program. Usually small program. Usually not requiring any procedural programming - just simple clients to DB. MS Access with ODBC/SQL will work.
Then things will grow for more complicated and sophisticated demands, you apply more programming skills and demand more compensation. Dont's forget to estimate risks earlier show such risks to your customer on a positive note: you've just saved (or you are going to save) the customer from such risks. That certainly should be compensated well.
What I like on SOHO market - customers don't understand technical things, no religion preferences. Therefore you free from any obligation to do it on Java or other crap. Often no obligation to Microsoft crap. Feel free to use Python, Lisp, Prolog or even OCaml. Install it with Linux and PostgreSQL. And don't forget to give up all source code - as a result of increased confidence in you there will be more and more orders for service, support, training, modifications.
Of cource it's good for you to be comfortable with heterogenious systems and various programming languages and paradigms. But that makes you a real programmer. Not a religiously blind fanatic of Java or VB. Instead - full freedom. Did you wat a freelance programming? You got it :)
It is not difficult to recognize that such a scenario worked for me :)
Less is more !
(When I think of how much money I've sunk into programming books over the years, I *wish* you were right about knowledge being free.)
*******
Again, you are missing the point. The knowledge is free, even if the books aren't.
It takes time and money to learn the knowledge, but it definitely is not proprietary.
Engineering and the Ultimate
You're not going to be seen as a company for the first little while - for now you're essentially going freelance - you're code for hire.
I was in the same situation you are now - I was laid off a year ago (Aug 1, 2001). I started looking for full time work where I could. After a few weeks of picking up the pieces, I decided to give starting a company a try - and I did - well - sorta. When I approach someone for work and I tell them what I do, I usually get "Oh, you're a freelancer then" or "How long have you been out on your own?" or something like that. I have to explain that I'm a company - I registered my name, have a business bank account, I have a company website.
Still, you won't be recognized as a company - you're freelance. The people I've talked to think that freelancers are somehow lower than dirt. I don't get paid on time - I don't get complete requirements, I get told I have the job and then the work it pulled. You're going to get sand kicked in your face. It's a really hard line of work and you have to make sure that you really want to do it.
Where do you find work? I don't know. I got lucky and found some connections through a friend of a friend - I get most of my work through there. It's best if you have personal projects (that you think might make money! Don't forget - you're in this for money!) to do when things are slow - otherwise you'll end up watching too much daytime TV.
Why do I keep doing it? I love the freedom. I've done so many different types of projects - the straight web stuff gets boring after 10 minutes, but the exciting projects just zip by. The hours rock - I can take off any day of the week I want - of course I don't get paid and I usually end up working weekends.
Ask your friends if they know anyone who needs work done - ask family - do volunteer stuff. Get in the newspaper - get free publicity. Make sure that you're cut out for this kind of work - it's exciting stuff, but you really have to want it.
Like sex? Read and write about it! Indecent Blogging
I'm glad someone mentioned this... where does this guy get off thinking he can't get a job where someone holds his hand, but he can go out there and do everything with nobody covering his back? Oh yeah, he's INEXPERIENCED.
Note, that word of mouth is the best reward is a two way street. When someone mentions they are looking for X, pull out the buisness cards of all your clients in X, and give them out. And tell your contact the next day you did so (if they are good salemen they will call right away to see if your friend is serious)
Referals are a two way street, if your customers find out that you don't refer people back to them when the opertunity comes up they will drop you (and perhaps activly refer others to your compitition). You can only contact a few people a day, and not all are interested in your business, but if you work for all your customers and suppliers they will work for you a little, and you contacts will go way up.
Eventially you hope to hire salesmen who do this, and love the doing the referal game, but even then you should refer when the oportunity comes up. Your pocketbook will thank you.
PS, always make sure your referals are to good companies. If you know one of your customers does cheap work, don't refer them except when cheap is the only consideration, and then make it clear that cost is the only reason to consider them. In general you should refer people to the best.
It's not just the inexperienced who are unemployed. The dot-com and tech industry layoffs were quite across the board as whole projects in surviving companies, and whole companies that didn't survive at all, came to an end. When a manager who gets to stay if he makes his department lean has to deal with a budget slashed to the bone, and doesn't have much work for those who remain to do, anyway, he's not just going to pick the few lesser experienced people and send them packing. With no work, even the highly experienced people won't be bringing any value into the department or the company, so they are let go. The 1990's saw a lot of turnover of people, so in the minds of management, once they do need experts again, they can just hire them when they are needed.
Your statement "it has been god-damn difficult to find someone GOOD to employ" might need to be questioned. How hard did you really try? And do you offer the level of pay that someone with 20 years experience is really worth, when they inquire? Hint: you're not going to find very many of them at the local college.
now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
The sun has set on our economic system that is based on debt. It's all downhill from here. There will be no recovery until the system is redesigned.
you could try to find work here. They have a bidding process on contracts. At first you'd only be able to win based on low cost. After you build your portfolio/credit, you can get bigger jobs for more profit. (I am not affiliated with them.)
Many areas are occupied by existing products/companies. It is hard to take the market share from the others. Doing web is a relative easy road. You don't need to have sound experience on business software. Many small companies still look for someone to do the web after they got their e-mail and internet. They still need people with some computer knowledge to set it up(on the other hand, anybody can buy a PC accounting/inventory/ordering system, setup/run it out of box by reading the manual).
How do we capture the hearts and confidence of potential customers when we don't have PhD's from MIT?
Just take your concerns to Zombocom, where you can do anything (including capturing customer confidence).
By becoming a consultant your selling profesional services. You MUST understand that, it is key to your business model. To eat you need to make sales, selling isn't a complicated process but it is a process. I am a business consultant, I sell profesional services. Many other people sell profesional services, doctors lawyers, accountants and the SUCCESFUL ones don't sell their products like used cars. First, learn to sell your services.
To learn how to sell profesional services I would recomend picking up a book on profesional selling called "the I hate selling book" it is truely great. On slashdot, thats all I can really get into easily. Know how to sell your products. Second to that is always delive value to your customers, which isn't an easy task and I can't deal with here.
I'm posting this ac since I can't remember my password. But I can be reached at john@johnrgrace.com if you want a bit more from me. I'm in the knowlege transfer business. I find ideas and solutions from others and transfer them to my clients, it works amazingly well since few people are facing truely NEW problems.
The analogy is pretty good considering that many counties have FREE libaries with the books right there for the reading not to mention universities etc. The knowlege is FREE, the knowlege printed on dead trees isn't.
if you're any good and live in the chicago area, send your resume to me.
As so many have already pointed out, its harder to convince people to hire your company than it is to get another job.
Don't sell yourself short, young with 3 years of C/Java is perfect for some people. You still have the drive to work insane hours for modest pay.
However, if setting up a contract house is a dream of yours then go for it but do it a less painful way then "striking out on your own". Try part time jobs, there are always Doctor's and such looking to launch the next great thing on a shoestring. Offer to teach a night programming class at a local junior college, you will make a lot of contacts.
Do it because you want to, its always better to run towards something than run away.
Just an example for a vertical market here in Tokyo:
One of our customers (my employer does IT support) had a "membership" program and a "invoice program" to charge members for services those members use. Those were well working, but it was written with Novell in mind, the database is file based (read: dBase and Access style), running on DOS (but fortunately running in the DOS box of Win2k). The DBs were independant of each other, so adding a new member involved actions in both databases. Of course it was no longer extendable, had many features missing, was not scaleable. Basically it was out of date and no one could fix it. However, everyone used it as it was the best (and only) they had.
