I have an idea, how do I find a technical co-founder?

Post originally published here,

Lots of people have ideas and most of all business people. But you need a yang to that yin and if you are just starting out, this post may be a little discouraging but some grunt work will give you the light at the end of the tunnel.

Why is it discouraging?

To put it simply, it is just not easy to find a good technical co-founder. It requires a bit of work.

Reason is most of the developers or tech guys have their own ideas so it is hard to convince them to work on your idea, unless there is a decent financial compensation or you are a star shot business guy with a terrific track record.

Good developers have a wealth of compelling opportunities at any given time, so it gets even worse if the non-technical founder is inexperienced, or hasn’t already brought a lot to the table (funding, etc.)

So, what is the solution?

Here are few ways to get started on the right track,

1 — Learn to code enough to bang out a prototype — This will also make sure you hit the right chords with the developers who are doing chunk of the work. Coding is an arduous task and takes a lot of perseverance and creativity, but not to say you cannot learn just the basics to create a simple HTML and CSS layout. If you can add Javascript to it, all the better.

But if that is not your cup of tea, there are tools like Invision, Balsamiq etc to create mockups to convey your ideas and convince the developer breed of your amazing idea.

2 — Search for new CS students, who are looking for practice and are not risk averse in the beginning. This may require a little extra work because of the niche demographic. New coding Schools like General Assemblycan give you a good pool to choose from.

3 — if the technology you need developed isn’t rocket science, you can try outsourcing, which is its own can of worms. But here is what you can do,

- Write a good description of your big project, divide it in stories, pick the first story and post it on different sites like upwork, freelancer, guru etc.

- Make a list of interview questions, pick few candidates with high reviews, interview all and then finally pick two candidates

- Give them the first story to work on. You will know who is the better one at the end of the project.

- If no good candidates are picked, repeat all the above steps only after changing the post with feedback received.

Not easy but not impossible. This is what business people are supposed to do anyways right — figure shit out. Take your time, knowing you may waste a lot of it anyways if the right person/team is not picked.

Good Luck.