How I Almost Invented Social Bookmarking
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I could have invented del.icio.us.
I was nineteen years old, a fresh computer science student with a lot of spare time and tons of ideas. A younger and less busy version of who I am today. I had all the tools I needed, and the right idea.
But no. I didn’t create del.icio.us in 1999. Joshua Schachter did - four years later.
Sometimes when I can’t get sleep at night I imagine what could have happened if I would have implemented the idea. Would I be famous? Rich? One of the Internet pioneers?
But ideas don’t count.
I’m a bit ashamed to admit but this wasn’t the only time I almost created something that later was to become popular. It has happened to me a lot: I get an idea, I make some plans for it, maybe even start implementing it, and then leave it aside because I start to think that maybe it won’t work out after all.
A couple of years ago I had an idea that I thought would revolutionize the way we use snail mail: a service that would scan your mail and put it online in electronic form, thus helping to create a paperless office. At first it felt like a great idea. Then the doubts came in: it’s way too complicated, who would want to pay for this service, maybe people in fact want to get their mail in paper form…
So I gave up on the idea and forgot about it, until a few days ago I found a company that is implementing this very idea! Earth Class Mail has started their mission already in 2005 2004 and now just raised $13.3 million to continue on their path. It wasn’t a bad idea after all!
But ideas don’t count.
So, if you’re nineteen years old, have a head full of ideas, and get easily excited, don’t repeat my mistake. Believe in your idea, and implement it. That was the only major difference between me and Joshua Schachter at that time: I thought the idea would be a failure before I had even tried it out. Joshua implemented it and let the users decide.
The audience loved it. And Joshua became a millionaire.
The next time you have an idea that you think might well work out, don’t just think about it. Do it.
That’s how miracles are made!
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January 12th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
I know I’ve had this happen to me several times.
It’s bound to happen since I have notebooks full of random ideas that I have all the time.
I’d like to think that I’ve gotten better at picking the ones which seem to be more useful, but I suppose only time will tell.
You suggest just doing your ideas, but what about when there are several ideas and you only have time to implement one of them? How do you pick?!
January 12th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
That’s a great question, Paul! It’s funny that you asked because just about half an hour ago in Sauna I was thinking that I should do a new post in which I ask this very question from entrepreneurs from the blogging world. Now that you asked the question, I got a confirmation that I should really do that pots :)
But to answer your question I can tell what I do. It’s not a polished process but more of a gut feeling thing: I think about my ideas and play with them in my mind, and pretty soon I notice that some idea is occupying most of my brain - I just can’t stop thinking about it.
That’s when I decide that that’s the idea to run with.
Of course, as I told in this post, my gut feeling doesn’t always go right. I want to believe that in these 8 years I have learned something and become better at picking the ideas to implement. But just like you, I have to say that only time will tell.
So, I mostly go by gut feeling. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. What about you?
January 13th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
When your idea gets a lot of resistance, it’s potentially a great idea. When it takes some brain muscle to think of something like you’re saying, you’re probably on the right track. You have a lot of such ideas, and I hope that you will one day have the courage to get them out of your head, because ideas don’t count. Even a poor implementation of a good idea is better than the (nonexistant) idea!
January 13th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Hi Jarkko,
As the founder of Earth Class Mail I read your blog posting and lamented even more the fact that we had to overcome nearly insurpassable obstacles to get the business to be as successful as it now is. It was actually started in January, 2004, not 2005. For six months I couldn’t even get my closest business colleagues to say it was a worthy idea (n its manifestation at the time it clearly wasn’t ready for prime time). The magic inflection point was running into our CTO, Mike Miles, who by sheer luck happened to be the neighbor of a venture capitalist buddy of mine, and happened to have designed high-speed mail sorters for Siemens.
This was the “secret sauce event” but it still took two more years to get funded - we went without salaries for even longer than that to get the technology to the point that we could prove we’ve removed the risks of execution. When Mike helped me figure out how to make the automation happen in the summer of 2004 we spent two months working up patents and within a few months we started out on the fund-raising dog and pony tour which continues even today as we have to raise round after round to keep growing (you’re never done raising money in a venture-backed startup).
Let me tell you, it was anything but easy! People would argue from their perceptions versus fact that “but mail is going away” (it’s not, it’s increasing in volume every year), the technology would cost too much (we eventually figured out how to cost-reduce it and cemented it down with a huge portfolio of patents), and that no one would pay for it (well, proof’s in the pudding - we have customers in 130 countries now, from individuals to governments and F500 companies).
