Andrew Hyde lives in Boulder, Colorado and travels frequently.

Being Open and Honest About Startup Process

I’ve been thinking about doing a startup for a while.  I have the next few months off working hard at TechStars and want to solve a problem that is near and dear to my heart.

I have a thought of doing this in a completely open and honest way.  Short updates, phone calls, strategy, team and problems would be posted for others to see, learn from and participate in.  I’ve learned a ton watching the startups grow out of TechStars, and find the project I have in mind would be both interesting to the community and would benefit from having the involvement (is the direction where we should actually go?).
Longs Peak, 8/9/08

Starting a startup can be like trying to summit a mountain covered in clouds.  You’re going up with a general idea of what to be prepared for.  You are approaching a storm, and although you think you are going to have a good time, do not know.  There is an adventure ahead, and you can prepare for what you know, accept what you don’t know and mentally prepare that whatever happens, however tough, isolating or amazing it is, will be part of the journey.

I’m feeling like taking you along for the ride.

The site name, design and iteration is nearing completion.  Our launch would be December or January right now.  This would be a three or four month project of transparency.

The question is, if this happens, would you get anything from it?  Is this a journey you want to see up close and personal?  From raising funding to the design process, it will all be open.

Long Path Home

Posted

in

by

Andrew Hyde

Tags:

Comments

34 responses to “Being Open and Honest About Startup Process”

  1. Mark Bao Avatar
    Mark Bao

    This is a fantastic idea, Andrew! I feel a lot of times founders go through a startup launch walking in a dark room full of boxes while drunk, as it were. There isn't any set procedure (which is good for flexibility and bad because you don't know where you're making a mistake) and I think it would be extremely useful for the community to see how your launch goes—and learn from it!

    Thank you, Andrew!

  2. CarlNelson Avatar
    CarlNelson

    I look forward to it Andrew. I always appreciate transparency in process and I know I would learn a lot just from watching you go through the process.

    Plus, I like the idea.

  3. thomasknoll Avatar
    thomasknoll

    I would definitely applaud this decision. I am fortunate to participate in the lean-startup-circle which is alway generous in sharing these types of insights. When Aaron Patzer gave his behind the scenes look at the development of Mint.com it caused quite a stir, for good reason. When we share our experience the whole community benefits.

    But, watching the progress from the beginning–as it happens–would be an amazing case study. And, if you need any help with customer development let me know. =)

    I can't wait to hear more!

  4. lauraglu Avatar
    lauraglu

    This sounds really fantastic. I'd love to see a start-up live blogged.

  5. matt Avatar
    matt

    Dude you are on a riff tonight… a great one!

    Love the idea you put firth here. Fits the theme of TS and your
    mantra, makes for great feeback-loop, and really engages people in
    this sector and not (huge value there).

    If the idea is still the same vein that Mark (above) and I heard you
    pitch us at Demo Day Boston, I'm all for it even more. Count me in for
    review/participatory process.

  6. rande Avatar
    rande

    It would be hard to beat being a part of a live project like this and watching as it grows and matures. It will be interesting to see how open a startup can be and how it compares to others that spend a long time in stealth mode. I am definitely interested in being along for the ride.

  7. JohnAtkinson Avatar
    JohnAtkinson

    Count me in – I would like to follow the project!

  8. Brett Borders Avatar
    Brett Borders

    I'd be interested in reading more because I have my own real, viable startup idea. Something I think will really make it, something i KNOW there is a burning need for. The mountain is tall, my income is modest, my time is limited… my work is demanding. .but I know I can do it!

  9. brentspore Avatar
    brentspore

    Sounds like Starving Designer but for startups… LOVE IT! kudos bro. Let me know how I can help along the way.

  10. Ryan Howell Avatar
    Ryan Howell

    I think it's a GREAT idea. Let me know if I can help.

  11. Yan Avatar
    Yan

    I have been learning a lot from web-designers like Andy Clarke who open up their design process and seek for feedbacks to further improve the design process. There are plenty of tiny details which are usually not obvious or not shown in most of the web-design tutorials especially for stuff like how they first setup their files, or how they mockup and plan the various comps.

    This is usually not seen in startups. It would be good if we can get a peek behind the scene of the journey of the startup. I believe that there are a lot to learn, especially in the details and experiences. Looking forward to your journey sharing. =)

  12. Aviraj Saluja Avatar
    Aviraj Saluja

    This sounds fantastic, Andrew. Count me in for the ride. Oh, and good luck!

  13. ericaogrady Avatar
    ericaogrady

    This reminds me a lot of BareNakedWebApp – the project that Ryan Carson did a few years ago – and I say go for it. With that in mind – I think I might still own the domain BareNakedStartup if you'd like to use if (of course I have to check and make sure I renewed it).

  14. ZingerSteve Avatar
    ZingerSteve

    It not only sounds like something I want to follow, but something I'd want to do! I've been thinking that with my startup, I need to engage more with the customer community. Being more transparent about the process of building the service and company may be the ticket. I'm really interested in what you have to share.

