What inspired you to start a business?
I'll say it bluntly that running a business is not as easy as it is presented on the Internet. You have to come up with a good and useful idea, and even then, you don't win.
You can only see the results after a long time. Not everyone can do it for a long time. To do it, you need to have a strong motive. For some people, it may be a family tradition, for some, money.
What is yours, and what inspired you to start a business?
As for me, it changes over time, but the very first one was that I didn't want to do a job I didn't enjoy, for minimum wage. I wanted to have freedom of choice, when and from where to work and how much to earn.
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For me, it was about building something that solves real problems. I deeply resist trading time for a paycheck. The journey’s tough, no doubt, but having my “why” keeps the fires burning when things get rough.
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@sanskarix So now, you sell products that are not dependent on your time?
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@busmark_w_nika I think people who're building anything, at least, have the independence of allocating their time according to their priorities. For me, I can finally procrastinate without worrying about the paychecks :D
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@sanskarix Well, so let's procrastinate, cheers! :D
@busmark_w_nika started my career as a researcher in the Sustainable Startup. From that time onwards i never looked for another job. Since 2019, i have been building businesses though some venture hit the dead end but some prevailed. Its not easy but surely its addictive!!
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@sheraz_abdul_hayee when you are in a good environment, it is the best thing that could ever happen :)
Have worked in tech and always enjoyed building. My primary motivation for starting a business was to funnel my own energy into a product that would first and foremost scratch my own itch in a space that I am a passionate about (travel).
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@globenomad Which product are you talking about now? :)
@busmark_w_nika I am currently building Travi. The vision is simple: having a personal travel guide for any city you visit. It's an app will help you quickly figure out a personalized itinerary of all the best attractions to check out, and give you high quality audio tours when you visit them.
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@globenomad Really helpful idea :) Have you already launched here on PH?
Thanks for naming the hard part. I immigrated at 41 with two kids. Freedom became very specific for me, mainly where and with whom I work.
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@elenamira Ouch, it had to be very difficult to adapt, especially for the youngest ones. I admire how brave you were to take this step.
It was passion at play.
I liked solving problems. It gave me a kick.
I think I got it from mathematics which was my first love in school.
That's why I was involved in dousing fires / solving problems throughout my career...changing 37 homes across the globe due to short assignments to solve problems.
Finally, i ventured into consulting (as i founded Mega Impacts) but soon after I got into solving 2 Big sales problems (Deal win rates are low and deal closures are slow) using technology. Actually, it was just an experiment but soon it took the shape of 2 products:
1) SalesWit (Customer Insights. Pitch it Right)
2) MarketFit (Sales AI: Don't sell. Solve Problems)
Which i launched in public short time back.
Business is not easy. But then solving each issue also gives you a kick. Have to just keep going.
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@manu_goel2 When reading your lines, I am a little bit envious that you had a good teacher for Math. It is so needed, but I feel like we didn't have the right teacher. IMO, many dreams are kil*ed in the school and the strict structural system.
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@manu_goel2 You were so lucky to have such a good experience. Unfortunatelly, I cannot say it about us :D
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@rubab_ashfaq Hey Rubab, feel free to connect on LI too :)
For me, it was about stepping out on my own. I had ideas I could finally envision and bring to life with the rise of AI. More than just building a business, I wanted to create something that uses AI in ways that genuinely benefit humanity—helping people in meaningful, practical ways. That mission keeps me motivated and excited to keep building, even through the tough parts.
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@stellarcarto47 When did you start? (year)
@busmark_w_nika I started in November 2024, so I’m still pretty new at this. Right now, I’m getting ready to launch some of my apps very soon officially—it’s been a big learning curve, but also really exciting!
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@stellarcarto47 When is the date of launching? 👀
@busmark_w_nika Great question! 😊 I recently finished a soft launch of my first big product, ClimaPal, and I’m now preparing for a full Product Hunt launch in mid-October. It’s been a fun and humbling process getting everything ready, and I’m really excited to share it with everyone here soon.
For me, the inspiration came from seeing how much time and energy QA teams lose on repetitive, manual work. Having worked closely with builders and engineers, it felt obvious that their creativity was being drained by tasks machines could handle better.
That’s what led to starting OopsBot, an AI assistant that turns PRDs into test cases in minutes. The goal wasn’t just efficiency, but giving teams their time back so they can focus on building and innovating. The motive has evolved, but at its core, it’s always been about helping people do more of the work they actually enjoy.
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@ayushi_mishra10 How many QA testers were fired after implementing this solution? 😁
@busmark_w_nika Haha good one 😄 None that we know of, unless you count OopsBot firing the spreadsheet 😅. It’s more of a sidekick than a replacement, taking care of the boring stuff so that the testers can focus on strategy, and breaking things in the fun way.
The key reason I started a business was to solve a problem I'm passionate about.
In my case that has to do with predominantly dysfunctional corporate cultures and the impact they have not only on the mental health of a great many of us, but our ability to make meaningful change in the world as well. There is a tremendous latent potential in most groups of people, potential wasted by silos, politics and confusion. That's a problem worth solving.
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@oconchobhair What's your product, Michael? :)
@busmark_w_nika Thanks for asking Nika. It's called Clarity Forge. I believe that the dysfunction in so many corporate cultures is a combination of process and tools issues. Therefore, Clarity Forge delivers state of the art tools for goal setting, project management, talent development, etc., all of which are optimised to bring and reinforce best practices (e.g. around goal setting, sharing, etc).
Integrity
I don’t know if I could run a business just for the sake of doing business. What inspires me are ideas I want to bring to life and turn into new, sustainable products.
Mine is Integrity — a workspace where notes, canvases, and AI chats come together. It provides the space, depth, and speed essential for modern knowledge work and innovation. I started it because I was frustrated by how work was always split between scattered tools like Notion and Miro (and separate AI chats then). I wanted one place where structure, depth, and intelligence coexist.
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@alesia_cherniavskaia Hey Alesia, which product do you refer to? Can you share a link, please? + Do you use your own product too? :)
Integrity
@busmark_w_nika Hey Nika, I mean my product https://www.producthunt.com/products/integrity?launch=integrity
We're launching in a few days 🤞, and yes, I've already used it for my own knowledge management routine.
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@alesia_cherniavskaia When's the launch? 👀