How to Build a Startup?
As a non-technical founder, you’ve had your lightbulb moment. The idea that resulted in the business-driven vision for your startup. There’s just one problem. You lack technical skills and have no idea how to build a startup.
It’s a problem every non-technical founder faces, myself included. Before creating Altar.io, I co-founded over seven startups. I’m not a developer, so I’ve tried many approaches and learnt the hard way.
In this article, I’ve taken my experience and created a list of the options you have to build a startup. They are:
- Learn how to code
- Find “The CTO”
- CTO as a Service
- Hire a team of freelance developers
- Outsource with a software development company
Build a Startup by Learning to Code:
We shouldn’t waste too much time on this option because it is such a dangerous one. Many founders think seriously about this option, and some even try it. In my experiences, it’s a mistake.
There are endless reasons not to do it, the simplest one? You need to focus on the business vision, growth and strategy – on what moved you to start this journey.
To achieve your vision you’ll need to focus on creating core connections, think about your target market and how to penetrate it. That’s without taking into account dealing with all the hurdles that will come up along the way.
Don’t underestimate:
- The difficulty of developing a good piece of software (you should put it in the hands of someone experienced).
- The focus and resilience you will need to carry out your plan on the road to success.
My advice is to be laser-focused on what you can do better from a business standpoint – not on learning to code.