This is my second time starting from scratch as a solopreneur. With some savings this time, but still the same urgency to reach sustainable income levels. Everything else can wait.

The Math of Buying Time

The value of time has never been more real. Here’s the math: say with 10k monthly expenses, working 6 hours a day for 22 days, each hour is worth about $75. Any tool or service that saves an hour for less than that is an automatic yes.

Claude Max for Claude Code for $100 or $200/month? Absolutely worth it. Render for deployment? Yes — zero server maintenance, and just git push to deploy. These aren’t luxuries anymore — they’re investments that pay for themselves immediately.

Building in Public

I used to think social media presence was optional. Not anymore. Building on X and Bluesky isn’t just about marketing — it’s about staying connected to the community, getting feedback loops, and yes, potential customers (sometimes). The dividends come both short and long term. I joined then-Twitter 18 years ago but have never focused on growing my account and I regret it.

AI as a Force Multiplier

AI code agents aren’t just time savers — they’re focus preservers. I can kick off a coding task and switch contexts completely. Let Claude Code implement that API endpoint while I handle household chores. Come back to review and iterate. It’s async programming for my brain.

What’s Different This Time

Having done this before changes the equation. I know what rabbit holes to avoid. I know that perfectionism kills more products than competition. I know that sustainable revenue trumps everything else — growth hacking, perfect architecture, product features or even clean git history.

The goal isn’t to build the best product. It’s to build something people will pay for, sustainably, while maintaining sanity and focus. Everything else is secondary.