Tips and resources on how to test, develop your startup idea, or find a developer/associate/CTO

startup-noob-guide.md

Startup Noob Guide

If you want to create a startup, and you've never done that before, you should consult the resources that are relevant to your situation.

Prerequisites

First important thing to keep in mind: your idea is worth nothing, it's execution that matters the most.

• My criteria for helping startups: So, you need help with your startup? Here’s how to ask for it.
• Gentle explanation: Why No One Will Steal Your Startup Idea (video)
• Mathematical demonstration: Ideas are just a multiplier of execution
• Angry reaction by Gary Vaynerchuk: You're Out of Business, towards entrepreneurs who ask him to sign a NDA in order to protect their idea pitch, and whine about the difficulty of finding developers.
• No, I won’t be your technical co-founder by Martin Grüner
• [FR] Entrepreneurs, ne croyez pas en vos idées !, par Camille Roux
• [FR] "Une idée n'est qu'une idée. Il est peu probable que ce soit l'idée du siècle, donc ne la mettez pas en avant."
• Is it foolish to go to Startup Weekend-like events and widely pitch my "next Facebook" idea in search of co-founders? on Quora
• William Pietri's answer to Where can I find developers willing to join my startup? on Quora
• [FR] Comments on Comment trouver un associé "développeur" ? by Guilhem Bertholet
• Shubham's rant: "I have the best startup idea, I just need a developer now !"
• [FR] ... et, mon point de vue sur la question: Pourquoi je ne veux pas être ton CTO

Step 1: Test your hypotheses

• [FR] Video: Nanterre Deter #5 : Testez votre idée en 48h by Côme Courteault (The Family)
• [FR] Outils pour tester ses hypothèses sans dev: Nanterre Deter Toolbox (Google Docs)
• [FR] Introduction au concept de "prétotyping"
• [FR] Exemples de Prétotyping
• [FR] Exemple de growth hacking astucieux: Le fake de Bricool
• The Pretotyping Cheatsheet
• Better product definition with Lean UX and Design Thinking, by Jeff Gothelf (Video)

Step 2: Code it yourself

• [FR] Codez votre premier site web sur Le Wagon On Demand ou Wild Code School
• [FR] Apprenez à coder vous même votre prototype, grâce à la formation Pimp My App
• [FR] Passe ton code d'abord !, par Simplon.co
• So You Want to Learn How to Code (tl;dr: try Codeschool, Codeacademy, Coursera...)
• Then build your product using startup tools
• Or use a service to easily build e-commerce websites: SquareSpace

Step 3: Find a developer

When approaching developers, keep in mind that:

• They have ideas too, except they probably don't need you for implementing them.
• They will like you if you are impressed by their side projects and problem solving skills.
• They will appreciate your confidence, but make sure to keep cool and humble.
• They hate being considered as coding slaves at your service. => Show what you bring on the table. (cf [FR] Pourquoi je ne veux pas être ton CTO)
• They expect you to be good at something, but may not know the usefulness and/or difficulty of these skills.
• They hate bullshit => express yourself clearly and concisely.

Here are a few ways to reach developers:

• Train your pitch, create a nice profile, and try to seduce developers online:
  • [FR] 1stDev
  • Teamizy
  • Ideasvoice
  • [FR] Skill2invest
  • [FR] TiKi4
• Go out and talk to them directly:
  • [FR] Comment réaliser son MVP / séduire un CTO (Video Youtube)
  • SeedNetworking (speed dating for CEO and CTOs)
  • Adopt a CTO
  • Local Meetups and dev conferences to talk with developers (humility, confidence and listening skills are your best friends)
  • And susbcribe to your city's Startup Digest to know about upcoming events.
  • If it does not work, sponsor a developer meetup that is the most relevant to your startup ideas

Whenever you think that you found a potential associate, you should definitely read this advice: The Perfect Co-founder Checklist; 12 ways to tell if you’ve found The One to work with, from someone who spent 3 years looking.

Step 4: Hire a freelance or agency

• Price estimator (by Crew or by Yeeply) or [FR] Combien coûte la création de mon application?
• Define your app requirements => direct links to template and instructions
• ...and, if it's a web project relying solely on Javascript platforms (Node.js, Meteor.js, Phonegap), ask me!

Failure stories

These stories can help you understand why it's not as easy as you think to build a successful startup:

• Plancast, an event sharing network
• WeLoveSaaS/Calabio by Guilhem Bertholet
• AllMyApps by Thibauld Favre
• tKaap by Sylvain Weber

...and many more

Motivation

• [FR] Oussama Amar, sur l'entrepreneuriat: Les caractéristiques de l'entrepreneur qui réussit (très bon interview!)
  • "le courage est la mère de toutes les qualités"
  • les caractéristiques de l'entrepreneur: détermination, flexibilité, l'imagination, la ruse (malin / naughty), la fidélité
• [FR] Plein de bons conseils pour la suite: "Evaluer son fucking problème", par Oussama Amar

References

Great books to read:

• Getting Real: The smarter, faster, easier way to build a successful web application by 37signals (creators of Basecamp)
• The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses by Eric Ries

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