10 Tips For Bootstrapping Your Startup

Saving money, DIY-ing new skills, and never taking no for an answer–must be time to bootstrap.

Not all startups have the luxury of getting investors right off the bat–sometimes it takes bootstrapping a business by funding it out of your own pocket.

While this is an honorable way to start a company, bootstrapping is more difficult than it might seem. First-time entrepreneurs often have trouble getting funding without first showing some traction and a plan for potential success.

When my cofounder and I created our startup we used $10k of our personal funds instead of immediately seeking outside investors. It took 10 months to go from $0 in revenue to a $300k run rate, but then only six weeks to get funding once we showed that traction. If entrepreneurs play their cards right, they can achieve significant growth and a payoff that’s well worth the wait.

Bootstrapping a business is a lesson in hard work and flexibility, but ultimately it can help accelerate a company’s success. From our experience, we’ve pulled together our top 10 tips for surviving the bootstrapping journey:

Click below to read the full article from fastcompany.com.

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