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Question
How do I build my ideas?
I'm a wannabe software programmer, I have no experience with coding/development. I'm going through freecodecamp's courses rn. I have a ton of ideas, I'm a serial entrepreneur but never took action on my tech/AI ideas. My background is real estate.
How do I build my ideas with no real coding knowledge? I don't want to wait to build them, I want to build fast and efficiently. I have this worry that if I try to work with someone they will steal my ideas and develop it themselves.
I think most people here are experienced devs it seems. Any advice for me on how to create my ideas before becoming fluent in coding languages?
How do I build my ideas with no real coding knowledge? I don't want to wait to build them, I want to build fast and efficiently. I have this worry that if I try to work with someone they will steal my ideas and develop it themselves.
I think most people here are experienced devs it seems. Any advice for me on how to create my ideas before becoming fluent in coding languages?
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your question can be translated as: "How do I become a plumber, without actually becoming one?" Which doesn't make sense, you either wanna do it, or you don't.
No, I’m asking how do I find people who I can trust in the tech biz? I have the ideas, but I need a programmer. Is it typical to have some sort of NDA or other agreement on privacy and protection during development phase?
that's not what you wrote there, there's no golden rule, maybe the first or second will be horrible people, and the third one works out. You don't need any NDA for a starting project, cause no one cares.
I’m pretty sure people would be interested in stealing profitable ideas 😅 just asking how non devs ship fast with as little issues as possible when outsourcing the development
no, because building stuff is hard, and for 99% percent of people, it's too much work.
Hello! As an experienced programmer with 20+ years of expertise in founding, developing, and recently selling my own company, I've gained some insights and assisted in the successful completion of tens of projects for others.
Here's my advice: The value of an idea lies not in its conception but in its execution. The notion of a "profitable idea" is a misnomer. Profitability is only achievable through well-executed ideas, and the reality is that many ideas, though seemingly promising, end up being impractical.
With that perspective, consider the following approach:
Develop a basic, functional prototype. Use ChatGPT and no-code platforms. Try to learn and understand a bit of the technology, but avoid the traps of perfectionism or attempting to create a final product.
Put your prototype to the test. Be receptive to feedback, leveraging social media, friends, and professional networks. But don't just settle for verbal approval; gauge genuine interest by requesting money for a fully developed version.
If you notice substantial interest (read: money) partner with someone skilled in coding to make it real.
Be mindful that 95% of ideas don't progress beyond the testing phase. Understanding this can help set realistic expectations.
Best of luck in your endeavors!
Great insights! Thanks for commenting. Agreed, execution makes or breaks a business
+1 on the No-code platform suggestion. You don't have to know how to code to build something unique, you just have to be different from the rest. No-code has come very far, making it possible to build a lot of different types of products. There's a ton of AI products out there that are built on no-code platforms, and you'd never know as a user.
I understand your will to build your tech ideas quickly and your concern about protecting them. The link I'm sharing talks about how ideas by themselves are merely multipliers of execution. It may come across as a bit harsh, but it reflects the critical importance of hard work and effective execution in adding value to ideas. Don't let this demotivate you. What's most important is to get started and bring your ideas to life. You can do this. sive.rs/multiply
The way your post is worded makes me think you have a problem with instant gratification and that’s not going to work out for you. You have to be willing to put in the work over a long period of time, same as any new skill.
To more directly answer your question: you do it by googling and these days by asking chat gpt how to do the thing. It’s genuinely the easiest it’s ever been to learn how to code, you just have to want to do it and put in the effort. Note, it’s still going to be hard - it’s just easier than ever to start learning. Expect several years of pain before you get really good at it, but you can build simple apps in a few months of effort with the help of chat gpt and that’s enough to get started and build a MVP.
No instant gratification issues, I’ve built other businesses just not tech stuff. Like everything else, just want to get to it and not waste time on things that can be outsourced quicker. Been using ChatGPT, YT and actively learning coding. Just looking to fast lane it all like I have with everything else
I think your mind is already made up in that you want to immediately hire contractors because you think it'll save you time. In the short term, sure, they might be able to churn out a landing page quick - in the long term however, you're shooting yourself in the foot. It's going to be expensive to hire a good developer unless you happen to find someone that doesn't know what they're worth. Anyone with experience will charge $200+ per hour, and if you hire a newbie for cheap you risk ending up with spaghetti code that will be impossible to understand or work on. This will cost you more money later as a competent developer will have to rewrite whatever was written.
There are plenty of better options to get started fast that won't lead to unnecessary throwaway work or wasted money:
- DIY no code landing page builders like Carrd. You can just hook up a Stripe button to a form and ask people to use it. That's what I do for my MVPs even as an experienced developer.
- Depending on the idea you might not even need a landing page, just create a stripe checkout link and send it to people directly
- Learn to build a landing page with any CSS framework like Tailwind, Bootstrap, etc: it doesn't take that much time especially with chatgpt involved and as a bonus the skills you gain won't be throwaway as you can apply them to your next idea. Really unlikely that your very first idea will take off anyway so you'll need multiple tries, and ideas are mostly worthless - it's all about execution
Watch this
youtu.be/6reLWfFNer0?si=VQ60f…
Then act and do what's recommended. Instead of Google use chatgpt.
One of my favorite videos as well - all the advice is still very relevant and exactly what I recommend to people: just fucking do it and figure it out as you go. I do think a mix of Google and ChatGPT is the way to go. Sometimes ChatGPT just doesn't have the answer or it's taking too much time to prompt and vice versa. I usually start with ChatGPT and fall back to Google for certain questions.
True, I actually do the same, only ChatGPT doesnt work
@soveriegnmind That video is great! If you like it and would like more info, you could read this: readmake.com and act on each chapter. It was made by one of the WIP members. :)
I would highly recommend you take a listen to this:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6reLW…
I recommend reading a copy of Pieter Levels' book, Make. There's a lot of info there about how to get started with little coding knowledge and pick up the minimal necessary skills along the way. readmake.com/
Start small. Build small projects. Start with front-end, then move to back-end. Finally, go for full-stack. Idk about freecodecamp, but I've been through the Odin Project's curriculum. It's quite comprehensive and has capstone projects.
You don't need to be a tech founder to build a product. Nowadays, it's quite easy to build - at least the MVP. Check out no-code/low-code builders. I think it's the best fit for solo founders with limited knowledge in tech.
You can hire a tech co-founder. This is tricky, cause you need to have a prior relationship with this person + they need to believe in your idea.
If you are really interested in becoming tech-proficient, you need to study books. Start with online tutorials, yes. But, then migrate to books. They are comprehensive, and you can find books on niche topics easily.
you learn by doing. since you are an enterpreneur you probably have lots of ideas you want to work on.
don't try to learn how to build them because by the time you will start building on something, you will realize that you barely need any of what you thought you needed on the first place.