Raised 1M in one meeting with no deck
But like most people, I am not connected, loaded, or pedigreed. But I have a brain and a grit.
This is how I achieve 50% success in my product ideas
By success, I mean I made money to support one person (myself). Most entrepreneurs do not even get this far. And what I do is no secret. For every new product I launch, I have to figure out how to get to the first $1000. And if I am unable
You will be stupid to refuse
The real world frustrates internet geeks. In the real world, everything seems so much harder. In the real world, the geeks have to put on clothes. The geeks have to go to work. The geeks actually have to make money and pay for things. Luckily the geeks these days are
How I deal with human inefficiencies
Inefficiencies irritate me. Most of the time, inefficiencies exist for a good reason. An economic reason such as cleaners being cheap makes R&D for self-cleaning toilets prohibitively expensive. A carpark attendant is still required because for some reason; asshole drivers won't take "no parking"
I am a control freak
I am what I am. But as time races by and collagen weans itself off my face, I have noticed the few times I cede control, were the few times things worked out well. Cede control in the company With LandX, I could hold onto the reins if I wanted
It pays to be uninformed
There was a time by which I made a concerted effort to stave off the intake of the news. That is because the primary intent of news reporting is to alarm. The secondary intent is to inform. This is why "Breaking News" arises so often. The TV networks
Thriving in the gray area
The giant startups that shook up our lives such as Uber and Airbnb did so because they were, by nature, disruptive. But disruption is a nicer way of saying illegal. Then they got so big so fast that regulators have no choice but to regulate them permissively, The recipe for
Planning for failure is a bad thing
Especially so for someone like me who grew up trying hard not to take money from my mother because of tight financial circumstances. In a startup world, planning for failure is a recipe for mediocrity. Fighting this old habit has proved to be one of the harder battles on par
I do best when I do not feel
My investment track record, while limited in variety, has been pretty successful. They would be way more successful when I tune out my emotions. The times I didn't were led to outcomes that were less favorable outcome: * Like how I signed away an entire company I built because
Two months later, I want to share that Sapiengraph makes for a poor business
I started the Sapiengraph effort by hiring a small sales unit. Historically, I always built the product first then attempt to sell it. The risks are obvious. I might invest months on a product that nobody wants. With sales first, I let the market decide instead. Besides, knowing myself and
I will like to buy the Porsche Taycan
In my second meeting with an angel investor, he told me straight up that he is not sure what exactly we are selling.
A story today illustrating the difference between the programmer and the designer
Last week, I dropped a job specification for our design team to design a demo for our facial recognition demo. The demo does two things with photos: 1. To search for a face 2. To add a face to the database The "Train" buttonFor Feature #2, the designer
Here is how to get 30% discount at Jumbo Seafood
"What is in it for you" - Do not sell. Instead, tell your prospect straight up what he stands to gain.
I want to build a Google
The origin story of how I decided to build my own company
I am friends with some weird kids in Indonesia
A designer with a soft pink cap. A programmer with a hair bun. These Indonesians have been growing proportionally in my product team. We speak different native languages, but we barter in the same currency -- respect. Despite dedicating an entire post [https://nubela.co/blog/your-first-reaction-is-a-snort-of-air-out-your-nose-with-a-half-smile/] deconstructing why I
"Your first reaction is a snort of air out your nose with a half smile"
This post is hard to write because it means I have to come to terms with my autistic tendencies. But if I am honest with myself, blaming it to autism makes for a poor excuse. If I have to be candid, I will say I am an asshole. But it
I forgot to write a blog post yesterday
No, it is not the early onset of Alzheimer's [https://nubela.co/blog/i-have-early-onset-of-alzheimers/]. It was honest to goodness forgetfulness. I am making it up right now. But it does tie in nicely with what I was ruminating about yesterday. I should slow down. What I have been
fundraising
Summary: first week of fund-raising
Last week marked the start of the fund-raising process. It was a fruitful week, and it has shaped the work ahead of me in the subsequent weeks. This post is a summary of my thoughts. Funds as comfort; funds as a weapon I am raising funds for Sapiengraph because * I
You do not have any partners in life: I snapped back, NO!
I am a Singaporean with chutzpah [https://www.yourdictionary.com/chutzpah]. A Jewish term for near-arrogant bravado. As a Singaporean Chinese living in a Confucian society, it is not an easy trait to carry. But I carry my chutzpah proudly on my sleeve. In the past, my near-arrogant bravado has
Do not be lazy like me
Yesterday, I texted a particular NUS professor seeking an introduction to a specific angel investor. That turned out to be a dud as the professor was not acquainted. And I followed up by asking: > do you know of anyone with deep pockets who like engineers, whom I should meet?
I got my first rejection today
So I pitched to a VC today, and I got a same-day response after sending over the deck. > We usually invest at Series A and often write cheques of $2-3mil for a start. Perhaps we can continue to monitor your progress? If I was any younger, I might have
You should be investing in Sapiengraph
I am from the special forces, not because I served as a Naval Diver, but because my company operates as a small but lethal team. Two years ago, when it was just Bach and me, we built a database of businesses in the Asia Pacific region. Complete with employees, their
What is the most fucked up thing you have done?
This is my favorite question for people (over drinks). I will like to think that the craziest act that you sought out willingly defines who you are as a person. And this is important to me because I seek rebels. Rebels do whatever it takes to get to the destination
I have early onset of Alzheimer's
In the last month, I lost : * My car keys. It cost me $900 to replace it, thank you BMW. * Not one, but two Stojo cups. One of it got caught in my car's convertible top because I drove off while opening the soft top. * My Mi Band 4.
Two women will not bear a child in 4.5 months
Some things cannot be rushed. I bought a few shrimps for my tank yesterday. And I have been drip acclimatizing them with water from their new home. But somehow, they are not grazing as they should. Something must be wrong So I took out the test kit that I have