Then the management decided to clean this one up and get new programs and merge them into one.
I don't know how much they payed for it, but the whole conversion is still running after 6 monthes now, they are using 2 new servers running MS SQL Server 2000, all clients need a local Access installation as the query program was written for Access, they have permanently 3 people from that consulting firm in their building, and some more programmers somewhere else, they are using "Great Plains" (dubbed "Great Pain" after a short time running live). Calculate all those numbers and do a guess how much that costs.
We did the member query part using PHP, a web page and a SQL Server connector for PHP (well, actually the Sybase one). Our solution is better, much cheaper, easily extendable by them (if they want, but of course we do this too if they prefer that). We did nothing about the DB as it was the best running part of the whole project.
And we have more customers running really odd DOS programs (including programs which do not run in a Win2k DOS box).
The point of me showing this example is: there is a vertical market. It's big, it's big money. The problem for newcomers is, how to approach those companies. I would say, it's often luck (being at the correct place at the correct time to offer something they are currently looking for), lots of communication (user must feel comfortable with you, that includes sometimes knows a potential customer for a year without work being done), and of course "word-by-mouth" which is by far the best way (cheap too). All those managers know each other. And if one boasts about the new programs they can use and they got it cheap and the service is great, that will get the attention of ther managers. (Remember: "cheap" for managers is "a whole lot of money" for a startup company of 2 people.)
The nasty part is finding those customers. Once you have a solution for this, go and do good work. This worked for a friend of mine and me: we got our first customer by knowing an owner of another unrelated company quite well. (Once in a while going out and drinking a beer, fixing small network problems, selling PCs and keep their 1-server-4-PCs network running). And that other company was looking for IT support. Starting here, we got more clients mostly by the managers talking to each others.
This has gone on longer than I would have liked. So to make a long st
Read the rest of this comment...
Oh.. the full story is only about one more line..
This has gone on longer than I would have liked. So to make a long story short: SOMEBODY HIRE ME!!
http://resumes.dice.com/thomasmis
....
mate, thats fucking tragic !! :_(
Good luck with your job hunt Thomas, things'll pick up dont you worry
Why don't you advertise on Slahdot.
Oh wait....
- - - - - - - - - - -
I am a programmer. I am paid to produce syntax not grammar. Deal with it.
I have noticed that while I still have no trouble finding work, the rate I get has decreased during the current economic slump. I have done some thinking along the lines of starting up my own business / commercial software / web site/ etc. However, I have just decided to keep my day job, and am slowly building up small side gigs, which have been leading to better paying side gigs. When all else fails, work harder and keep your day job.
Great ideas often receive violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein
I've never read that one before.. a true pro witnessing from the edge of the battle hardened frontier. :)
(redundant?
Thanks!
Brak: What's THAT?
Thundercleese: A light switch.. of TOTAL DEVASTATION!
You are in for one strange ride.
I recently started a business focusing
on network implementation services for
the small business market. I have learned a lot
about business that I otherwise would have
avoided as it is not in my nature to sell
or be interested in keeping good records,
paying taxes, etc. I can tell you that in
my instance, I get interested people, but
no real buyers. Marketing is very expensive,
and it is disappointing to see so little return
on your investment. Overall, it has been about
6 months and I am looking for a job now. Don't
be sad, I would not have missed this experience
for the world, and I am not giving up. I am just
being realistic. I am not a salesman. I do not
have the money to gain exposure to any large
degree. In the end, I still believe in my products
and services, I know that one day the time will
come when people are not just window shopping, and
I will still be there.
Sorry but it just doesn't seem like enough experience to be thinking of starting your own consultancy firm. If you were talking about any traditional skill set (carpentry, electrics, plumbing, etc) then chances are you'd still be someone's apprentice, never mind qualified or ready to branch out on your own.
Good luck 'n' all, but...
Before you make your decision to go for the regular job, or on your own, do the following two things:
First of all, go to the library, and find where they have the books on starting a business, business plans, sales, and marketing. Get some of each, and plan to read them all in the next few weeks. Take advantage of inter library loan to get more books. While your at it, resume/job hunter books are in the same area, so get them too just in case. Skip TV and movies at home, read these books. Note which are good, and buy them.
Second, but at the same time, build your contacts. Go to church, most people at church would prefer to hire an honest Christian (jew/muslum/whatever you are) to whoever they know, take advantage of this. (Be careful though, church is for God, not advertiseing, but the socal hour is a great way to mention your business ideas in passing and get opinion, which you follow up on afterwards) Like to drink in a bar? All your drinking buddies have jobs, find out what their companies needs. Like to play sports, you teammates are contacts. Just mention that you are considering starting a comptuer company, and see what they come up with. Most will know nothing now, but one or two will come back in a couple weeks with some things their company needs improved, and you have a contact. You don't have to take it, but you have it.
Remember, the plan is important. However make sure that plan is woth it. I planed to be a millionare by 30, until I realized I didn't want to do the work (not nessicarly all honest) to do that. So get the plan right, it isn't to make a lot of money, it is to pay your bills first. Then it is to get some luxeries, but make sure there is time to enjoy the luxeries.
Good luck. I'm considering must the same thing as you are.
making a complete office for the linux desktop, you'll be rich!
the only advice I can give you is to just give up! I suggest that if you do not have a Ph. D. from MIT, you just scurry back into the hole whence you came.
Everybody knows that everything of any importance exists because of an MIT Ph. D.
Seriously, save us all the disappointment, and just give up now. It is true that Shakespeare, Newton et al. didn't have a Ph. D. from MIT, but they lived in simpler times. We, today, know that without the tutelage of former MIT Ph. D.'s, and the hard work that culminates in an MIT Ph. D., we will all fail in the end, struggling to remember if that algorithm was O(log n) or O(log log n) -- 'tis sad, but true. Save yourself a lot of heartache, friend, and give up now.
2) Read up a little on tax law.
3) Read up a LOT on selling, cold calling, marketing. Self help stuff too if you need motivation. Many people do.
4) SELL, that's right, *SELL* your service. Be a salesman first, geek second.
I did the Java programming route for five years in NYC. Fun, but even my bubble went pop and working as an S Corp has soooo many benefits. Shall I list a few?
1) You are your own boss.
2) You have no limit to what you can earn (no bottom either, carefull!)
3) You are officially an Officer of a Corporation, a "President" actually, and you can tell that to cute girls in bars and it's great. Much better sounding that "Java GUI programmer". GUI sounds icky, makes most girls run away.
4) You keep most of what you make (you'll know exactly why after reading a bit on tax laws).
Good luck!
I am going to start a new business where I sell accent training tapes to out-of-work IT people so that they can pass as docile, underpaid, desperate H1B visa workers.
Indian Accent: $19.95
Chinese Accent: $24.95
Pakistan Accent: $24.95
Ebonics: $19.95 (May not help employment, but is a real hoot at parties)
Table-ized A.I.
They don't make money plain and simple. If you are doing business, don't do open source.
anyone with mod-points want to do this gentleman a favor? the parent of this assenine comment is very ontopic, and informative. the direct parent of the one you are currently reading, however, is not. thanks in advacne
first of all, do not consider this unless you are prepared to be very poor for the next year-18 months, or you have someone else to live off of, or you have a significant savings built up. This is not something you can do overnight, or over a months time. This is an endeavor which, while very very rewarding, can take a couple of years to get off the ground, if you're lucky.
;).
