Thanks, it's somewhat riskier than what I'd like at this point I'm afraid. I did something equivalent to that, and I told myself I'd find ways to avoid overextending financially.
I was tired of spinning wheels trying to validate ideas.
I have experience working in a commodity business.
And I tend to believe most things fall in this category.
You can differentiate yourself based on various factors, but the fact that other solutions exists is a good sign. You don't need to create an entire market to sell your product.
Do your product really well, but don't get hung up on it.
Learn and lean into good client service.
That will create the most opportunity as you expand.
I had sleep issues for 10+ years. I couldn't fall asleep most nights, would wake up tired, couldn't function without severe caffeine, which would lose efficacy over time and cause even more sleep issues and mind-bending headaches.
Sleep issues were just a symptom. It was my life (Activity) that needed fixing.
Look to your life -- if you fix things there, you'll fix your sleep.
If you want to talk further, feel free to reach out on email.
>> fly the drone with no physical effort and no direct exposure to pesticides—some of which have been associated with diseases of the eyes, ears, nose, throat, skin, and gastrointestinal tract.
Slightly tangential, but what's the thinking here?
We don't want to get it on us while spraying it, but then we'll eat it and it'll be fine?
Rice grows inside a husk. And, white so-called "polished" rice has the outer coat removed. So, insecticide/pesticide residue on the surface isn't such a big deal, even for brown rice.
Ingesting and breathing in the concentrations of insecticide associated with spraying is orders of magnitude worse risk to the farm worker and people around, than incidental food contact risk post production/packaging.
Many chemicals are also broken down in sunlight and water, or are absorbed into the rootstock, not the fruiting body.
(not an agronomist or food scientist. I too wondered at the Merryl Streep ad 30 years ago where she's washing broccoli with soap..)
In 1989, Meryl Streep became the celebrity spokesperson for a Natural Resources Defense Council campaign to publicize the risks of pesticides and chemicals applied to food, especially the danger of Alar-laced apples consumed by young children.
> We don't want to get it on us while spraying it, but then we'll eat it and it'll be fine?
I suspect that a big part of the issue is the amount of exposure.
Dental x-rays aren't dangerous to the patient, but they are dangerous to the dental technician, because they're (potentially) exposed to many x-rays every day.
Same deal here - if you consume say... 100 lbs of rice a year that's not that big of a deal. But if the worker is spraying entire fields - they're just in contact with a lot more pesticide. And that's beyond the fact that white rice has the husk removed, etc.
Some pesticides are short-lasting agents, which are acutely toxic, to the target pest, and also humans. But they dissipate or break down fairly quickly. Even just pure nitrogen or carbon dioxide gas can be used for pest control, and a minute of venting makes it safe after. Come to think, fully automated warehouses handling food, could be kept under an oxygen-free atmosphere. Probably impractical but it'd substantially reduce spoilage and it'd stop any rats or cockroaches pretty quick.
(Of course, the history of pesticides is full of pesticides that don't actually dissipate, or break down, as much as claimed.)
To elaborate that thinking: when absorbed in the quantities experienced by a farm worker in this context, some pesticides can have irritant or toxic effects. They (or rather their application methods and cocktails) are designed not to permeate the food products of the plant, although some do with some foods and this is ongoing research. Farmers need to consistently produce healthy produce people can afford, and want to do as little harm as possible to people in the process.
However, irrigation and the rice's own metabolism will remove some pesticide. And
rice grains have a peel which is later removed, often after a drying process at somewhat high temperatures, which will further degrade "safe" pesticides.
This is just the best compromise we can make between labor cost (both financial and human; I have worked in rice crops and it is no joke) and safety, practically speaking. If I had to dream a better solution, I would have our crops grow in completely artificial environments out of planet, while tended by robots. Then insecticides wouldn't be needed, and genetic manipulation would be less of an issue. But, as they say, choose your dreams.
Without getting in too deep, a lot of pesticides we use degrade in sunlight and/or water. So as long as it isn't sprayed near the end of harvest, where it would then be stored in a dark dry place, most agricultural chemicals will have degraded.
Here's a way that has worked for generations. It's paying it differently now, given the nature of business today:
1. Buy an asset, using bank leverage.
You need some capital. You need a business that's cash flowing or has fixed assets (so bank can pony up majority of the needed purchase capital).
Find a business that you can exponentially increase (e.g. through using code, marketing or some gap the business isn't fulfilling).
You can do this in the range of 100k, 1M or 10M depending on your risk appetite, ability to persuade and network.
2. Run business for growth (not cash flow) for 3-5 years.
If you had spotted the correct opportunity, with the right gaps, you can 3-5x the business in this timeframe with an intent to sell or leverage for a loan.
3. Sell or leverage the business
At this stage, your multiple for a sale will go up. If you paid, e.g 4x EBITDA, then with the with the higher revenue, you should be able to sell for a 7x. This number can vary wildly.
If you paid 1M for a business doing 250k in profit and you move the revenue to 5M with no change on EBITDA, you can now sell for 8.75M.
You could also use this valuation or LOI to raise money or bank debt to buy your next business in the next range over e.g. 10M.
4. Rinse and repeat.
0. Notes
HN crowd are typically solid programmers and thinkers (although there are a good many business people here). So ignore anyone giving limiting responses. They are only telling you what's true in their experience (career programming).
This type of path is done all the time in the business world to build wealth, especially real estate (slower but more stable). It has more pitfalls than anything and can be a brutal way to live.
This is just a blueprint for someone actually seeking.
Here's what helped me. I would not wake up rested, I could not fall asleep properly. I was tired and moody all the time.
Living was turning into a hellish nightmare, one sorry day at a time.
There were a few aspects to this for me, most of which I'd be cancelled for bringing up here -- so won't venture there. What I can say is:
Do the opposite.
Which means, stay awake till you can't physically stay awake anymore. But your wake up time is fixed.
You wake up at 6am now. Don't stress the bed time.
Like another poster said, go all out physical activity-wise. I'm not necessarily talking gym. We move our body a miniscule amount compared to even 100 years ago. This is manifesting itself in many diseases, the mildest of which is sleeplessness.
- do some gardening or spending time with soil and nature
- does it take only 2 type to bring in groceries? Make it take 5.
- always take the stairs.
- can you walk or bicycle to work/grocery?
Your intent should be to fall dead when you hit the sack at night.
What helped me was eating freshly made food only. Either raw or just cooked. No food from the fridge. Eating twice a day - brunch and dinner.
This will actually reduce the amount you sleep, but when you sleep the quality is much higher.
I also stopped eating anything meat-based and dropped all caffeine, but that's up to you.
It's been a complete 180 -- energy, mood, clarity and enthusiasm. I don't feel half dead everyday.
If you have any cash saved up, this would be a way to go because:
- cash flow - existing customer base to talk to - product - market fit has happened (hopefully)
You'll get a crash course in everything after the 0 to 1 phase of the business.
And you'll get some energy from talking to customers and building for them.
source: I'm doing that with https://www.fundedlist.com after many years of doing what you described.
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