In fact the deal was not fully fundable in Portland, Oregon, where we started out… investors there were deathly afraid of “big idea” startups after dot-bomb decimated their nest egg accounts. We needed a game changer and decided to move to Seattle in Sept 2006 - this was the kindling point for getting serious financing and a serious shot at eventually becoming a major global enterprise. Seattle investors were used to startups like Microsoft, Starbucks, Amazon, etc., and the startup investment community was better organized. We were on our way.
But this is my sixth startup, Jarkko, so I knew that it might take mortgaging my house to the hilt and selling off all my assets to endure the crawl across broken glass and barbed wire to get eough investors to believe it was an achievable business model that could be as big as the cell phone or search engine industries. Most people can’t endure this kind of personal risk, wouldn’t put their families through it (takes a supportive wife, too!).
Our journey has actually been chronicled in a uniques new reality/documentary TV show which airs on January 24th and runs for the entire season - 8 episodes in total. They’ve been following us for the past nine months, capturing the trials and tribulations of the process of actually executing an idea from early market introduction to major market traction and VC backing. See http://www.mojohd.com/press/view/23. For any of your readers in the Bay Area or Seattle I’d like to extend a personal invitation to come to our premier pre-screening at the Microsoft campuses: http://www.earthclassmail.com/media/email/startup_junkies_reminder_email.htm
I have a feeling you’ll really enjoy this show, Jarkko - perhaps it’ll inspire you to execute on the next idea that you conjure up.
On the one hand I’m glad you didn’t pursue your idea, Jarkko, or I could have had a competitor - but on the other hand I’d encourage you to pursue your ideas as far as you can take them. In all my startups the original idea was not fundable… it took some iterations to hit the business model that would get investor dollars, and succeed in the marketplace. Persistance and perseverence are the two ingredients you can’t leave out of the recipe.
Cheers,
Ron Wiener, CEO & Postmaster General
Earth Class Mail Corp. (www.earthclassmail.com)
January 13th, 2008 at 9:49 pm
jarkko,
man, i feel your pain. i have had many ideas that i have not acted on that could have made me a fortune (threadless, deviantart). two reasons why.
1) too much work
2) if i decide to actually do it i tell friends or family and they shot it down
so my advice is stop being so fucking lazy and buy new friends and family when you are rolling in the millions.
PEACE!
January 13th, 2008 at 10:24 pm
@C2162: Thanks for the encouragement! I’m already working on my latest idea, which I think you will love. For now I’m still keeping the details to myself.
@Ron: Wow! Thanks so much for sharing your story - it’s a rare occasion to get to chat with someone like you who really has gone through the hard times and is making his dream come true… for the sixth time!
I’m sure your documentary series would be something extremely inspiring and educating to watch. Too bad I live in Finland, and can’t see the show… Well, I hope many others can still see it and be inspired by seeing you work out your business.
I whish you best of luck, and maybe on your seventh startup we’ll in fact be competing ;)
@Michael: Yeah, both of those reasons are important. As Ron said in his comment, you have to be persistent and fight through the hard times. It’s not easy.
January 14th, 2008 at 7:24 am
Peter & I talk about this all the time. I don’t know a single entrepreneur who hasn’t had numerous idea that were relegated to the graveyard. Even the good one’s die - heck I’m on our 4th company and starting the 5th in March. The struggle is often knowing which one to commit to.
Ron - thanks for the notice - I am going to attend your premier in mountain view.
January 14th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
Your post resonates with me. I have had some innovative ideas that in some form or another seem to materialize years down the road at someone else’s hand. I tend to kick myself a bit but then I remember that even the best “slam dunk” ideas I’ve had almost kill me on their way to the market. It’s amazing the process we entrepreneurs go through in becoming effective at what we do and finding those winning ideas. Here’s my stab at it: Unbridled excitement>Disappointment>Some success>Failure>Reality>Excitement>Failure>Failure>Failure>Reset>Sober Realization>Success
Everybody keep on keeping on. This is what makes us great!
BTW: I found this post while reading reviews on Earth Class Mail. I use it myself. It is an amazing service.
January 28th, 2008 at 2:53 am
Jarkko, our TV show - Start-up Junkies - started airing last week in the U.S. All eight episodes will be available online at http://www.mojohd.com/video/?sid=22 or at tv.msn.com. First episode is now posted. Enjoy!
P.S. it was good to meet your friend who joined us for the pre-screening event at Microsoft’s Mountain View campus a couple of weeks ago… the internet brings the world together in amazing was.
Cheers,
Ron
January 28th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
Hey Ron, thanks for the link! Now I know what I’ll be watching tonight :)
And the power of the internet - it’s just amazing!