;)
secondly, find someone you can partner with who is also looking to start a company, but whose background is business. I was extremely fortunate in finding a business partner who has become a great friend, who has excellent connections, and who defers to my judgement on technical matters (and I, likewise, defer to his on business decisions). If you can find someone who has been in business in your chosen area or market for a span of time, that's fantastic.
Another point to mention is somethign that's been brought up in other posts. vertical markets are indeed great areas to go into, as long as there isn't competition who does the market well. ASP's are the perfect business plan for these kinds of markets. For instance, few small businesses can afford a 50k or 100k piece of software, but many more would be willing to pay 2k to start up with it, and four dollars a customer in the database, or a patient (in a medical setting) or something like that. it allows them a minimal startup cost and they can pay as they go. you should, however, also provide outstanding customer service in that scenario, and give customers the option of buying the software outright.
This, incidentally, is also where free software shines. A vertical market is actually a market where the technology you need already exists, and you play the role of integrator... for instance, you integrate a webserver, database, message queue, etc, into some application. there's no reason you can't use LAMP or jboss or something like that to fulfill that role. The software you're actually writing isn't much more than glue (albeit pretty damn cool glue
enough.. i digress... in any case, i certainly encourage your endeavor, just stay out of my vertical market--there isnt' room for many here.
Totally agreed. Communication is the key part, and showing yourself for the people to help them out is what customers needs and that's where you get their trust and money.
What I have learned:
- ~80% of all new businesses are started by engineering types.
- ~80% of all new businesses fail.
- Technical people, for the most part, are not business people.
- 3 years of experience will not you make a business success. Trust me. It takes a long time and a large effort.
- You must be focused and have an over abundance of energy.
- You must be able to put your ego and ideals aside when required; you will have ample opportunity to show your $hit; patience truly is a virtue.
- You must be able to ride the storm. In most cases, life will be feast or famine.
- Quickly gained success is quickly lost.
- There is no substitute for experience.
- A partnership is like a marriage. You better be ready for this one.
- You must be prepared to fail. And, when you fail, you must get back up and keep going. Otherwise, you are wasting your time; get a job.
- Attitude is everything.
Jamey
Jamey Kirby
"I'm a programmer with 3 years of experience in C, C++, and Java. With the current low economic trends in the software sector, the small software company I've been working for since I graduated is going out of business. Since it's so hard to get a job at another software company with so little experience .."
Three years of experience is the sweet spot of programming opportunities. Compare the number of jobs available to programmers with 10-20 years experience to 3 and you'll see you have it easy. Employers love you because you're cheap and you probably know less than they do. The last thing they want is someone with too much experience explaining why their pet idea won't work.
Back in 94-95 I bought myself a Cyclades and had a small dialup thingie for friends and family in the neighborhood. Left a position, was single and had money to burn..so it was basicaly a hobby, until I got more and more people wanting to try this internet thing...well, I became a full-fledged ISP, and then eventually a data-center after time...it was the right place at the right time. The it became too big and wasn't fun anymore (5 years later). Then the dot com bust, and I sold to the highest bidder (which wasnt much). THAT'S where I find it hard to get a job now. They think if you ran a solid company for 5 years, you won't want to do "menial" work...see, they're seriously confused...since in the beginning I did everything myself (from Coder, to SysAdmin to Janitor), I know how important the small stuff is. Then they think we'll have some power play...they don't understand that for the past 2 years I was a regular employee. So, if I remove my company from my resume, how do I explain the gap? Name the company, and say that I was just a code monkey or something? If you have the cash and the will, do it...The one thing I have learned in 12 years in the IT industry and 5 years of running an ISP, the customer is NEVER right..NEVER. :)
If you're not a Liberal in your 20's, then you have no heart.If you're still a Liberal in your 30's you have no brain.
Become an Open Source Guru. You can travel around making speeches about your philosophy without doing any real work.
with a caveat that SOME of the MS certs are less superfluous than others (mainly the Architectures exam).
However I have yet to find a client that has refused to use my services based on the fact that I do not have an MCSE or MCSD. They want experience first.
"For a successful technology, honesty must take precedence over public relations for nature cannot be fooled." -Feynman
"I'm a programmer with 3 years of experience in C, C++, and Java. With the current low economic trends in the software sector, the small software company I've been working for since I graduated is going out of business. Since it's so hard to get a job at another software company with so little experience, I'm considering the option of striking out on my own with a friend with similar development experience and creating a small software consulting company. "
.COM fall-out.
Just what we need: a couple of ding-dongs with three years experience charging out landish consulting fees.
There once was a time when being a "consultant" indicated that you are bring many years of experience to the table. Now, it is a title used by every unqualified, out-of-work, Java programmers left over from the
Jamey Kirby
You're not supposed to taste it you retard, you inhale it. Watch out for concussions when you fall down though. Having something to lean against is usually enough.
"The software developer's pay will dwindle (except for the elite) to that of a blue-collar worker, and will be thought of as such..."
:-(
Yeah, don't want to be associated with them blue-collar workers--you know, them people who do 75% of the work in this country and get 15% of the wealth.
Besides, they get what they deserve, right?
bleh
8EE0tCh!
I have two things to say to you:
:)
1. you resume is no good. i stopped reading after i ran into 'managed' in the last (present) job description. i forced to read it through - it's no good, you wont get a job w/ resume like this *ever*.
2. you write really well, your reply was an easy and interesting read. perhaps you should consider making living of it
3.243F6A8885A308D313
The key to a successful business is not technical acumen, but good salesmanship.
Keep It Crunchy TTFN Yafiyogi
I have stumbled into the GIS area. I had background in analysis, reporting and knew a reasonable amount about property (I now know more)
You having some JAVA experience, have a look at ESRI's offerings that have JAVA components.
This area is starting to develop. Where I am they are using ESRI products to develop an intranet GIS system that will also display associated data from whatever datasource they want (Sybase, Informix, etc). Currently in beta, they have developed to display data from two seperate SYBASE databases all using JAVA. Awesome potential.
An interesting site is CAGIS
The weathers here - Wish you were beautiful
Hm, I'd agree with the previous poster. If another Joe Programmer has a more impressive (looking) CV, who do you think they'll consider first? As for your letter, I'd say it gives a clearer impression about your experience than your CV. My CV's 8 pages long (agreed, it's a bit overkill...) but it got me a job. Best of luck to you!
Visit http://ringbreak.dnd.utwente.nl/~mrjb/growingbettersoftware to download your free copy of the book
Apple make shed loads of money from selling OpenSource.
Mac OS X is just Darwin (yes I know its Apples own project), Apache... With the Mac OS X Desktop and Utils on top. They get $130 a go....
So the way to make money from OpenSource is to make the product modular and open somebits (read base of the system) but then sell the good/purty bits...
In fact this type of hiring is quite common. I think your problems may be due to a glut of programmers in general, rather a glut of experienced ones.
Check out Chad's News
So, here are some suggestions for you to begin:
1) If you are set on just being a consulting company, you are already limiting your options for future growth. I say that because most consultants live an existance that is mostly hand-to-mouth, they have to keep on the move looking for new projects. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but you should understand that you won't spend all your time programming. in fact, depending on how successfull you are at managing the business aspect of your company, you may spend very little time programming...and a lot of time selling yourself (i.e. networking)
2) It is a much better idea to build your business around a concept or idea which you can eventually hold as intellectual property. In fact, you can do this by working clauses into your contracts with your clients to keep the rights to the technology you develop for them to yourself.
3) Many of the positive suggestions listed here list books by people like Zig Zeigler and others who profess to know about selling and marketing ideas. It is a good idea to investigate them. Always be open to new ideas to expand how you are percieved and how to perceive others.
