Yeah, just last week I was testing out Buffalo to see if it'd work for my blog. But all of my photos kept disappearing and everything was bugging out. It was very frustrating, and I quickly realized it was not even supported, or even being used by a broader community... I mean, the last several posts that were created are all pretty spammy, or someone just checking out how it works. https://buffalo.io/

Along the same lines, how difficult is it to find users to support the new apps you create after abandoning so many past projects? Do you find this damages your reputation in the industry?

Hey Vince!

For me its about making things i want to make. I don't start with the question "How can i build something massive that makes a lot of money". I start with the thought "Man i wish this existed in this particular way". And I build that.

As i'm building it I typically think up a way or two to make money off of it. In order to sustain it and enable me to keep working on it.

This same thing happens with funded companies that have small-large teams. They build something, try and make money off it to make a lot of money. If it doesn't work out, then they shut down. Happens all the time.

Difference here is "runway". A funded company typically will have a 1 year or more "runway". Meaning they have enough capital in the bank to sustain themselves for a year or more without relying on their product to produce revenue.

My runway is super short.

So you'll see my "attempt --> fail" cycle be really small.

I have continually iterated and updated nearly all of my products. Only a couple have i launched and never touched again (and those were long ago).

Making money building internet products is hard. I've been at it for a long time. If something I launch isn't making money, I need to figure a way to make money. I support myself 100% on my products revenue. When times get desperate (like $0 in all bank accounts) i'll take on a small client project. But i try to never do that, since it takes away ALL my time from my products.

Often I have to move on from one failed idea to another to keep the money flowing.

If i had the opportunity to build without the requirement of my ideas making money (i.e. getting funding) then i'd have the luxury of spending all my time on something now matter if it made money or not. But this is not my life. I must make money, or i'd have to stop making things for myself.

Thanks for the question! Drew

Thanks!! I LOVE Digital Ocean.. changed the way i work :) I use you guys for everything!

Keep it up! Drew

Hey thanks Ariel!

1. Only when i absolutely can't keep living without doing it. Typically that is 0-2 projects in a year.

2. Some people do make that choice. You can if you want. But then you'll die with a very narrow perspective of the world. I'd rather not be a Steve Jobs or anyone else like that. Making apps/products/whatever isn't my end goal in life. So I choose to make it less important. My heart is always in it, if I were single i'd probably spend all my time building. But I can hack into my heart system and change that by setting up time boundaries. Turns out to be great, because then I can keep my other hobbies. Tough now cuz i have little kids, so there is essentially ZERO time for myself... but when they get a bit older I look forward to surfing more and getting into film acting. Truth be told, i hope to make a lot of money off the interwebz so i can make movies. Honestly.

3. I love working with people who are laid back. Agro dev is not my favorite thing. I also enjoy working with being better than me at stuff. Its like cheating.. you get so much better so much faster. I like working with people who can laugh an just make something without spending much time worrying about it.

4. I want to rid earth of Paypal with Plasso. I want to produce thriller and action Sci-Fi films. I want to act in said films. I want to live in a house on the beach in Carlsbad again.

Thanks! Drew

So before we started this trip I thought "man, it will be great to disconnect and have tons more time to focus just on a couple work things and really dial them in." LOL however, reality is very different. I have vastly less time on the road than before. But traveling the US has been absolutely amazing. I get to do it with my wife and 3 little kiddos (ages 5,3 and 1). We've had a lifetime of adventures already.

Internet on the road is horrid. I pay for the 40GB plan with my normal ATT iPhone service. I almost always have to tether. Wifi at campgrounds and RV resorts are a joke. Typically they are sharing a 6mbps connection for the entire park, you either can't connect, or get a fraction of a mbps in speed. I've had good wifi twice. Useable but horrid wifi a decent number of times.

My desk is exactly as wide as my 27in iMac. It is just a bit deeper than my iMac foot + bluetooth keyboard. It is NOT an ideal setup at all, but who cares :)

We did sell pretty much everything before leaving. But we've sold most all our stuff twice before. We love it. Everything I own fits in the RV and a partially full 8ft. storage unit.

