I left a $200k/yr job to start a micro-SaaS Venture Studio. Am I nuts? 😎
Hello fellow IndieHackers 👋🏽
I've spent the last decade founding startups, building and leading large product organizations inside of 2 fortune 50 companies, and most recently angel investing and currently investing with a fund as a part-time VC.
Like many of you, 2020 was enlightening in a number of ways. For me, I decided to leave a job making $200k+ year because I was miserable and, thanks to the stillness and introspection of quarantining in 2020, concluded that the money wasn't worth feeling anxious and unhappy anymore.
So, I left the job, cashed out a bit of Bitcoin for some extra liquidity (too soon - ouch 😓) and spent the next 6 months exploring problem spaces, digesting trend reports, getting back into the mindset of a maker, and just hanging out with my wife and dogs.
(Ironically enough, as a now part-time VC, I’ve decided that I’m going to build a sustainable business without raising venture. There's nothing inherently wrong with VC, but for me, I am much more interested in reaching peak states of autonomy at this point in my life, and raising capital is a sure way to miss that goal.)
And so, that brings me to today.
I'm currently exploring new ways to generate 20-30 micro-SaaS companies per year using a derivative of the venture studio model, but eliminating 50-70% of the OPEX by using scaled-principles + lots of automation through existing services, APIs & my own custom stuff.
I’ll be documenting my journey (surprise, surprise!) and sharing the many lessons as they come about with this community.
In the meantime, you can follow along here or @steffanhowey on the tweets. Looking forward to making many new friends!
I don't think the decision is necessarily about whether leaving a $200K job is risky. The more interesting question is whether the venture studio model creates enough portfolio optionality to justify the opportunity cost. Building several focused micro-SaaS products can spread risk and create multiple paths to meaningful revenue, but only if capital, time, and attention are allocated ruthlessly. The advantage of the model comes from knowing when to double down, when to stop, and when to let a promising product compound.
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G'day Steffan! It sounds like you're launching from an incredibly strong position. You are far from alone in your awakening amid the troubles of 2020. With new paradigms gaining ground with speed, the time to disrupt is at hand!
I admit to feeling crazy myself, but then I turn around and encounter more voices of influence demanding displacement of outmoded statuses quo. If you aim to achieve that, I'm sure your enterprise will thrive. Opportunity is abundant in a wide range of markets. Godspeed on the path!
Wowzers, 20-30 products a year. Automation is the focus of what I'm working on so I would love to hear more about what you are planning to use. You have anything in mind yet?
Definitely No Steffan !! Wish you all the best in your entrepreneurial journey!!
Hell no!
😀