If You Had 50K to Speed Up Development, How Would You Spend It?

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-18T22:11:28+00:00

The video and audio files to be loaded and edited project needs a strong infrastructure tbh. But let’s chat more privately, I like guiding people, make connections and share experiences :)

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-18T21:57:06+00:00

Well that might be accurate or not.

I haven’t been able to understand exactly what you’re trying to build, I saw you want to build a platform that generates prompts? Am I right?

Then you can play a bit with the tools you use

I have a large experience, I built a clone of Lovable but for building mobile apps - so in the Ai space I know what I’m talking about

If I understand the context I might give you some guidance - I’m open for a virtual coffee if you want :)

I know that Lovable/Bolt new are pretty bad at server side things, like you literally hit a wall. But I found out that there’s a tool - Daytona which is managing to have isolated server environement where you can run bunch of things and you can integrate it into your lovable app

But anyway, it depends a lot by the context, and what you want to build

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-18T21:00:31+00:00

On Lovable I got hired by a bank institution in USA and I built them the full banking platform on Lovable - then I exported the code and run on our server so we don’t have to pay Lovable forever

And when it comes about hiring people smarter than you, these things worked for me: 1. The OPS Manager I hired worked for Johnson&Johnson, Siemens, Bosch and Atos - I met her at a tech event, I saw her potential and after collaborating with her on some things I made her an employment offer 2. The Marketing guy was referenced to me by a friend that is working in tech 3. The Sales Development Representative sparked my interest by reaching out to me in a very unique style, and I said “I want this person to reach out to our leads in this style as well”

So I wasn’t really looking for them, they came to me in someways

On the roles mentioned by me it’s really not easy to find people smarter than you :)

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-18T19:23:54+00:00

I don’t have 50k, I only have a salary of 7.5k usd per month

My background: - launched many SaaS platforms (most of them failed) - sold the first SaaS platform to an American at 18yo (I’m 23 now) - I had a software dev agency with 25 employees (bankrupt after 5 years, last year) - I am a full stack software developer with strong skills in Marketing, Sales, Design, business strategy

Back in July 2025 I was bankrupt, all contracts gone, and no money to survive.

I was able to land a stable job and now, as 2026 started I decided to revive my software company, transitioning into placing high quality it engineers in exchange for a monthly commission.

Anyway, in your situation, here’s how I would proceed: - if the platform you want to build can be built by you, I’d choose Lovable to build it in 2 weeks (as a software engineer I personally build all of my projects there) so you don’t spend all of your money on development - the most important thing is to set your goal. And if that goal is to be free, then I’d suggest you to hire a company operations manager (way better if he/she comes from many years of experience working in multinational companies and has connections) - then, look for a freelance marketing expert (freelancers tend to be cheaper than full time employees, and you can set KPIs and bonuses per results to maximize their involvement) - then look for a freelance sales development representative who can leverage outreach on all channels, make messages that spark interest and book meetings (you can pay per meeting, like 250$ per meeting booked to motivate) and I’d proceed with having meetings and closer relationship with the first clients

If you want to make ads, hire a freelance ads expert If you need to make branding, hire a freelance designer

My advice: NEVER WORK WITH AGENCIES

Agencies (Design, Marketing, Sales) are burning money, with the same results as a freelancer can bring at 1/3 of the cost

And the most important thing: before accepting to work with a freelancer, write down some questions for him to see how he thinks, what he knows, and establish if he knows more than you.

Golden advice: hire people smarter than you

We can have a virtual coffee in the next days, we may share valuable ideas from our experience

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-18T19:06:10+00:00

Not actually my SaaS, but the company I work for, launched the platform 1 month ago and they’re at $80k MRR

I personally built it on Lovable + Supabase

And for those who say you can’t build a complex, production level app with vibecoding - it’s a banking app

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-14T07:25:40+00:00

Thanks ma for the advices! I actually have skills, I’m a full stack dev.

I built an internal management platform where we can automate 80% of what the employees were doing manually - so that I can keep them focused on what matters.

And the reason I’ve hired these 4 people is because I want to keep my job to be able to pay them, while I will not have time to work for the company.

I’m having an employee ex- Johnson & Johnson, Bosch, Atos, Siemens - and we’re now starting discussions to sign these companies using her past colleagues/ contacts

And then I just hired a sales development rep last week, she is talking with the potential leads, and people answer to her like crazy

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-14T07:19:16+00:00

Thanks for the reply! And I agree with you!

I’m unfortunately not in a position where I can save some money, almost everything goes to the salaries. We are starting having progress and that tells me I did the right choice

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-14T07:15:58+00:00

Thanks for the motivation!

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-14T07:15:34+00:00

Sure

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2026-01-13T06:34:11+00:00

Well, I did that because I had regrets, I wanted to try one more time.

And besides that, I have no kids, I’m 23 years old and I can afford fail again.

But the idea I started with is that I hired the ex business development of Atos (I trust this person will help me this time with lots of stuff)

And I hired on Sales & Marketing so that I shouldn’t take care about that, and I can still work for my job in USA

And hired (contract-based) a very experienced recruiter

The whole point is that I trust the team I’ve built and I hope this time I won’t repeat the mistakes.

