Look what I put together today. I have had my fingers busy this week, getting involved in the actual productization process in our next experiment. Programming gets me ticking. As a decent programmer, the progress of my work is obvious and predictable.

Predictable progress in programming is why it is easy for me, and it is why I recluse to the cave of programming when I feel lost.

Business, however

Business, however, does not have a predictable trajectory in growth. It does not seem to be working until it works exceptionally well. Then all of a sudden, the business stops growing again.

Carousell

I do not know what Carousell is today. Is it an app to buy second-hand products, or is it a property app? Because I use it as the first, but it is telling investors that the latter is how it will make money.

I use Carousell as an example because they have had a fantastic growth story until they figured that they have to make money. But Shopee has led the path ablaze, way ahead of Carousell. Where does Carousell go from here? I hope not underwater, because Singapore needs a success story of a great consumer startup founded by Singaporeans.

Head above the water

The way to do that, in my experience, is to keep your head above the water. Keep breathing. Stay alive. Given enough time and sufficient smarts, a great business model will be found.

Case in point: We sold our first CCTV (after I canceled the product). Jokes on me.

PS: I am not seeking a job

Some friends were very nice and sent texts with either job offers or concerns. I am glad I have you guys in my life. But really I was trying to comfort myself (and my wife) in my previous post as I take the next step in launching a consumer product. Consumer products have historically been high-risk, high-reward business models, hence the talk about fallback options.

But to my kind friends who texted me offering me a job, I do appreciate it! Lunch soon!