Ask HN: Solo makers who switched to a job, how difficult was it? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Solo makers who switched to a job, how difficult was it?

6 pointsr_singh8 comments

My journey as an indie hacker or aspiring startup founder has been rocky to say the least. I'm aware that's nothing unusual. However, every now and then the path of taking a job pops up in my head.

I have never taken a job offer from a company before. I've only ever worked on my own projects. One of them got funded and went on to becoming a business but the subsequent projects only ever reached pre product market fit. Still, I have experience designing, building and distributing products. I have conducted hundreds of user interviews over the years and do think that I have a lot to offer.

How challenging will it be for me to gain credibility without a reputable organization or logo backing me?

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I started solo indie hacker journey this year. It's very very difficult and vague. I have pushed https://clippost.io/ to production. But I am learning a lot.

> subsequent projects only ever reached pre product market fit

Is that a weaselly way of saying that the projects didn't fit market fit?

It's a way of saying that I haven't reached product market fit yet, but also haven’t given up and believe that I will get to the product market fit I want in the future.

I have customers and revenue of 6-10k MRR (decent churn), but I'd like this number to be 10x.

I guess product market fit can be subjective depending on the founder's goal. My current offering is targeted towards too small a niche and the market is fragmented. So it’s proving difficult to find a viable distribution channel/s for my product in its current state.

what kind of margins on that 6-10k MRR?

~80% right now. I pay myself whatever’s left and haven’t really invested back. My revenue comes from monthly and quarterly credit card subscriptions so it’s pretty regular. I’m aiming for a 45-50% net margin once I have a team and real costs.

i would leverage that cashflow into creating something else that produces similar returns. something niche like your first product. rinse and repeat.

Thanks for the suggestion; that’s the plan. However, the options are quite limited when my personal capacity to invest caps at 75k USD right now. Still, working onward and upward (hopefully)…

good luck, sir

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