4) Brainstorm with your friend and others about market trends. While many percieve the economic situation as a downturn, I see this as an incredible opportunity for getting in on the ground floor of the next big wave in technology. These waves are necessary as innovation in one big area that is popular (the internet, optical networking, etc...) becomes stagnent and crashes the whole tech sector. It may be the case that your perceptions of what the next big thing is are better than the majority of people already in the fray simply because you have a point of view that is untainted by the skepticism running rampent these days.
5) When developing new ideas, you should think about them in a pragmatic way. Many people fall in love with certain kinds of technologies just because they think they are neat. In the real world, "neat" is not enough to cut it. Ideas that meet a percieved need are much more likely to be successfully accepted.
6) When you talk with customers, they will tell you what they want. Unfortunetly, they won't tell you what they need...When you sell, that is what you will have to target. Sell customers what they need, not what they want. You will always have a better impression with them if you do this.
7) If you decide to go for building a product, you may also consider gaining outside investment through VCs and Angels. There are excellent books about this subject in many college bookstores. The long and short of this whole topic would be to keep your ideas easily expressible. One sentence should describe your whole concept. You may also want to read some pointers by Robert Kosberg, a famous hollywood "idea pitching" agent. His site is www.moviepitch.com and it is a good source for seeing how ideas are sold. Disregard that he focusses on movie scripts, his ideas for pitching are quite sound. 8) While many will tell you to stay in your area of expertise, I would say that you should try and move outside of it. Taking a little less money to move into new industries is worth it in the long run. You can break into these by selling your talents in specific technologies that are applicable to an industry. You will have to do some major research to find these out, but it is all gruntwork, nothing impossible.
9) if you are not already very will organized, you should learn to become so! Handling the accounting, legal and insurance aspects of your company are all extremely relevent. You should either seek experts in these areas (others looking for work?) to help you out.
10) Never undervalue the value of positive, experts in areas you wish to explore. Getting these people on board or getting advice from them is invaluable. Don't ignore it. Generally, many of them will give you advice for free (like many of those who have responded to your posting here)
11) Finally, if you have not already done so, visit the sba's website ( www.sba.gov) for additional advice.
Good Luck!So what do you need (or rather what was it that made me "succesfull")?
http://developer.apple.com/business/ Apple Developer Connection programs offer easy access to technical and business resources for Apple platform developers anywhere in the world. Join one of their membership programs for the benefits and services you need to develop, distribute, and market your products. you'll find many usefull Market Research Studies
I have read some posts and i am specially agree with the ones speaks about... sell solutions, not software, find a place in the market not yet explored or infraexplored, is posible to make money with free software and is not necesary to create some new, you can focus in something already created and specializate on it.
Joining all this ideas, a concrete idea come to my mind is that you could be the interface between some companies now are out the net, (perhaps small companies, but that have something to sell, and that things are things people could buy in the net), and the net.
I talking about companies that even not have a computer. You could give them a complete solution to sell their products in the net using, by example, oscommerce. The petitions of the customers could reach them across short message in movil phone, (if they have not a computer and dont want to know nothing about computers).
I think the inversion for this is almost zero $, (you can start this with your computer in your room, if you have broadband). Almost the only cost will be your time.
By offering a complete solution to your customer, which he can't get by installing an out-of-the-box product.
I work with a little software company (~10 employees), and we're developing ZOPE Products for a large organization. Now Zope is free, and our products are going to be Open Source as well, but by programming these Products to the specific needs of our customers, we found our niche.
OK, I'm experienced in this area. I have started three businesses (the second one was an ISP, in 1989!), and am now running a business that is doing very well selling solutions based on open source software. We've even released a few open-source software packages, which are reasonably popular, to give something back.
I've got a BA in Management, a BSc in CompSci, and an MBA -- but I don't claim to know it all, indeed, far from it. I've been writing software for hire since 1978, and still enjoy doing it, but these days I spend more time on marketing and product development. I won't recapitulate all the great advice in this thread. What I will do is give a piece of advice that will tremendously improve your business networking contacts -- TAKE UP GOLF!
Paul Gillingwater
MBA, CISSP, CISM
I have 4 years experience in software engineering ... I have been considering starting my own company for about 1 year now ...
... it has nothing to do with todays economy ...
... just use your head ... advertise on news groups ... put an add in the classified once in while ... and be deligent ... and always Read Read Read Read everything you can get your hands ... go talk to your old teachers ... ask them if your on track etc ...
... you maynot get rich ... but you'll make money and keep your self in beer and smokes ...
... put you fingers to your keyboard ... and prove to me and the world your worth giving money to ...
And truthfully all your concerns have always been valid
If you have an idea or you want to consult and you are skilled (and can prove it) you'll find work regardless of being a smooth talker
You'll make money
So enough is enough
Jim
Here's the top hints that would make me hire you:
Read reviews of shopping cart software
3 years is usually not enough experience for ONE language let alone THREE. Programming experience is pretty important, let alone the skill to start up your own "venture"*.
I would definately concentrate on increasing programming skill or taking business management classes, or possibly fail at BOTH!!
Contracting is a good start because they usually demand good technical skills while introducing the concept of "econonmics" as it applies to how much money you make for the contracting company and how productive you are for the client.
Your need to ask yourself how can I make the operation more efficient?... How can I reduce the amount of time each employee must spend using a computer? This can be as simple as making sure windows never crashes again with an effective rsync'ed windows distro. Or setting up a network folder where everyone in the co. can share pictures. Or helping the boss configure an email list. Or setting up the UPS machine to connect the staff and other co. computers in a more efficient way.
You need to define a product and then sell it.
This allows you to not play the rate game: figuring out exactly how much you should charge them when programming time is unquantifiable.
So many programmers think "I know how to expand this dude's business?" Smart business men will avoid you. And those are the people you want to work with.
The saying goes that chance favors the prepared. Had you actually gotten your act together and started laying the ground work for this move as a second, part time job a few years ago you would be prepared. As it is you are un-prepared and have little chance.
.... dust off that old PIII, probably use open source to keep you up-front costs down. Good luck, and get prepared.
You wise crack about not having a PhD from MIT, well that to indicates your lack of preparedness. Not to say that a PhD from MIT is necessary/sufficient, but not having continued your education is also a failure to make yourself prepared. As it is you are un-prepared and have little chance.
The fact that you Ask Slashdot about this further indicates that you have not really thought this through (or else you'd be out there working on a plan). As it is you are un-prepared and have little chance.
There are thousand more reasons that you have little cahnce. The only thing you have going for you is that you don't realize them. So, if you are about to be un-employed then what do you have to lose by trying it? You don't need an Aileron, computers run just find on an $8 tray-table. You probably have computer at home
If you are here, asking these kinds of questions, you will never be able to open a successful business.
Go figure it out on your own.
Lot's of good advice in these posting, even the naysayers. If you listen to them they will fortell the future. Many paths...oh gawd how that sounds, but it's true, many companys are started many ways, it's the folks that don't give up and keep trying that get there. Go for it.
His family was already rich (mother and father both coming from multi-millionaire lines), and his uncle was on the board of directors of IBM. He went to a private high school with higher tuition fees than Harvard. Few people are in the position he was in.
Whether you believe you can, or whether you believe you can't, you're absolutely right. - Henry Ford
Genius is one percent inspiration, and ninety-nine percent perspiration. -- Thomas Alva Edison
Success is 99% failure. - Soichiro Honda
There ain't no rules around here! We're trying to accomplish something! - Thomas A. Edison
Hide not your talents, they for use were made; what's a sundial in the shade? - Benjamin Franklin
Rapidweather's Linux Screenshots.