I would 100% recommend this to anyone and everyone. Especially if you have no kids (or your kids are old kids). It would take on a whole new level of brilliance if that were the case. You can do anything, go anywhere.. i can't even describe its awesomeness. We are parents of small itty bitty kids.. so the normal rules of "YOU ARE PRISONER OF YOUR HOME!" still applies. I used to think America was rad, but wow! America is AMAZING! Every place has its own vibe and unique coolness. Its just so much better than I ever previously imagined, and I have done my fair share of traveling in the past.

There is never a perfect time to uproot and do something completely different. So just do it. It's amazing!

Hey thanks Thomas!

My advice would be not to have any "side-projects". Rather just "projects". Just by calling it a "side-project" you're giving it a low importance value. Which is fine if that's what you want to do. But finishing things takes more than just the will to do it. You need to help yourself along by: - keeping the vision in mind always - shipping fast - keeping the V1.0 scope small, even smaller than that. Even smaller.

If you only do "side-projects" then they will always just be that. Instead go full out. Consider it your main thing until it's done. The day job can just be the "temporary revenue stream" :) see it's all just a mind set.

Drew

I bet he sleeps about two hours a night...

Thanks John!

My wife and I trade off each day who gets up early with the kids. So i'm either up at 7-7:30am or up at 8-8:30am. After i'm up i'm with the kids and making breakfast. I like coming up with recipes, so i have my own delicious waffles or pancakes i make from scratch. yum! Back when i was not living in an RV i made Acai bowls every morning. Hang with the kids until 10am and then start working. Work until 5pm. Hang with the family until bedtime. Put the kiddos to bed around 7-8pm. Then get back to work at 9pm or watch a show with the wife. Repeat.

Was a bit different when i WASN'T living in a RV. but this is a typical "at home" day in the RV. The other typical day is when we are out sight-seeing or exploring.. which has no schedule to it at all lol.

thanks! Drew

Hey thanks Rodrigo!

I generally spend all the time I have available on a project until I launch. Then I spread my time between my projects. The goal is to make things I want to exist. If enough people end up also wanting it, then I know I have something potentially sustainable. If it starts to generate income then I can spend more of my time on it. It definitely isn't the easiest way to go about building things. But it's what I can do without having to raise money for each thing. Because I don't believe in that.

I don't want to push all the risk onto someone else. Risk is a great teacher. A tough master. Assuming all the risk myself will make me even better. I like it that way. But I've done it enough. Time to try something new and take Plasso to the next level. So I will raise money and build a team.

Thanks! Drew

Hey man!

Do or do not, there is no try ;) You ARE starting a company :)

I think the best productivity tip I can give is to not use productivity tips ;)

You have a family. What do you want to accomplish there? How do you want to be seen as a dad by your kids in 10 years? Figure out how to make those aspirations happen. Then use whatever time is left to bust you butt and get crap done!

It's hard. There is no easy way. It's painful, you'll want to quit. Don't.

Drew

Hey Kuldar!

Thanks for asking.

I usually at least consider if there would be an audience for what I'm building. Not every time, but mostly I do. ive always considered building a skill building excercise. I love learning new things and getting better, so that is my main benefit for building. Usually I try and solve problems for myself. That way I don't have to bother with market research AND (most importantly) I am automatically passionate about it. I don't have to try and be passionate, or only be passionate about the money. I'm passionate by default because I'm building something for myself. If it has legs in the wild, all the better. Then I can try and build a business around something I am passionate about :)

Drew

Hey thanks Zoltán!

Truth is I have no clones. Even though i possess the technology to clone an army, i think its more pure and hippie to build things as a single entity, rather than a distributed entity ;)

Drew

Hey Faith!

Motivation is easy for me in the beginning because I only build thing that I want, for me :) so it's easy to be motivated and inspired when you build something for yourself.

After its out in the wild staying motivated can be easy if other people are into. If no one else likes it it can be harder to stay motivated. But that's why I don't put all my eggs in one basket. I'm not trying to make Google with each product. I'm just trying to make :)

Drew

Hey Mubashar!

Plasso is where all my income comes from. So it's doing really well compared to my other projects. And it's recurring revenue, unlike my previous best success Pictos. And unlike Pictos, I'm just barely at the tip of the iceberg... There is still soooooo much more to do on Plasso to make it even better.

Thanks! Drew

Ha awesome!

hard one... but i'm gonna for sure go with Super Mario 64. You?

Drew