I just posted my one month, web design company, update and already I am at a turning point.  I have ambition and a dream but am faced with the challenges of making ends meet until my dream comes to fruition.  It is a common struggle for anyone in my position, needing to decide where to commit time while serving two masters. Things are going well, but I have not been able to spend the time on my startup that I thought I would and that it deserves.  As such, my wife and I have decided that I will wrap up and launch any contract projects and then I will only work on TreasureEase until the next version is launched.

I am going all in.

This next version is much more intuitive, uses responsive web design to scale to mobile and will be the first monetizable release.  The money is not the reason for this decision, I have been waiting on this release to really push the marketing. Because I still had to focus so much energy on the contract work, at the current pace, it was going to be months before launching version two.  Being able to market and promote TreasureEase, by the end of the month will be huge. I do have existing contract work that I will start after the launch, but I don’t intend to look for additional work, to focus on marketing and issue response.  I’m excited to get to it.

It is hard to believe that it has already been 1 month since I quit my job and started PixelFundi LLC.  I am doing website design and website development in Mechanicsburg  as a way of working toward a full time position with TreasureEase.  There have been several challenges, but it has gone well so far and I have thoroughly enjoyed my start and successes.

Challenges:

• There were several minor setbacks as part of the business set up. I used LegalZoom to register my LLC and it took 6 weeks to complete.  The bank also titled my business account as INC, instead of LLC, which I am still sorting out.
• The biggest challenge has been time management. Much more time was required to set up and run my new company than I had anticipated.  My plan was to work three weeks each month, leaving any remaining time to work on TreasureEase.  I’ve already improved my processes to spend less time running things in the future, but meeting with clients and staying on top of business management will always be time consuming.

Successes:

• I have skipped and hopped (both one legged and two legged) to work without spilling my coffee. My sons challenged me to these tasks and I am blessed to be around them more to enjoy the simple moments.
• In the first month, I made the same amount of money as I did working full time and I was able to work on TreasureEase during the month.  Despite making enough money, cash flow is still a big issue since I can no longer depend on a regular paycheck cycle and I have not been at it long enough to build a reserve.
• Work is also stacking up and I have to pick what I am able to commit to, usually based on projects that I can schedule around existing work and my TreasureEase week.

Conclusion
I am glad to have had the chance to start my own company and to work for myself.  I have also enjoyed it enough to encourage anyone who is seriously considering a similar move to go for it.  It is a big move, so be serious, but if you hustle anything is possible.

Today is a day of trust and courage: I quit my job to focus on my startup.

The Story
It has been an interesting past several weeks.  I had a Meetup group speaking engagement, booked since November, where I was supposed to demo the next version of my startup, TreasureEase: team treasurer software.  The reminder came 2 weeks before and I decided to keep the demo slot even though TreasureEase was nowhere near presentable at the time.  I buckled down, my wife graciously let me have some good time to work, and I reached a presentation worthy version of the site in time. The demo was well attended since @kyle was also speaking and the site was well received with good questions and feedback.

The Exit
At work, we were wrapping up one project and about to begin another big project. TreasureEase traffic is picking up and I knew, before the big project is finished, the time would soon come to quit and focus on the startup.  I didn’t want to leave my boss stranded in the middle of the project so I decided to announce my plan to leave, giving them the chance to plan accordingly.

To Make Ends Meet
I am leaving on good terms so I will do some support work for my current employer. I will am also setting up a web design and development shop, under the name PixelFundi, to do contract work. I know the tendency for guys in my position to end up swamped with client work, so my goal is to only ever spend three weeks each month on contract work.  The remaining week will be spent on TreasureEase.

The Startup
Many club sports teams rely on team parents or league member so manage the team funds. These team “treasurers” often have little or no treasury experience and get by with make-shift excel spreadsheets at home. TreasureEase aims to make the club sports treasury process simple and transparent by eliminating the guess work. TreasureEase makes it simple to create, balance and maintain team funds. Teams will have an easier time finding volunteer treasurers and players and parents can see how team funds are being spent.

Startup Fire
In his talk, Kyle mentioned a Startup group he was a part of that he valued. Excited for a similar group and rolling off the momentum from the demo, I put together “Startup Mechanicsburg“. The goal is to network startup founders in our area to bounce ideas around with and to encourage. The group is already growing and should help to build a startup ecosystem in the area.

In Closing
I am very excited to finally work for myself and the opportunity to take my startup to the next level. It is also scary but I trust the Lord that now is the time to make this happen.

I also deleted all my old DIY blog posts to focus more on web and startup blog topics. Bookmarks and links to popular old posts should redirect to my wife’s DIY blog, but I’m sorry for any confusion otherwise.