You’ve seen the posts, right?
“I quit my job and made $10K in my first month!”
“Built an app solo in 2 weeks and sold it for $100K!”
“Now I’m sipping coconuts by the beach while my SaaS money does yoga in the bank!”
Yeah… about that.
You know what I hate about these stories? They’re like movie trailers — all the hype, none of the plot holes.
Here’s my real behind-the-scenes reel (no filters, no coconut props):
The hidden struggle:
Year 1: Full-time job + built 5 products. Nearly lost my sanity, gained dark circles.
Year 2: Full-time job + built 10 more products. Already fluent in caffeine.
I wasn’t “solo.” I was half-zombie, half-human trying to code dreams into reality.
9–5: Job.
8 PM–2 AM: Products.
Weekends: “Rest”? Nope. Products.
Vacations: Thinking about products.
Social life: Does talking to GitHub count?
Why this myth drives me nuts:
It hides the real effort.
Everyone shows you the exciting launch day; nobody talks about the “why-is-this-API-hating-me” nights before it.
It makes you feel behind.
You see success stories and wonder, “Am I broken?” (No, you’re just not lying online.)
It sells a fantasy.
“Earn while you sleep!” Yeah, after a few thousand sleepless nights.
It attracts the wrong crowd.
People expect shortcuts, then rage-quit when success doesn’t arrive with express shipping.
It downplays the cost.
Health. Relationships. Stability. Mental peace. Turns out they don’t grow on YouTube ads.
My honest version:
Yes, I built things solo.
But I also:
Work a 9–5 job.
Said goodbye to weekends and hello to burnout.
Failed 15 times before anything worked.
Still learning, still tweaking, still not on a beach.
Was it worth it? For me, yes.
Was it easy? Absolutely not.
It was messy. Lonely. Sometimes soul-crushing. But it was mine.
The real lesson:
If you’re chasing the solopreneur dream, know the full story.
Not the Instagram version.
The real one — late nights, failed launches, silent wins.
If that fires you up, welcome to the chaos.
If it sounds like torture, that’s cool too — peace is underrated.
So, which story do you want? The polished fairytale or the honest one with sweat stains?
Your first project won’t be your best.
Don’t wait for perfect ideas—just build something small, break it, fix it, and learn. Each attempt gets you closer to the skills and confidence you need.
Career gaps aren’t deal-breakers.
I worried my 2.5-year ‘gap’ would hold me back. It didn’t. When you’re honest and keep learning, opportunities will come, even if you mess up or pause along the way.
Failure isn’t the end—it’s tuition.
15 projects didn’t make a rupee, but each taught me something bigger than success. The 16th one finally clicked. Treat every “failure” as paid training.
Build in public, ask for help.
Sharing my journey (with the good, bad, and embarrassing) helped me meet amazing mentors and collaborators. People want to help—but they need to see you trying.
Don’t compare your pace to others.
My journey took longer than I’d planned. Looking back, slow and steady progress turned out to be my biggest advantage—real growth rarely happens all at once.
I wish I’d believed these from day one. If you’re just starting out, trust your own timeline—and keep moving.
I built QRCard – it's a simple tool that lets you create a single, smart profile page (your "QRCard") that you can update anytime. You get a clean link and a QR code to share. No more throwing away a box of 500 cards because you got a new phone number.
It's completely free to use right now, and I'm really looking for some honest feedback from the first batch of users.
Is the sign-up process smooth?
Do you find it genuinely useful?
What features are missing that would make you actually use it?
Company: Aviato Consulting (APAC-based clients, Ex-Google founders)
JD: Build scalable web apps using React.js and TypeScript. Collaborate with teams in Australia & Singapore. Focus on API integration, performance optimization, and reusable components.
Experience: 2+ years (React.js / ES6+ / Hooks / API integration)
Qualification: Strong academic or project background accepted in lieu of experience
Salary: Not disclosed (Contract with view to Perm)
Notification Date May 12, 2025
Location: Remote (India-based applicants welcome)
I'm building a SaaS tool that allows users to create dynamic QR codes and track detailed scan analytics, including:
Total scan count
Client country, city, and timezone
Device type and operating system
Activity heatmaps and scan trends
A key feature of the platform is a tracking script that users can embed in their websites. This script enables tracking of customer behavior for visitors who arrive via QR code scans, including:
Yeah… about that.
You know what I hate about these stories? They’re like movie trailers — all the hype, none of the plot holes.
Here’s my real behind-the-scenes reel (no filters, no coconut props):
The hidden struggle:
Year 1: Full-time job + built 5 products. Nearly lost my sanity, gained dark circles.
Year 2: Full-time job + built 10 more products. Already fluent in caffeine. I wasn’t “solo.” I was half-zombie, half-human trying to code dreams into reality.
9–5: Job. 8 PM–2 AM: Products. Weekends: “Rest”? Nope. Products. Vacations: Thinking about products. Social life: Does talking to GitHub count?
Why this myth drives me nuts:
It hides the real effort. Everyone shows you the exciting launch day; nobody talks about the “why-is-this-API-hating-me” nights before it.
It makes you feel behind. You see success stories and wonder, “Am I broken?” (No, you’re just not lying online.)
It sells a fantasy. “Earn while you sleep!” Yeah, after a few thousand sleepless nights.
It attracts the wrong crowd. People expect shortcuts, then rage-quit when success doesn’t arrive with express shipping.
It downplays the cost. Health. Relationships. Stability. Mental peace. Turns out they don’t grow on YouTube ads.
My honest version: Yes, I built things solo. But I also:
Work a 9–5 job.
Said goodbye to weekends and hello to burnout.
Failed 15 times before anything worked.
Still learning, still tweaking, still not on a beach.
Was it worth it? For me, yes. Was it easy? Absolutely not.
It was messy. Lonely. Sometimes soul-crushing. But it was mine.
The real lesson: If you’re chasing the solopreneur dream, know the full story. Not the Instagram version. The real one — late nights, failed launches, silent wins.
If that fires you up, welcome to the chaos. If it sounds like torture, that’s cool too — peace is underrated.
So, which story do you want? The polished fairytale or the honest one with sweat stains?