What makes you think anyone wants to hire you as a consultant?
If you don't have a huge network of clients already, why not become a consultant for one of the big consulting firms? That way you're just a programmer, not a programmer and marketing/business guy. It will be a way to get to know how the industry works and meet some business contacts, and will be a lot easier to get into than starting your own company.
Also with 3 years of C, C++, and Java, I wouldn't think it would be that hard to find a job. I've had to do a job hunt recently and cursed myself for never taking the time to learn Java, I saw so many job postings requiring it.
Being a January 2001 graduate EE grad from CWRU, I know what you're going through. After graduation, I decided to make the switch into programming because I hated EE. I came off to a *very* bumpy start (bad GPA, no relevant internships, "wrong" degree, lived in Cleveland, OH., etc.) Searching for the first job took many months, and eventually I swallowed my pride and took a $10.00/hr scripting job at a local .com. I was horribly underpaid, but I found many opportunities to automate the scripting process. Eventually, I created two applications using Visual Basic and Visual C++. This experience compensated for my lack of internships. After nine months there, the VC funding had dried up and I had survived three rounds of layoffs. I decided to jump ship before the company sank, and wound up finding another tech job in the Cleveland area for ~$35,000/yr. I am quite happy with my new job, and the pay isn't bad considering the current situation.
My advice to you:
1. Get some certs. A cheap method is buying a subscription from brainbench.com and taking as many tests as you can. The certs will not get you the job, but they will get you the interview.
2. Get a professional resume. You have good skills but a horrible resume. I needed to swallow my pride when it came to this, but as a technology dude I suck at resume writing. A good resume leads to a good interview. When I started job searching, my resume sucked and that cost me dearly. Good resume services are expensive, but calculate how money you are losing by being unemployed! Try to find a firm that has a focus on IT. Make each job sound like a natural progression in your career, even if it isn't.
3. This is bad market for technologists. If a job requires you to learn Powerbuilder, Delphi, Oracle, etc. take it anyway. You can't afford to be picky right now.
4. You may get paid less than you're worth. Sorry, those are the breaks.
4. You may need several different resumes for the optimal search, but this will get pricey if you get them professionally done.
Hope that helps...
P.S. DO NOT get an 8 page C.V. If you don't have a PhD it makes you look unfocused.
If I was in your shoes, I'd try and find any part time job just so I know I have no worry about bills getting paid, it will also be your business funding. You will have to be your own venture capitalist because in this economic climate there might be slim chance to nill for someone to throw enough startup money at you. This isn't an overnight process. Plan on years, not minutes or months. You have got to plant a lot of seeds in order to get a client. Every no is closer to a yes.
A few books I'd suggest to read
E-myth by Michael Gerber( It's actually about the entrepreneur myth and what it takes to start a business and why many fail and how to avoid those problems)
The portable MBA to Entrepreneurship
a few more:
The richest man in babylon
and the rich dad poor dad series
They are worth the read.
These are all excellent and completely useless comments from people who've never tried it. Here's another one of those comments...
The trick is what it's always been...networking (no not the cat 5, TCP/IP version of it). You have to do this in a community where you have business ties already and can learn about what the small ( 400 employees) businesses are doing.
Before you found a shop you need to find a gravy train of a customer for a good 1-4 year project. The best prospect is to find someone who is dedicated to spending money over the short term and who is dismayed by the prices the market charges. Then you provided a cut rate (say $55/hr instead of the competitions $110) and use this as a jumping off point to sustain work and build processes over the next year or so. That said you have to deliver and deliver well. That means on time and on budget and something that works as advertised (i.e. you better know your requirements management and be able to not only program but properly architect and project manage as well).
When the project is within 6 months of completion you start shopping for new clients with smaller projects that the big shops won't touch and you begin to grow from a 1-2 man shop to a 3-5 man shop. You only take on new people when you absolutely can't do the work yourself. At this point you should be charging a much larger fee than your cut rate but it should still be attractive to the small business man because they are your bread and butter. Perhaps $75/hr in the above scenario. You just have to tailor it to the market.
Also be sure to figure cost for the employees properly. You have to figure costs not only for benefits but also for 107% of their salary for Social Security. A CPA is a must up front as you have to file regularly (either monthly or quarterly, I'm not sure) with the IRS.
Start small, keep it as small as possible, cater to niche markets, and grow slowly and organically and it's completely possible in any market to thrive. The trick is to know your market be willing to make less that the shops with high overhead and to not buy a Porche the first time you get paid. =)
Just my $0.02
I am about to enter by final year into my CS degree and have spent the summer working for a small Executive Coaching company in Newcastle, UK. I have a idea in my head that I want to turn into a product and have been watching very closely how this company, of 3 (5 inc two summer student) people operating. It has been very valuable to see an unrelated business in action and to find out the easy way just how much there is to do and how difficult it is. So my advice, try to get some experience of a random small firm, even just to sit around and watch for a week any you'll see what your about to be up against.
If you read a speed reading book, does it take you less time to read the second half?
My advice to you? Get a friend with some business smarts. I recently started a business along with some friends. We are producing a software product. We started working on capital before 9/11 - and while things got tighter after, we still got funded based on the strength of our idea and our ability to pitch the value of it.
Innovation is especially important right now if you're going to do a product. If you're going to create another service company, how do you plan on becoming profitable enough to expand? How do you plan on funding your venture? Self-capitalization? Venture or Angel funding? Good luck, you're going to need it!
Certs are no longer as hot as they were once considered to be. Over the years I've gotten networking and development certs from Novell, Redhat, and M$, and they have not yet gotten me a raise, bonus, or even a pat on the back.
My best advise to you is to learn how to quickly identify and solve business problems. Like money, software is rarely needed for its own sake. Software is needed because of the use-value that it provides. If you can learn to identify business problems and provide solutions to those problems that are profitable not only for you, but for your client, you will be successful in business.
I wish you every success.
If you don't already know who your first three customers are, you are not ready. Go get another job and build up your contact list. The first customer is easy. Not finding any customers past that first one is what kills independants and small companies.
Look around for a small business incubator. Often times they will have low interest loans available after you meet some set of goals: taking a class, writing up a good business plan, etc - all of which they'll provide training and assistance with.
I have made use of our local SBI many times, and it's a great community resource.
> Again, you are missing the point. The knowledge is free, even if the books aren't.
> It takes time and money to learn the knowledge, but it definitely is not proprietary.
He missed the point because of your poor choice of words.
If the knowledge is in the books, and the books aren't free, then neither is the knowledge.
Do what these guys did. All you have to do is sit around, have a few beers, and come up with a good idea. Make a business plan around it, then develop away. Then comes the hard part of selling it. If you have a good application then you are set. It also helps to find a niche market. That should make selling a lot easier.
Personally, in your situation, I would rather flip burgers. If the reason for starting your own business is inability to find work, then it's not going to be easy. Because starting up your own businness is expensive. Both in time and money.
The first thing you should do is to start is to contact local companies telling them that you are in the process of deciding whether to start a local business and see if they are interested. This will give you a chance to see how many paying clients you will get, what kind of work you will get, and how much they are willing to pay.
The second thing you should do is to contact an accountant, preferably someone with experience of helping small startups (i.e. plumbers, hair-salons, etc...). This is important for two reasons:
I would also consider contacting the employment agencies in your city. They may offer courses, etc..., for people thinking about making a startup. At the very least, they should be able to point you in the direction of somebody who does (again, I don't know about US, but I imagine the situation is similar).
