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Bootstrapping Guide by Jotform — From 0 to 10 million users with $0 funding
Everything I’ve learned from growing my startup from 0 to 10 million users without a single dime in outside funding.
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Replies
@milkers Hi Mustafa! Thank you for this great comment! All the chapters that are in this book are actually coming from my pen; you'll find some pieces from my previous articles, but what you'll be surprised is that there is a huge amount of new information and stories, I shared only in this book! Looking forward to seeing your feedback about it after you finish reading 😊
@aytekintank Thank you for your sincere answer. It is great news, I always enjoy reading your content. I've already bookmarked the book and 'hopefully' will read soon :) All the best!
@dawidzamkowski Thank you Dawid, hope this will be helpful for the other bootstrappers!
There are many books, schools or tutorials on how to build a startup but all of those always include funding at some point, which requires you to sacrifice a part of your work and product.
Yet, this one is all about how to do it without getting a funding, zero to hero, I can’t wait to memorize it!
Congrats on the launch! 🚀🚀
@omergulenn Thank you for such an amazing comment Ömer, hope you'll find it helpful!
Great work Aytekin. I have been following your blog for the past 3 years and your approach to entrepreneurship has what got me interested in startup in the first place. All the very best for your book release on product hunt.
@jareer_samad Hearing these types of comments really makes it all worthwhile for me to share my experience with you all, thank you for your comment Jareer!
@ivanna_wendel Thank you Ivanna, I hope this book will help businesses who are looking to try out bootstrapping for their businesses!
I remember using your product very very early on. It was simple and as you rightly said, there wasn't anything really like it.....a product ahead of its time. I really loved the simplicity.
@brian_shawa Hearing these nice words from an old user is definitely very valuable, thank you for your comment Brian!
Congrats for the launch! Thank you for haring your story and your advices. Can't wait to read it @aytekintank
@benjamin_grandfond2 Thank you so much Benjamin! Looking forward to hearing your feedback!
I think stories like this one need to get more traction. The hustle culture and overglorification of VC is eventually going to destroy what makes entrepreneurship unique.
@henry_dobson Thanks! Getting funded isn’t necessarily bad but both approaches have their advantages and disadvantages. But bootstrapping is usually underrated, my goal is to remove such prejudices and help people who want to find a more sustainable path.
@judith_ackerman Thanks! It’s been a long but enjoyable ride. I hope you’ll find it useful!
Aytekin, this is brilliant! I have been following your story for a while. Thank you so much for beautifully and simply putting your experiences together in this guide. And it's a lot more than just a bootstrapping guide, though that is the underlying theme across the guide.
Let's make it the #1 product of the week!
@nishith_shah Hi Nishith! Thank you for this wonderful comment, that's exactly what I wanted to share with everyone, my experience and the many lessons that I learned from it. I hope that everybody will get something useful from it for their business journey!
I came looking for copper and found pure gold. Thank you very much for this material. Best wishes!
- Follow your dreams and the money will follow
- Hustle until the haters ask if you’re hiring
- Work hard, play hard
- Sleep is for losers
- Rise and grind
Motivational startup quotes are everywhere.
They shout from Instagram feeds, coffee mugs and status updates. Maybe you have one scribbled on a nearby sticky note. If so, no judgment.
These are powerful themes. Everyone wants to feel excited about what they’re doing and creating.
We know that hard work can deliver results. And quitting your job to chase a startup dream is a seductive idea.
Mainstream media also perpetuates the story that if you log 80 hours a week, follow your passion and “hustle hard,” you’ll create the next Facebook or Amazon.
It could happen. But this narrative often leads founders into business before they’re ready.
It can also create enormous (and unhealthy) pressure that derails smart, ambitious people.
For every entrepreneur who’s clocking three hours of sleep each night and going prematurely grey, I’d like to offer an alternative path.
This path led me to build JotForm in one of the most competitive industries around: online forms. Even Google Forms stepped into the ring, and remains one of our toughest competitors.
But we persevered — for 15 years and counting. We’re still one of the leading players, with +10 million users and +300 employees, and we’ve done it without taking a single dime in outside funding.
This is not a story of overnight success or following my dreams straight to the top of TechCrunch. I’ve built this business slowly, while maintaining my freedom and my personal life.
I believe that bootstrapping is a great approach for entrepreneurs.
And in this bootstrapping guide, I’d love to share everything I’ve learned from growing my startup from 0 to 10 million users without selling your soul to investors.
@benoit_chambon Hope it'd be helpful for you Benoit, feel free to share your feedback with me!
@aytekintank embedding Jotforms on Weebly pages was how I built my first "web app" over a decade ago and I have been tinkering ever since. Thanks for the work you and your team do and I look forward to reading about the journey.
@imchrisdavis Hearing these stories always makes my day! Thank you so much for your comment Chris 😊
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