richsin

These bootcamps can pretty much fund themselves if put together properly. Putting together a curriculum, finding a space, in a nutshell just putting together a business plan.

From there I would set a price for the class and start doing pre-registration, do a limited 10 seat first class and have people sign up if interested. An instructor you can bring on board for a contract price for the duration of the bootcamp.

I have seen this work out successful many times in the recent 6 months. Also if your looking for something that is more for the community and less for the profit, take a look at http://www.meetup.com/codecrewny/. These guys do meetups to go through the JS in 6-8 weeks curriculum (http://javascriptissexy.com/how-to-learn-javascript-properly)

Since Rails is not prevalent, it's a great time to seize the opportunity of building that following.

Check out:

Perry Marshall www.perrymarshall.com - He's very famous and his training will get you on point.

Market Motive www.marketmotive.com - This is an excellent way to learn how to do PPC correctly as if working for an agency.

Bonus: If you haven't already, check ppchero.com for a fun ppc blog and www.kaushik.net/avinash/ for everything you need to know about google analytics.

That's sad to hear about 3rd Ward, thank's for pointing that out.

You are right about the dead spots around the city, like Midtown East and Battery Park, there are a few dead spots where it is really lively during work hours but in the evening you have to travel a stop or two to find some action and good grub.

@throwmeaway2525 : streeteasy.com has alot of listings and you can always negotiate with the agent in regards to fee. I just found my cousin one in Hell's Kitchen for $1900 and it's a studio. Also take a look at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, they are renovating all of the apartments and you can get a 1 Bedroom in a 2 Bedroom share for around $1600. They are larger apartments and it's a great size room for the price and location.

Living in NYC is an amazing experience. If you are relocating, I recommend staying in the city first, before moving into Brooklyn, Astoria or NJ for example. Williamsburg is hot right now, but don't expect to pay less to live in the good parts. I have seen others cut corners and live outside of the popular pockets and it's the equivalent of me moving to the Sunset - close but no cigar.

Commute: Within Manhattan your travel will be 5-25 minutes depending on how far you're going. Cabs are cheap when your in a hurry. If you enjoy walking, even better. Bicycles are taking over NYC, it's been an amazing transformation as of recent and if you enjoy riding, thats a bonus.

Work: I do freelance development and there is alot of business in the city, ALOT. I get calls every week for developer roles. Another great part of being in the city is the diversity across all boards. You will meet people from all over the world, working in so many different industries...it will give you an amazing perspective.

Rent: Expect to pay at least $1800 for a small studio or a room share in a nice 2 bedroom apartment. You can definitely find cheaper places in the city, but where you live in the city defines you and your lifestyle to an extent.

Areas to consider: (without knowing much about you)

East Village, West Village, Lower East Side, Chelsea, Hell's Kitchen, Union Square, Murray Hill, Upper West Side, Upper East Side, Midtown (East and West). Great food, convenient, always busy.

Meeting people:

There are many meetups and networking events, but your work will be your gateway to expanding your circle. If your single, NYC is a huge dating market. Get some good pics, throw it up on Tinder, Match, Howaboutwe and have fun. Also there are great places like 3rd Ward in Williamsburg which is just a few stops away on the L Train and they have an amazing creative community. Going back to my emphasis of staying in the city, it's 100X easier to meet people while living there than commuting into it.

Here are a few that are either all out free, or free up to a certain usage.

1. Onetab (Quick save all tabs, nice chronological grouping)

2. Google Docs (Powerful enough for most businesses)

3. Freshbooks (Free up to 3 clients - worth the upgrade after)

4. Mailchimp (Free up to 12,000 emails and 2,000 subscribers, and worth paying for after also)

5. Insightly (CRM free up to 3 users, 2,500 contacts. Which is a great start)

6. Inspectlet (Like Crazyegg, except they have a free option)

7. Asana (Great PM/Task with a generous free product)

8. Evernote/Skitch (MUST HAVE!. Every entrepreneur needs a way to compile their thoughts and research. I find this so important to even finding more about myself as I look back at the things I saved)

9. Trello (PM for creatives.)

Then you have of course, Skype and Google Analytics which require no explanation.

This. 100%. Self-Discipline.

Making a game plan, Keeping a schedule, completing your projects.

Man cannot remake himself without suffering - For he is both the marble and sculptor. -Alexis Carrel

This would be great. We need more of this in NYC.

Simple answer. If your having a hard time with the team, that's the first and only problem that needs to be addressed when moving forward. Cultural fit plays a huge role in startups.

Jump into another challenging role for sure. Look at the office first and foremost. I interviewed at a startup here in NYC 2 weeks back and the offices were dead quiet. I could not see myself in an environment like that, but others would love that type of calm environment.

