WP Text Ads Blog

I just returned from a 3-day church retreat at Johor Bahru, Malaysia. It was a wonderful and exciting time to recharge and enjoy the fellowship of friends. The speakers gave very edifying sermons and put it across really wittily. I probably gained a few pounds because we had 3 buffet meals and 2 tea breaks a day!

Today happens to be the 36th-day anniversary of WP Text Ads as a business. Why 36 when most would use 30, you ask? Because I forgot to write on the 30th day.

So let me share a couple of things I learnt in the past 36 days. It is my hope that someone will benefit from it.

1. It really pays to call myself ‘me’, not ‘we’.

   In a similarly title post on the same topic, I argued that it’s ok to admit our ‘oneness’ for the simple reason that it’s the only honest way of presenting one-man operations.

   To date, I’ve received numerous emails from folks and struck up friendships with some. Others have written in to tell me they appreciate the plugins and encouraged me to keep on improving them.

   I believe this level of conversation could not have been possible if I had hidden behind a ‘big company’ facade. The truth is, people want to write to people. They want to communicate and wish to be respected as people.

   So if you’re a one-man business like me, it’s really ok to say ‘me’.

2. You will repeat mistakes.

Especially if those mistakes have been publicised! In my post on the 5 startup mistakes I made, I listed a couple of things that I should not have done.

Over the last few weeks, yours truly fell into the mistake of being unrealistic about features again. WP Text Ads version 1.1 should have been out 2 weeks ago, but it was delayed because of the highly-sought after Marketplace feature.

On hindsight, I was stupid. Version 1.1 should have been released with the bug fixes, and the Marketplace would come out in version 1.2 instead.

3. Take occassional long breaks.

   This is important. A break is necessary to help us recharge and relax. I did not take a break in the first 2 weeks after WP Text Ads was released and regretted it by the third week as headaches and backaches plagued me.

   So I slowed down a little and started using weekends for replying to emails only. My church retreat was great for my health too as it enabled me to think of other things other than work.

4. Listen and converse with users.

   The feedbacks from users have overwhelmed and delighted me. It’s amazing how little I knew about what’s lacking in WP Text Ads.

   The conclusion is this: it only takes 3 helpful users to point out the most lacking features and irritating bugs! That’s exactly why programmers should release their software often.

5. No problem is too small to ignore.

   I speak for myself here. Although there are such things as show-stopping and minor bugs, it is important to address them all eventually.

   Fortunately the current version of WP Text Ads did not come with too many bugs, and it was nice to hear from people who appreciated the efforts to address their problems.

6. Plan to be around for a long time.

   If you do not plan to be around for a long time, then you won’t be around. The most important thing about starting a business is not making lots of money straight away, it is making sure there’ll be money to be made years from now.

   So focus on the fundamentals such as the proper attitudes towards customer service, time and financial management. Running a business is really like a marathon, so avoid sprinting.

7. Aim for excellence.

   The best attitude is to accept that failure is part and parcel of business, but if we have not tried our best, then we would have failed ourselves.

   Strive for excellence in every area of the business, and the journey will be much more meaningful than the end results. In most cases, I believe that if excellence is attained, then the business will be an excellent profit centre too.

So these are the main lessons I have learnt in the last 36 days. It’s been a wonderful and enriching experience so far and I hope to give another progress report on the 100th day.

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About the author

I'm Alex Choo and I live in sunny Singapore. I'm also the developer of WP Text Ads, a WordPress plugin that lets bloggers sell ads directly to advertisers so that they pay 0% in commissions and earn 100% in profits.

Feel free to drop me a note anytime you wish. You should also subscribe to the low volume email announcement list for WP Text Ads below.