I wasted YEARS building beautiful apps that made... $0
Not because I was dumb.
Not because the products sucked.
Because I built first and asked questions NEVER.
This is the founder death spiral:
↳ You obsess over code, "features," and pixel-perfect launches.
↳ You convince yourself customers will magically appear.
↳ You bet your life savings shipping something nobody ever asked for.
End result?
Zero users. Zero revenue. Maximum regret.
“Build it and they will come” is BULLSH*T.
You want the playbook that actually works?
It’s simple. It’s how we do it at BuddiesHR.
1/ Customer discovery or GTFO.
Talk to real humans. Validate a real pain.
Don't pitch. Don't sell. Don't get fluffy answers. Think mom-test or don't bother.
2/ Launch something so basic it hurts your ego.
Velocity beats vanity. MVP in one week or you’re stalling.
3/ Sell to the first people you talked to.
If they won’t buy, the market sure as hell won’t either.
No exceptions.
4/ Go cold. Relentless outbound.
Hustle to 100 customers by actually talking to people. Not “waiting for organic growth.” Not building more features to feel busy. Just. Sell.
5/ Only then: earn your inbound.
Content, SEO, paid ads — AFTER and ONLY AFTER you have traction and real feedback.
Founders obsessed with product before proof die broke.
I was one.
Now I don’t romanticize features.
I chase revenue, feedback, and pain.
You don’t need more code.
You need more conversations.
You don’t need better features.
You need proof people PAY.
Truth hurts.
The old way nearly killed me.
New way is why BuddiesHR is alive, profitable, and scaling like hell.
99% don’t have the stomach for this.
That’s why they’ll never win.
_________________
Enjoyed this post? Drop it a like (👍) — or I'll take it personally. (And follow J.Y for more content like this)