Good luck!

Your business, as many people have assured you, is completely fine. It's actually a great service for some businesses.

Find bigger clients, this will allow you to keep your billings high if your worried about bottlenecks and hiring. Look into https://elasticsales.com/ for cold calling as a service.

Why not do both versions of the business? Create a separate brand and package together services, flat pricing and slap on a healthy markup to offset your advertising and marketing. PPC, Social Media, etc would be great for this.

Get that monthly revenue up and then build a team around your processes. Hiring will always be hit or miss - just make sure your hiring them for what they know and not what they can learn - if you want to save time.

Best of luck!

Check this out. It should help put everything together.

http://www.quicksprout.com/the-definitive-guide-to-growth-ha...

I agree that this is not the best option. Shaming the client does far more damage to both parties. I feel the designer's pain but public humiliation is not the answer. I think this also gives new or future freelancers/entrepreneurs the wrong idea. This happens rarely. If it happens too often, then it's probably your fault as much as the client's.

I ran a web shop for small businesses ($500K - $10M/yr revenues) in NYC for about 8 years with many clients (good and bad) and faced non-payment issues only a handful of times. Here is my take on it:

- Always get enough money from the client to cover your break even hourly rate for the entire project. Don't do payment terms without a deposit - unless it's a seemingly great client and your cash flow positive.

- Keep your margins healthy. The tighter the margins, the harder it is to be civil when these situations come up.

- When a customer does not pay, I give them more time and payment options first. I have even gone as far as extending more services to clients I believe are good people on credit if the issue has to do with business being slow. This has built some great long term clients.

- 99.9% of the time, if your work causes a positive effect on someones business, they will always pay and never let you go. (They may not show it, but prompt payment and consistent work is the stamp of approval)

- When a client does not pay and you have exhausted your process of collections, I put their old site up. If they did not have a site before, I put up a splash page with logo, phone numbers and contact form. Simple and classy. It takes 5 minutes. Most times if they had the money they would pay - so wish them the best of luck. It's usually always about money.

- If you have a simple contract, you can always take them to court and you will almost always win or they will settle. I always do it myself, no lawyer. I always choose to not take down the site when I have a contract, I prefer the judgement or settlement if it goes that far.

- Make sure the project has the potential of being successful. I am always approached with bad ideas and although they are willing to pay, successful projects pay off in multiples over the long term. It's not up to me to tell someone their idea sucks, but I do believe that if they are not willing to take some basic advice - there is a higher risk of issues. If not payment, satisfaction.

I hope this didn't run too long, but bottom line, this type of publicity is not positive and as stated above, these things happen, rarely. Build a process to handle these issues and focus on finding better clients ALWAYS - not chasing bad ones.

I believe this has huge upside, this can turn into a "One Month" brand that teaches everything under the sun. At the moment it's about technology and coding, but the brand is so much more versatile than peepcode or codeschool to name a few.

I did this course a few months back when it was on Skillshare and met Mattan at General Assembly in NYC - he's a sharp guy and very pleasant to talk to. The course is a great introduction for anyone new to programming to get from zero to app in a short period of time. It also allows people to determine if this is something they really want to dive into.

Awesome share. Thanks.

Smaller businesses are easier to target and get the ball rolling. I started doing sites for as cheap as $500 just to be able to practice and build a portfolio.

Maybe there is a local business you like, build them out a site and show them. You get to sharpen your skills like wire framing and front end development. It's not sexy, but you learn a lot. What's great also is, you can use Twitter Bootstrap without being judged. Most of them could care less what you use.

Unsolicited Advice:

I started my first business at 16 and age should never come into the equation. Once you are looking to freelance, which is still running a business - you are judged as a businessman. No one gives you a break for being 16 nor should you give them a break. I am always impressed now at the age of 28 at how younger freelancers are unapologetic about their talent and age.

This was amazing. Thanks for that.

Try reading or listening to "The Checklist Manifesto: How to get things right". I believe Jack Dorsey gives it to each of his employees. As you learn independently you will find long term success in mastering your own process.

I agree with the other comments regarding breaking projects into small chunks. I have found success just finding the most recommended resources and then organizing it in order of beginner to advanced. Build your own curriculum with all of the resources you have gathered.

Structure is important even if it needs to be self imposed.

Don't be too concerned with being super efficient in what you learn because resources will overlap in content, some more than others. The overlapped content is usually fundamental and never a bad thing to go over more than once with a different perspective.

You seem to be very driven and kudos for attacking your personal development full steam.

This is a great idea for a book. I would love to see this as a site with a Q&A type search for on the fly suggestions. It's a major timesaver instead of scavenging through Google with "the best of" type of searches.