There are a number of pitfalls:
And finally: don't go bankrupt! If you do, you will loose everything in the process. Remember that this might also include such things as your wife, kids, and house!
If you are still interested in starting your own business, then have a go at it. But don't do it because you might think it to be easier than just getting a job.
then don't. I have started my own business and so far so good, but I had a strong following of clients and I have strong integrity, so naturally, several of them gladly followed me. If you start without knowing in advance who your clients will be and whether or not they'll follow you, then I strongly recommend against it, though.
-- I am. Therefore, I think!
Start your software business in Russia. The programmers there are good and they work for peanuts. You can afford to higher at least 10 since the starting pay is $150 a month.
NET? Thanks, but no thanks. The approach is flawed, the tool is redundant and the tool is from a source no one should trust. There may be a few places it will work, but there are free alternatives that should be used first.
What you have proposed is "freeware" with a leash. You "give" the client a piece of software that does NOTHING on it's own and charges per use of your services. When you go out of business, the customer is left with nothing, unless someone wants to reverse engineer your old system. Normal propriatory software did better than this. It might work for some things, like printing pictures on the internet, but that just won't do for medical records.
Moreover, there's nothing keeping you from providing these services with existing software, not that horrid !NET stuff. Yes, Microsoft is finally learning that the internet can do more. Slow, late, buggy, insecure, invasive, and now touted at the only "standard" way to do anything - how typical of them. Why not just set up a nice little Apache server and process requests through secure html?
I'd consider offering my services more as a consultant if I were to try to make a living at software these days. Give clients a nice open source solution with the GPL recomended. This way my work can be reviewed by others and ported to new hardware if I'm around or not. Because I'm good, I'm sure my clients will come back when they want more. The hard part is getting in to begin with. Once you are in, the results will be all the push you need to have more clients and make more money. The world is full of M$ junk that is not living up to it's promise. As full as the world is, so your market is wide. Doctors, scientists and engineers all appreciate the honesty inherent in open publications and peer review. In fact, few accept less than that for critical applications.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
In other words, what do you understand. There are a lot of small business markets...plumbers, exterminators, dentists, veterinarians, churches...the list goes on and on. These folks are looking for someone who knows their problems and will appreciate that you will be to address them without costing them their entire year' income. No fortune 1000 company is going to hire a company with three years experience for anything unless it it very specific. If you can't answer that question then go out and learn more about life.
Apple makes most of its money from selling hardware not software.
Mac OS X and Windows XP working side by side to fight back the night.
Advertise on Google. Be at the top of the list.
ac
I recently founded a services company (rivertechnologies net) - here's my $.02 based on my personal experiences, in no particular order. As a point of reference my BG is in distributed systems development, integration, security, proj. mgmt, etc.
;)
Pick your target market carefully. Don't limit yourself to any one vertical, but don't use rand() to pick a company out of the yellow pages either! Our clients are primarily in banking, which works well for us, because (a) we know the business from the IT POV, (b) banks are always going to be in business as a pillar of the economy and (c) non IT companies are always looking to outsource non-core, revenue-generating activities, e.g. systems integration & development. The catch is to make sure that the services you can provide are ones that aren't 'disposable'...a lot of trends come and go, but the CIO will always have 20 things on their to-do list that they HAVE to get done. Prove to them that you can get it done, do it a few times, and now you have a valuable service.
Develop a business plan. Go to inc.com and read up on their material. Find 5 people who did what you want to do and were successful, and talk to them. Then talk to 5 others who weren't. Consider how you plan on funding yourself. Bootstrapping a firm puts things in perspective - if it doesn't make us $, and it costs $, and we don't need it, then we don't do it. No Aeron chairs and 21" TFTs here, at least for now
Consider your competitors. You are essentially looking to start what I would refer to as a commodity service - S/W eng, security services, systems integration, etc. is a highly saturated market. Everyone can find 10 decent 1099'ers who can do that, and there are slews of companies who do it very well, and are HUGE. The catch here is to develop your core offering(s) to appeal to your target market because there is something about you that makes you 'different'. I don't mean in a BS kind of way either...there has to be something about you and your s/w firm that will compel someone to say, "I don't want to send this job to India, because these guys: know my business/have expertise here/add value in some other way, etc."
How hard are you willing to work? Did you say 80h a week? OK good! If you are not willing to give 110%, then I wouldn't do it. If you have a wife/kids, or other commitments, talk it over with them first. Being successful at work doesn't mean much if your kids forget what you look like!
Consider your sales cycle. How long does it take to generate revenue based on your business model? How much $$$ runway do you have? Consider how long it will take you to get the business up & running before you can actually start selling yourselves.
Learn to think like the anti-Christ (a sales-person). Unless you are going to hire a sales manager you can trust, you will have to be well-versed in the sales cycle, and how to effectively sell your services in the timeframe that you have to work with. I would recommend two excellent books here:
"The New Strategic Selling" by Heiman & Sanchez, and "Selling to VITO" by Anthony Parinello. (the 2nd book is great but clearly the guy is an egotistical dickhead who thinks techies are peons who get in his way.) If you don't have the stomach to sell to people, then you aren't going to do very well, unless you can convince 100 people to bang down your door asking for your svcs.
When you get all caught up in the non propeller-head activities in running an IT firm, you have to make sure you can stay current with industry trends, what is going on with your target market, and so forth. It is a catch-22 at times, as skills alone won't make your business grow, but if you can't deliver, than you surely won't grow.
Make sure you have 100% faith in your partners. Make sure they can contribute as much as you can; if they can't make sure the partnership is arranged accordingly. Have some philosophical discussions, and make sure that you guys are on the same page. Does he want to grow into a $10M company, and you will be happy with $100K a year and the company car? This can lead to some sticky issues if you are not both on the same page.
So far this has been undoubtedly the most gratifying professional thing I have done, and even if we closed shop up tomorrow, I feel as though it has enabled me to grow unlike any other gig I have done before.
It's not going to be as easy as it was during the bubble years when Venture Capital money flowed like Evian, but it's worth a try. You seem to have the necessary enthusiam, even if you are slightly lacking in experience. Keep in mind that Bill Gates and Steve Jobs BOTH lack a college degree and both are arguably the most successful computer nerds ever.
:) There are risks involved, but at this point in your life they are fewer than those you will have if you wait.
So, don't listen to all of these nay sayers and take a chance!!
Seize the opportunity.
GJC
Gregory Casamento
## Chief Maintainer for GNUstep
They herd together, don't have much in the way of brains, and don't have much of a future. It doesn't take much brain power to tell you not to pursue it "in this environment". Fuck them. Someone mod their posts -6, herdthink.
I was thinking about doing this same thing about a year ago when I was laid off. I was warned against it for several reasons: 1) Risk. There's too much risk involved if you strike out into business for yourself with no backup capital. Sure there's the "back to the wall" feeling but that can only drive you technically and it's not going to apply in terms of finding clients. 2) Business strategy. You'll need that before anyone hires you. When a company hires an organization for consulting, they want to see the overall organization. Are they going to be around in 5 years? How stable are they? 3) Not show-friends, it's show-business (Jerry Maguire). I have friends that I would work with, and then I have friends that I'd just keep as friends. And in the first year of the business, make sure that you're all of one mind. Disclaimer: I don't have an MBA, a PhD, and now work in the public sector for the state of CA.
Slashdot users are fairly technical and would understand what a PHP consultant most likely does. When I'm selling a potential client, I most often describe things I've already done, like making a complete order management system via the web and writing scripts "so that you can update your website without having to know any computer programming!"