  15. andrewhyde Avatar
    andrewhyde

    Would love to chat, calling now 🙂

  16. anulman Avatar
    anulman

    You bet I'm interested in this. In fact, I'm doing the same thing! It'll be great to “compare notes.”

    (Though you're DEFINITELY more experienced than I…)

  17. hkoren Avatar
    hkoren

    It's a great idealistic principal, but has a bunch of devils in the details. Who owns it? How do you control for the quality of the participants? How do you assess the value contributed by each members participation?
    How open do you make it? Open Source? Who ultimately makes the decisions, is it a dictatorship or a democracy? Does its openness give you a competitive advantage or disadvantage? Do you open yourself to being copycatted?
    I can imagine a google wave pluggin designed to answer all these questions would be an open startup project in itself.

  18. stp Avatar
    stp

    I attempted something like this, although had a spin on it [Ringside Startup]. http://blog.stevepoland.com/day-1-320-the-press…

    This would be great if you could do it. I just find at this point [doing a startup myself], that I do have competitors, [that have already launched], and I don't want to expose any secret sauce of mine… or my current pace/etc.

    But I can't recall anyone publicly blogging about their excitements, fears, let downs, ups, etc… through an entire startup process. The best thing we have is the documentary 'startup.com', which was wonderful…. had all the juice you want in a story — long hours, big wins, bankruptcy, long-time friendship jeopardized, etc.

    Also, your business plan will likely change… you might change the main focus of your startup.. you may want to consider not using a public name for it, but rather “Project Hyde”. That way, no one along the way puts a preconceived notion of what 'XYZ' is [or was], despite it changing throughout the months.

    Private beta's seem to work well; to get some honest feedback, etc.

    But I, as others, would love to read about the lessons and funding process, etc.

  19. dar Avatar
    dar

    Courageous if not fearless. Can't think of a more positive or trustworthy person to provide insight into the startup process. Your productivity will set an example. Upvote for .(dot)hyde. No one can copy it.

  20. mattmazur Avatar
    mattmazur

    Andrew, this is a great idea. It would definitely help those of us who, like you, look at the cloudy slopes with excitement and wonder what lies ahead.

    Go go go!

  21. Jan Kabili Avatar
    Jan Kabili

    Absolutely terrific idea. Please do it.

  22. alabut Avatar
    alabut

    I'd love to see it in action because I was considering doing the same thing for 14gears, especially if we go through the ycombinator session. I've often wondered about the nuts and bolts of the program and it doesn't have fancy video segments like techstars 🙂

    We found out today that we made it to the interviews in a few weeks – wish us luck!

  23. billmcneely Avatar
    billmcneely

    Andrew,

    Can the production crew of “The Founders” follow you along the way? Something similar to Startup.com?

  24. Kay Hebbourn Avatar
    Kay Hebbourn

    Absolutely Brilliant a really good and honest account

  25. Kay Hebbourn Avatar
    Kay Hebbourn

    Brilliant Read

  26. Dan Moore Avatar
    Dan Moore

    Hey,

    Love the idea; but a bit worried that
    * the publicity might be a distraction from the work
    * 3-4 months wouldn't be long enough
    * your 'safety net' at TS at the end of 4 months might be detrimental

    I'm not sure that you're setting yourself up for success, and from what I've seen, startups are too much work not to knock down every obstacle you can.

    That said, I love the idea of following you through the ups and downs. As a bonus, this has 'book deal' written all over it, methinks.

    Dan

  27. chipd Avatar
    chipd

    Where do I sign up? 🙂

  28. Paul Stamatiou Avatar
    Paul Stamatiou

    I'm looking forward to keeping up with your journey Andrew!

  29. Brian Avatar
    Brian

    I say go for it! You have a lot of friends who are interested to hear, happy to provide input, and willing to help out in any way possible. Being open is the best way to connect with people and build that kind of micro-community.

  30. Paul Stamatiou Avatar
    Paul Stamatiou

    I'm looking forward to keeping up with your journey Andrew!

  31. Brian Avatar
    Brian

    I say go for it! You have a lot of friends who are interested to hear, happy to provide input, and willing to help out in any way possible. Being open is the best way to connect with people and build that kind of micro-community.

  32. Catherine Taylor Avatar
    Catherine Taylor

    I'd love to follow along! 🙂 And if there's anything back-end-y, database-y that needs a look, please ask.

  33. Dan Moore Avatar
    Dan Moore

    Hah!

    I'm a bit of a tool–didn't realize how much startup experience you had. There go some of my reservations (the publicity is still relevant, but then, I guess that's the point).

    Good luck to you.

  34. Dan Moore Avatar
    Dan Moore

    Hah!

    I'm a bit of a tool–didn't realize how much startup experience you had. There go some of my reservations (the publicity is still relevant, but then, I guess that's the point).

    Good luck to you.

Leave a Reply