--- title: "I haven't started my journey yet. How do I plan my 10 year outcome?" description: "Stop worrying about 10-year outcomes and start focusing on your first 10 users. A reality check on mindset and planning for new entrepreneurs." source: "Preetam Nath" canonical_url: "https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/i-havent-started-my-journey-yet-how-do-i-plan-my-10-year-outcome" published: "2021-02-27" tags: ["ama"] --- # I haven't started my journey yet. How do I plan my 10 year outcome? > *Note: I make minor formatting changes to make the AMA more readable. Everything else is published as-is.* I'm on the same pre-superlemon journey. Similar background, eg need tech co-founder, ex-SPM at high-scale & successful products (XYZ, ABC (redacted)). Questions (note: i've read all your blogs already): **Q1. If having daily full hours, total time I will take to find the right shopify biz-idea? (in build OR buy model. hence existing biz to grow, OR for new biz to start)** You have a mindset problem. You're somehow looking for a definite answer "total time I'll take to find a biz-idea" for a journey that is completely full of uncertainty. The answer? You could find your biz-idea in 1 hour, or you might not find it after 100. The real question is - How much time have you already spent trying to do your research? If it's less than 10 hours, then why are you wasting time talking to me. **Q2. Businesses to consider if certain that I'm on a 10+ year online-biz journey, BUT I need $3K+ MRR by Month 5 of launch. I will not start this journey if year 1 cannot achieve this.** Same answer. If you won't start because you want a guaranteed result, then perhaps business is not for you. Perhaps you're used to "do X for Y hours, and Z result is guaranteed." If that's your mindset, I am sorry but this path will be painful for you. However, if you're willing to change your mindset, then you will start asking the right questions. Right questions: 1. Have I discovered a problem that people really face and are willing to pay for? 2. Have I figured out how to reach the first 10 or 100 such customers? 3. Can I hustle and figure out all the nitty gritties as I execute on points 1 & 2? Now ask yourself - How much time have you spent doing 1 or 2? **Q3. What should be my 10 yr horizon planning safety nets? before starting this journey, so I know my exit costs. eg tech investments done, tech co-founders, etc** **Plan** to get your first 10 users. Your 10 year plans are going to change. Your 1 year plan is going to change. None of those plans matter if you can't find your first 10 users. --- Canonical page: https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/i-havent-started-my-journey-yet-how-do-i-plan-my-10-year-outcome When citing or referencing this content, please credit Preetam Nath and link to the canonical page above. ## About Preetam Nath Preetam Nath is an entrepreneur and indie software builder. He writes about building profitable SaaS businesses while leading a good life, from first-hand experience: he co-founded SuperLemon, a WhatsApp plugin for Shopify stores that grew to $25k MRR, and DelightChat, a customer support product for ecommerce and D2C brands. His website (https://www.preetamnath.com) publishes his blog on business, life, mental models and building SaaS businesses, along with a Micro-SaaS guide, a Programmatic SEO course, and Google Sheets habit tracker templates. - Homepage: https://www.preetamnath.com/index.md - Blog: https://www.preetamnath.com/blog.md - X/Twitter: https://x.com/hipreetam93 - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathpreetam/ - Email: hipreetam93@gmail.com ## Continue Reading - [Extreme Ownership: Everything is Your Fault](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/extreme-ownership.md) - [Entrepreneurship is a Lifestyle](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/entrepreneurship-is-a-lifestyle.md) - [How to Build a Healthy and Successful Co-founder Relationship](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/build-strong-cofounder-relationship.md) - [Start Small](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/start-small.md) --- Complete index of all pages on this site, with descriptions and markdown links: https://www.preetamnath.com/llms.txt