Good call, Anonymous.
--SlashChick
25 is the perfect age to start a business.
1. Failure doesn't matter. He can lose everything, worse case, he gets a job, after learning a bunch about business.
2. At 25 he is probably still living like a student, drinking domestic beer, eating peanut butter, etc. His expenses are nil.
Gatotkaca (or anyone who is doing the same sort of thing), if you happen to see this:
My name is David Storrs, and recently I have been spending a lot of time trying to figure out how to make a living working with/on Open Source or Free software (I submitted an Ask Slashdot on it, but it was refused). If you could contact me directly, I'd be very grateful for any advice you might have.
Sincerely,
David Storrs
dstorrs@dstorrs.com
Do you know what I'm talking about? The common link is YOU! You're complaining, but the fact of the matter is that since you've been involved with "so many" failed companies that you can't count them all, then either you are personally not working hard or well enough, or you have no ability to pick out a company to work for that will not fail. I'll take no advice from a guy like you because you're a loser. Loser! You are a loser in the game of life! Die soon, and get out of my way!
http://www.alalinc.net/library/index.cfmw ww.state.ak.us/courts/u s/n fo.ca.gov/
http://
http://www.acjc.state.az.
http://courts.state.ar.us/
http://www.courti
And on and on and on.... What part of 'freely accessable' don't you understand? Yes, there are expensive books that sumarize and explain the importance of decisions and how they change the laws. but every single bit of information those expensive books are based on is Freely available to anyone. You can go to city hall and request information on laws, and they're REQUIRED to give you as much help as they can for FREE unless a judge has sealed the records.
His point is valid, Lincoln never spent a dime on his law schooling, he took advantage of the fact that all the information those expensive books and schools provide is all available for free and self-taught himself to be a lawyer. Yes, it's a harder path, but noone said it would be easy, they only said the information is free, as the constitution demands it be.
https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html
than just a bunch of programming languages. Do you have experience of some particular kind of industry or an insight into how common business processes could be improved ? Do you have an idea for an application that you would use ? Are you a member of some as-yet under-marketed-to community with disposable income ? Have you been caught in some piece of customer service hell and thought "I know just how to improve this !" ?
Alternatively, are you masters of some arcane piece of technical knowledge ? Do you communicate well with other techies ? Have you read every single book and article on a particular topic ?
Basically, you need to find a niche. No company of any size is going to hire a 2-person shop - the risks are too high. What happens if one of you gets sick ? What happens if the project requires more resources than you can throw at it ? As a development manager who has frequently bought in help from outside, I would not want to have to hire "two guys who know C++" and then go to "mega-shop.inc" for all the other staff - one project, one supplier. Of course, there are always the smaller companies you can work for, but they often only have small jobs; you basically end up working a few weeks, spending 2 weeks looking for new work - the ratio of paid-for work to "marketing time" works against you. Small business are also often late with paying you for your work - not always consciously, but it's a major hassle you just don't need.
So, if you want to go into the professional services business, find something you can do which nobody else can do. Sell your ability to improve your customer's business for them, rather than your ability to crank out code. Pick a sector - "vertical market" as a previous post has mentioned, or technology (I know a couple of guys who have formed a "database designers guild"; they are well known as the go-to guys for complex database issues. They don't work all that much, but they charge very high rates when they do work).
Establish a reputation in that area - if you have to, offer your services "on approval", i.e. a trial period or something during which the customer can back out without paying you for any of your time. I'd suggest not working for free though - it's bad for your bottom line, but more importantly, most business buyers just don't respect or trust the "free offer" sales pitch, they fear getting tied into a vendor with very high costs later.
You almost certainly need to get a sales/marketing/business guy on board once you think you have a start. Techies don't make good sales people. You want to concentrate on delivering excellent work to your customers, not on sending out bills, making 20 or 30 sales calls a day, dealing with creditors and banks - it's not fun. Trust me on this.
Of course, if you look at yourselves honestly and say "we're just two guys who can code", you could still go for it and make all of us eat our words - Bill Gates and Paul Allen did it, so maybe you guys can too. I'd say the odds are against you - but it's your life. I'd suggest setting a bunch of targets and check points - something like "if we don't have our first client in 3 months, we'll quit. If we haven't been paid for our time in 5 months, we'll quit. If we haven't made enough to pay our bills in 9 months, we'll quit." etc.
Good luck. You'll need it.
It's all very well in practice, but it will never work in theory.
Here is why I disagree. S-Corp can be converted to a C Corp once in its life. So when you need to be big like Microsoft, or any size usually larger than 40+ people, you can be a C Corp and sell shares, etc. Calvin Kline is one example of an S Corp. Yeah, they make stupid adds, but their stupid S Corp is private, no talking head on CNBC tells them what to do, and they make SCORES OF MILLIONS every year NET.
Another great protection of S and C corp that a partership does not provide is a "veil of protection." Not perfect, but pretty damn close. If I mess up, you can sue my company , but you can't touch my assets in my bank. S and C corps are like firewalls for lawsuits. Combined with good "Errors and Ommisions" insurance, you are protected from everything except Tort (which is fraudulant lying).
Again, I'm not accountant or lawyer, but I get good ones to set the stuff up and always double check other peoples opinions with your own research in a good bookstore, of course.
I'm sure thats true (i haven't got Apples figures), but I never said that they make MOST of there money by selling software...
However I'm not sure what the split would be, when you buy a Mac you are buying Mac OS X and the other bundled software (AppleWorks, iDVD...) so you cannot just say that the $1500 for you iMac is for the hardware.
Also Apple to produce software for 'standard' sale like Final Cut Pro.
If you have got more info on the actual percentages I'd love to see it.
c.
i haven't really read all of the comments before me but i say go for it. i did a one year intensive programming course (vb,c/c++,assembly,java,mfc,windows api,database,software design, datacomm) at a technical college. when i got out there were no jobs for people with no experience (and no bsc in comp sci) so i just tried to get little contracts. i found a contractor that was in with a big company and did subcontracting for him. i made him quite a bit of money but that was cool, i was learning (i had to pickup delphi on my own in order to do the subcontracts). it was great to have a mentor.
now i do contracting on my own with small businesses and it is great. i don't get paid big bucks but i get by and i have completely flexible hours. they do not care about your credentials, they care about your integrity, your work ethic, and if you can talk about what you are doing at their level. i find that small business people have these great visions for their little companies and that is inspiring for me.
anyway, all i say is start small. i am sure you have the talent and the experience to do small contracts on your own from planning to implementing to testing to documentation etc. do it on your own until you are too busy, then sub contract work to other people that you know are skilled.
just go for it, it won't be as steady as a full time job but if you can handle that, the rewards of making your own schedule, not having a boss, etc is just great. you might have to work part time at something else for a while to keep you afloat but that is the nature of the beast.
Good luck.
Now is the best time to start a new software company. First workers will be cheap, many are looking for any job. Second loans making new investments, loans and such are easier in a down economy than one that is flying high.
It's importaint to remember that many software companies are downsizing right now, not because suddenly the world doesn't need software anymore, but simply because of the economy and often because its what their stock holders expect/want them to do. There are more computers out there than ever before and software is still needed to run them, be maintained, etc. Its not going anywhere, its not like companies are going to wake up tommorow and say "hey this computer stuff was a fad, lets go back to paper and file cabinets." By the end of the decade the economy will certainly be booming and the software sector will be up too along with everything else. If nothing else because a rising tide raises all boats.
