When to go from no-code to code ⌨️ (Startup Watching #240)

I’ve likely shared this before, but it’s one of my favorites and to be brutally honest I needed a featured article I knew was worth your time but was getting tired of putting together the newsletter.

I love the concept of how to guides for people, and imagine writing one for yourself is a valuable learning experience. It’s been on my list for ages. What would be in yours?

This is a killer list of tools and steps to get any new business off the ground. It’s not product-focused at all, instead it’s the unsexy stuff you need to run a business but usually don’t find until you’re a couple years in (caveat: that’s totally okay, you can run 90% of your business with an excel spreadsheet and a google doc). I would replace Gusto with Justworks because you can offer benefits way sooner through a PEO.

I loved this IndieHackers interview with Rob Fitzpatrick, founder of the Mom test. I’ve been a big proponent of user interviews for ages, and he does a killer job of explaining how to do an interview the right way in really simple terms.

One of our former clients, Zverse, has made a major pivot to combat the crisis and is on track to produce 20 million shields. Super cool to see the small company based in Columbia, SC written up by Forbes this week. This is what it looks like to adapt in a crisis.

Indie.vc is one of the most interesting VC firms out there. The invest in smaller, slower-growing profitable businesses (what they dub “Real Businesses”) and make most of their investments remotely. They just announced their latest round of portfolio companies.

This could just as easily fit under the MVP section, because this is a valid strategy for starting your own business. But it’s also an interesting way to scale your wealth or your business as you grow. This is a podcast interview with the CEO of Flippa. Listen as he breaks down what makes a good purchase when buying a digital property, how the biggest investors are doing it, and what the common mistakes are.

I’ve been on a quest since before quarantine to find the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe, and this is one of my new favorites. It makes chewy chocolate chip cookies with crisp edges, a rich, buttery, toffee-like flavor, big chocolate chunks, and a sprinkle of sea salt. Enjoy!