About 3 years ago I began crafting an idea, with a pretty simple goal: help ordinary people increase the amount of interviews they actually get. Simple, I'm not out to "make the world a better place" or even guarantee everyone a job. I have a ton of valuable corporate, sales and marketing experience but there was a year where I couldn't land a single interview no matter what job I applied to!
I was desperate! I felt horrible about myself and just couldn't believe it.
Have you ever felt this way?
Then I began asking questions. To everyone, I'd call HR managers and interview them, I'd ask on Twitter and FB, even LinkedIn.
Did you know that a lot of "hiring companies" aren't actually hiring. Most don't even look at your email or resume and instead they have a software subscription service or third party do that for them. Heck! Some Have gotten as far as admitting that your name determines whether they want to even bother with you (for some jobs). The hiring and recruiting process is so impersonal now a days is unjust and almost inhumane.
So my startup was launched. Then after a year or so it failed.
OppenUp.com : is a map based job and applicant search tool that allows its users to find jobs and pitch themselves to them!
To make the story short, I did the expected like get mentors, get user validation, spent A LOT of time finding developers who would work with me on an equity basis (this was what took the majority of the dev. time). Meeting and interviewing them, going through a high turnover of programmers who got burnt out because startups is not their thing, met with potential business partners who again deflected. All while the market ( that would be you) kept on telling us how
OppenUp.com was just about the most innovative thing in recruiting since online job boards! This was before #Meerkat and #YouNow
We failed because I honestly lost traction and focus and I fell into the bootstrap mentality of taking my time and finding partners who shared my passion. No one will ever share your level of passion for your own startup more than you will. I got busy with family and busy with my own consulting work at www.unthink.me
People still ask me about and yes the website is live. I never did find a great programmer who subscribed to my idea so much they wanted to spend their nights with me working away. All want money, only a few believe in investing your sweat equity for a while. And that's ok. So why am I writing about this? Well, I know more today than I did a year or two ago! I'm just as determined or more to see this happen. I also help startups and entrepreneurs take ideas from scratch and monetize from them! I have helped a few grow their communities as sort of stealth ninja. What better way to show you how to launch a startup than by walking you step by step as I build one myself. The market is now ready for video streaming, the technology is better suited now too, and amateur video is not as much taboo as it was even a couple of ears ago.
OppenUp was a bit ahead of the curve and my team was not innovative enough to pull it through under an unfocused leader. So I figured I would use OppenUp as example.
I will keep you posted on every thought and step as I build this startup.
I will ask you for advice and help from time to time but overall I just really hope that I can show everyone how hard and simple at the same time creating a company is as well as how rewarding it can be even if you fail.
Footnote: I don't believe OppenUp failed, I think it simple came to a pause waiting for me to mature professionally and the market to come around video a bit more.
Alright, I'll roll up my sleeves and get working! Subscribe to my blog here on the side bar or send me an email at Humbero@oppenup.com for email updates! Don't worry I won't spam you!
Here is a screenshot of my platform:
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