I am the author and co-founder of this failed start up. And you guys say a lot of things that were definitely true. The comments here made me realize I left some important information out. I'll try to clear these things up here.
1. I never really thought that what we were doing was revolutionary. We were creating cool looking applications on a new device and that excited me. Once we had a reputable name that had the marketing acumen, I thought that we could push a lot of $0.99 units.
2. The poster about saying I stayed around for the loyalty of my friend was spot on. I probably stayed too long, and in the future I will definitely pick my friends a little more carefully. His arrogance didn't help.
3. My fascination with "The Secret" was true and simple naivety. Had I had walked around the block a couple more times I would have realized that this was complete snake oil wrapped in a snappy, marketable message.
4. "Tanner" hasn't been that successful since. His business relationship with Ryan rotted after the poor handling of their eventual contract and his Dojo's attendance has been suffering as it has apparently clearly affected his charismatic performance. I've been told he is in a mountain of personal debt as well as over $100,000 in the hole at his Dojo. This is merely what I was told by a source I trust but take from it what you will.
5. I made a lot of dumb mistakes and wanted to "play business" like it was some game and that if I sat in my room and wrote code all day the mail man would deliver a pile of money to my doorstep. I was an ass hat and I've learned a great deal of humility since then.
6. It was emotional, and maybe I played that up a bit here. Its a personal story and its taken a long time to get over it. Simply knowing I've had people read my story is enough. It was my first true business endeavor outside the safety of a large corporate structure and I got burned.
7. The company is still operating, but still haven't managed to get even one of their 12 applications onto the app store. They have since produced zero revenue, the seed money was probably a lie from Tanner, and there's so many cuts in the pie these days that I'd be surprised if anyone made their investment back.
Half of me had wished I had posted for advice here earlier on, I get the feeling I would have been served up a large slice of reality pie. I'm doing my best not to walk around with my head so far up my own ass this time around, seeking professional advice where needed.
Thanks for taking the interest and time to read and respond to my story. Hopefully someone avoids making the same mistakes I did from it.
There's one point this highlights - even if you're working with friends, you must have a contract.
You don't need a lawyer to write it (it's better, but in the early stages you can economize), but anything written on paper that divvies up the IP amongst the founders will prevent a lot of heartache later on.
I guess that guy would have complained about creating "negative energy" though.
1. I never really thought that what we were doing was revolutionary. We were creating cool looking applications on a new device and that excited me. Once we had a reputable name that had the marketing acumen, I thought that we could push a lot of $0.99 units.
2. The poster about saying I stayed around for the loyalty of my friend was spot on. I probably stayed too long, and in the future I will definitely pick my friends a little more carefully. His arrogance didn't help.
3. My fascination with "The Secret" was true and simple naivety. Had I had walked around the block a couple more times I would have realized that this was complete snake oil wrapped in a snappy, marketable message.
4. "Tanner" hasn't been that successful since. His business relationship with Ryan rotted after the poor handling of their eventual contract and his Dojo's attendance has been suffering as it has apparently clearly affected his charismatic performance. I've been told he is in a mountain of personal debt as well as over $100,000 in the hole at his Dojo. This is merely what I was told by a source I trust but take from it what you will.
5. I made a lot of dumb mistakes and wanted to "play business" like it was some game and that if I sat in my room and wrote code all day the mail man would deliver a pile of money to my doorstep. I was an ass hat and I've learned a great deal of humility since then.
6. It was emotional, and maybe I played that up a bit here. Its a personal story and its taken a long time to get over it. Simply knowing I've had people read my story is enough. It was my first true business endeavor outside the safety of a large corporate structure and I got burned.
7. The company is still operating, but still haven't managed to get even one of their 12 applications onto the app store. They have since produced zero revenue, the seed money was probably a lie from Tanner, and there's so many cuts in the pie these days that I'd be surprised if anyone made their investment back.
Half of me had wished I had posted for advice here earlier on, I get the feeling I would have been served up a large slice of reality pie. I'm doing my best not to walk around with my head so far up my own ass this time around, seeking professional advice where needed.
Thanks for taking the interest and time to read and respond to my story. Hopefully someone avoids making the same mistakes I did from it.