So now is the best time to jump in and start a company, not the worst. The opportunities are now, when things and people are cheap. Not when the economy is booming. However that doesn't mean that you don't need a good buisness plan. Any software company at any time that doesn't have a solid buisness plan and a new angle or market nich is doomed from the get go. But if you do have a new idea or a new way to do something, now is certainly the right time to start it up.
First, you'd better love what you will be working on because it will take you a lot of time and effort to succeed, no matter how lucky you are, and especially in the current economic conditions. Persistence is key, as said earlier. Keep your eyes on the prize! Second, spend as little money as you can, and spend it wisely. If a large LCD screen helps you see more code and reduce the strain on your eyes, then by all means buy it. But do you really need that fancy sofa? Do you really need that pool table? Remember how Hewlett and Packard, or Jobs and Wozniak started (replace with the founders of your favorite company). They're doing OK now. Third, come up with an idea that is original, not some rehash of some existing software, puhleez (unless you are targeting a platform on which it is unlikely to be ported easily). And have one or more use cases to work for, not just a technical vision. No customer, no money. Fourth, protect your invention early on. Not because you want to litigate anyone (leave that to the professional assholes), but because you will be swimming with sharks (the aforementioned assholes). Whenever there is money to be made, people will do many things to you: suing you and screwing you are two of the nicest. Fifth, unless you are lucky enough to be both technically and business savvy, partner with someone trustworthy who will take care of the other half. And do not underestimate the business aspect. Both are essential. Sixth, try to remember this advice regularly, and more good advice that others who've been there (whether they succeeded or not) can give you. And never listen to the doomsayers, they don't have a clue (or worse, some fear that you might succeed). Seventh, good luck my friend, you will need it. Indeed, luck is an important part of succeeding. If you are not naturally lucky, surround yourself with people who are. And open yourself to the idea that you can become lucky. It might well happen as a result.
In all my years of reading slashdot it is rarely I post because most folks know more than me on the subjects. So I read to learn.
However, this is finally(!) a topic where I am expert: 8 years, $7M, jobs in 15 countries for some of the biggest companies in the world, we're still small, but still making much much much more than I ever expected when we started. So listen up:
As a small contractor clients will pay you for one thing:
S - E - R - V - I - C - E
That's it.
Knowledge, experience, certifications, referrals, yeah yeah yeah, all important but mean nothing next to one thing that I guarantee you: Treat your clients like they are the most important people in the world and they will give you every bit of business possible, and tell others how great you are, and even be proud of you when you succeed. Trust me on this, it is the only thing I know.
I have taken business from some of the biggest consulting firms in the world (IBM is only one example) simply by providing better service. Lots of people can code or set up networks or do whatever it is you're going to do; you will differentiate yourself in the market by focusing on service. And once you do you will be amazed (shocked, actually) at how easy it is and how many people don't do it.
If you do that and remember on the biz side that cash flow is king you'll be in business until you want to stop.
Last bits of advice, get a good accountant and lawyer, don't skimp there. Use good accounting software (Quickbooks online is only $20/month) and keep it up to date. Don't waste money on print advertising or trade shows, they are worthless for the small guy. Track your hours like your life depends on it, because it does.
It's been so long since I posted I can't remember my login and I'm going is as AC. If you want more feedback or to ask questions send email to joeythunders@yahoo.com.
End of lecture. Thanks for listening.
Yes it is. Think of the case of software. Free Software is still Free Software even if you have to pay for it - it is yours to use, keep, and sell. Legal arguments are the same. If I hear a great legal argument, I can use that same argument for my clients. It doesn't matter that some arguments are nicely catalogued for purchase, or that some I hear about freely, or that some I buy books about. The end result is that all of them are free for me to use for my clients as many times as I want. I can even catalogue my own arguments and sell them to others. However, it doesn't make them less Free.
Just like in software.
Engineering and the Ultimate
I know I'm gonna get flamed big time for this but here goes:
Why did you give up writing for the OS with the overly dominant market share? Technical considerations aside, don't you think you would have gotten more work staying where the money is? Mebbe?
Go to Nolo and start reading. Read the small business guide (my guess is you'll want an LLC), read the Independant Contractors guide, Web and Software legal guide, and Copyright Your Software. You can probably find all the titles in the local library, though not the newest of some of them.
I can tell by the way you ask the question, you have a lot of homework to do. Find someone who has worked on their own and ask for help. Good luck but that is all the free advice you get on a Saturday afternoon.
~~ What's stopping you?
Perhaps you didn't read my post. Its not about .NET. I'm not a fan of .NET either, but I simply mentioned it ONCE to illustrate the validity of my illustrated business model. After all... the attitude in business is that "if Microsoft is doing it, its the future".
Skiers and Riders -- http://www.snowjournal.com
Lawyers write code. They intentionally make the code complicated so that people need lawyers to understand it. It reminds me very much of a guy I knew who wanted to code everything in Perl so only he could understand it, thus making him very difficult to fire. The appeal of this on a purely selfish basis is obvious; but is it really what we want to see from a movement that holds itself out to be more ethical than the proprietary system it desires to replace? You can certainly cite examples of OSS that isn't like this, but as time goes by people will inevitably be tempted to perform the computer equivalent of passing 1000-page bills at 2 o'clock in the morning. Nevermind that for most people or small businesses buying proprietary package X for $50/seat or even $1000/seat is far more cost effective than hiring consultants who will estimate a cost of $50,000 to provide a solution, and eventually charge you $100,000.
For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
pick the target market you are going after and then code to suit them. Ask some people in that market what their needs are. get out and network and learn.
In my case I focused on a small market, DREs (Drug Recognition Experts), of which there are only 1,500 nation wide. These people work with law enforcement and when you get pulled over, usally are the ones who give you the evaluation. Before my software, they would give you the evaluation and they would take their notes. Then when they returned to their office, they would then have to manually fill out an evaluation form on paper. The solution provided was a Palm Application and a Desktop application. When giving the evaluation to the subject, they would also be filling out the evaluation on the Palm. Then when they returned to the office they would sync the Palm and the desktop application would pick up the new evaluations. In the desktop application would be a record of all the evaluations they performed. The desktop application allowed them to print reports, save the reports in either Text, PDF, or HTLM format, and allowed them to export/import evaluations, which they could give to their DRE Coordinator. The key to the success was that the solution provided added real value, and the value added by the software far outweighed the cost of the software.
Good luck!
I'm an MBA. Atleast 50% of the MBA training is antiquated bullshit, the other half helps alot though. The advice on accounting is good - learn what the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement are and what they show.
In short, income statement is revenue and expense over a period of time. Balance statement is a snapshot at one time of the business assets and liabilities. Cash Flow ties the first two together with actual cash (ie the snapshot in January said X, the snapshot in December said Y, we earned so much profit -- how come we've got less cash? Answer...it's tied up in recievables.
For Strategy, consider two books:
Competing for the Future by Hamel and Prahalad
Strategy Pure & Simple 2 by Robert
Of the advice already presented, I'd underline:
Pull from and contribute back to Open Source projects - Strategy boils down to being the low cost producer and/or offering extra value and Open Source pulls off both.
Consider small businesses
Listen to the customer more than you talk
Most importantly, build your business on your expertise, service and reputation - not on unit sales of a proprietary solution. It's the old model, and it's too late to be pouring new wine into those skanky vessels.
Good Luck!!!
PS For a good all round book on business that speaks plain english and common sense - Highly reccommend Growing a Business by Paul Hawken
Hey - I went to MIT, and it's not much better here.