Two months ago I handed in my notice. One month later, Seaturtle Software Ltd was hatched. I shepherded its dash to the ocean. And now I hold the reigns as it begins a journey in the vast ocean that is the international software industry.
To put it another way, I now own a software start-up.
And what a surprise that is. Three years ago I was in negotiations with my boss looking for a way to escape the slippery slide into management. Today I’m a business owner.
What changed?
Recession, and a radical restructuring changed the landscape at the company where I worked. Of all the former employees, I was the only one remaining. I stayed to make a last-ditch attempt to launch the product we’d been working on for two years. But it was not to be.
The directors and I explored several avenues for re-building the business. Eight happy and fulfilling years I’d worked for them, starting two weeks after I completed my Degree (my honeymoon occupied the interval). In that time they’ve given me fantastic opportunities to grow as a person and a software developer. I was hesitant to move on from a relationship that has blessed me so well for so long. But in the last couple of months I’ve come to realise that I have the skills to go it alone. And I’ve discovered that my taste in challenges has diversified beyond the merely technical.
Most importantly, I learned that starting and running a business is not as scary as you might think. Creating a company is just a legal formality (you can do it online for much less than £100). There are clever websites backed by smart accountants who will handle your book-keeping and tax returns for a very reasonable fee. The wonders of cloud computing provide infrastructure on demand.
All I need is a quiet room, a desk, a PC – and some bright ideas.
So Seaturtle Software is open for business.
Consulting will be my initial line of work, specialising in the things you know me for here on Functional Fun. So if you have a knotty WPF problem to solve, a tricky algorithm to implement, or simply want a leg-up with your UI Automation testing strategy, get in touch.
5 comments:
Congratulations!
Congratulations ! Specially for the move you have taken.. I tried it once as I am purely technical person.. But I think i will revisit the idea as time permits. Note : This revising of free lancer career has two motivations 1) the "vividly colored book" and this blog post !
Again, Best of everything !
Thanks Dharmesh - it would be great to think that I persuaded you to look at freelancing again. I definitely think that more people should give it ago.
Hi Sam, I must say I have high respect for "free lancer" type. I personally love the consulting type of job. As I am one semester away from graduating with a degree in Management Information Systems and have interned with an IT Consultant company, CTS, and I have really enjoyed it.
All this to say:
Good Luck! and I have really enjoyed reading some of your blog posts. Very informative stuff.
I love this part, "Three years ago I was in negotiations with my boss looking for a way to escape the >> slippery slide << into management." Never really thought of it that way but you nailed it.
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