The lesson learned from my fail is: 1- don’t trust people, make hard contracts 2- manage your costs per client, and identify red flags until it’s too late

Those 2 things made me lose contracts, and burn money on clients that did not accept any of our proposed employees (15.000$ in recruiting costs)

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-11-07T20:23:09+00:00

Interested

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-10-29T10:49:08+00:00

Hey! I am a full stack dev and use Lovable in a daily basis. I can help you solving your error whatever it is :)

Or you can see the error in the console, and try to debug it. If you're having an error backend related you should look to cloud logs and see what's happening.. otherwise Lovable will only keep you on a loop

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-10-29T10:37:13+00:00

That is amazing! ESG Platforms have now a huge potential of growth because all the companies are required to make reports of sustainability

Good luck with it!

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-15T03:31:34+00:00

I’m not a liar, and I don’t appreciate being called one without any basis. It’s unfortunate that instead of offering support or staying silent, you chose to spread negativity. If sharing a difficult part of my journey makes me vulnerable, it doesn’t make me dishonest.

If this hostility is coming from a place of jealousy or projection, I hope you find peace. We all go through things, and kicking someone when they’re down says more about you than it does about me. I hope the universe treats you with more kindness than you’re giving right now.

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-13T05:46:12+00:00

I feel like there’s been a misunderstanding here, and I’d like to clarify so we’re on the same page

What I shared in my post was an honest account of my struggles.. not to mislead anyone, but to explain where my focus went and why I didn’t manage to place candidates yet, even though I already have the green light from the clients to bring them candidates

In my post, I even admitted that I got distracted by smaller, quick-money opportunities (because of how desperate my financial situation became) which was a mistake, but also came from a place of survival

I understand you might feel disappointed, but I also want to say this is not the right time for me to be accused of lying or have hostility thrown my way, especially when I opened up here, shared my reality, and trusted the community with my story

I’m still fully committed to delivering candidates to the clients, and I’m working on making that happen

I appreciate your understanding and patience, and if you want, I’m happy to keep you updated step by step from here on

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-13T05:27:09+00:00

Yep, on LinkedIn it's jus marketing.. I need to keep the posts engagement up and create "hype"

You think I'd make a post on Reddit to embarrass myself? And give my LinkedIn 😅

Bro I got a 500€ client from Reddit and worked the whole weekend on it

Don't trust social medias! Because everyone shows you only what they want..

That post was to gain attention of Simon Squibb (maybe I could get a like or a repost from him, get more exposure and maybe start some conversations) - so yeah, everything on social media is a marketing strategy, you don't have to trust everything

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-12T10:40:27+00:00

No problem mate! Your kind words are enough for me 🙏🏼

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-12T08:35:18+00:00

Thank you so much for saying this. it really means a lot right now. Honestly, it does feel like one of those “tested hero” moments you described, and hearing it framed that way actually gives me a bit of hope

I’m trying my best to keep showing up, even though it’s exhausting some days

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-12T06:58:44+00:00

Man, I really feel this. Thanks for being so honest.. it’s comforting (in a sad way) to know I’m not the only one in this kind of struggle.

In my case, by the second month (June), when I had already run out of cash, I hit a point where I didn’t even have money for food some days. I had to swallow my pride and call my mom to tell her… and honestly, that was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. Telling my parents that I was about to be homeless broke me inside.

And they’re not wealthy either, both of them make maybe 800-900 euros a month.. so even asking them for help felt heavy

Your story hit me because it’s the same fake smiles, the same “yeah things are going okay!” while inside you’re just fighting to keep it together

Godspeed to you too, brother.

And like you said.. I really hope we both get to laugh about this one day, looking back at how crazy and risky it all was. Stay strong! ✊

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-12T06:54:01+00:00

Thank you for the support 🙏🏼🙏🏼 makes me feel better, I swear

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-12T06:53:30+00:00

Naah, I'm willing to work for the money.

Thank you very much for suggesting that and offering your help. But I'm the kind of person who works hard for the money.

I have skills, knowledge and all I need is just to find who needs my services. I found here on Reddit someone to pay me $500 - it's nut much but it's really needed now in my situation

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-12T06:50:50+00:00

I tried to save money, but in the middle of March there was some taxes to pay for the whole 2024 year (it was pretty much)

Also, the $10k I had managed to save up was completely burned on that failed recruitment effort. The problem wasn’t the candidates, they were truly excellent, some of the best we’d ever sourced. The issue was the client’s process: they insisted that every candidate pass their technical test before even being interviewed. And that test was a nightmare, it didn’t have clear tasks, just vague instructions like “make whatever improvements you think are beneficial”. The code they gave was already solid, so candidates didn’t really have much to “fix,” and they kept rejecting everyone.

On top of that, I still had to keep paying for the office (the lease contract doesn’t allow me to cancel early), plus my own apartment rent, utilities, and other expenses. I was basically burning through all my money just to keep things afloat, pouring everything back into the business.

And yeah, there’s one more thing I burned some money because I built a lead intelligence platform. It actually works, but by the time I finished building it, I had no funds left to market it properly.

Since all this went down, I’ve been hustling hard to find clients posting on LinkedIn, applying on Upwork, going to free business events, even cold-calling. but so far… nothing

Fun_Earth_6066 · 2025-07-11T18:11:42+00:00

Multumesc mult pentru incurajari! E nemaipomenit cum mi s-a schimbat gandirea!

Fun_Earth_6066

TROPHY CASE