Starting from almost zero
Why I decided to build my product school in public, even without an audience
Photo by Kevin Ku on Unsplash
Starting from almost zero
Why I decided to build my product school in public, even without an audience
Starting from almost zero isn’t glamorous. There’s no clout. No built-in community cheering you on. No magic boost from a big platform or big investor behind you. Just you, your ideas, and a quiet space that feels a bit too empty at times.
That’s where I am, and exactly why I chose to build my product school in public.
Most people wait for the perfect moment before showing their work. They wait for followers, for confidence, for proof that someone cares. I did that for a long time too. But the longer I waited, the more obvious it became that the audience doesn’t create the work; the work creates the audience.
So I decided to start where I am. Almost zero. A few early readers, a handful of curious people, and a clear sense of what I want to teach: practical product thinking for people who would like to build with confidence, not noise.
Here’s why building in public felt like the right move.
How come “almost zero”?
I’ve spent the better part of the last 15+ years working in the tech industry for different companies, fulfilling several roles, and learning a lot through a mix of various projects and products and formal studies. This is the path we would usually write down in our CVs and explain during interviews.
During that time, I also tried two or three times to create companies from scratch.
The first time, a 3D animation company along with a great team and plenty of expectations about what this experience would mean for us. The team was excellent, we won some regional animation awards, and we were called “the Venezuelan Pixar” by a local newspaper in Venezuela. The political and economic situation/crisis disintegrated our team, and the project died.
The second time, with me living in Germany already, was a pet tech app that was being developed by a team that was living each in a different country. The business per se was registered in Colombia (the friend living in Bogotá was the one with the idea, so the app was registered there). A fully distributed team, no budget, no clear plan, and countless delays made the project stop, together with our wish to create a massive product.
There were more ideas and tries along the way, but none were more interesting for my learning and growth than these two.
This is the path we might not say during an interview, but it’s one that teaches more than any book or podcast you decide to try on.
Since this is my first time working alone and essentially having no audience, I’m starting a new business from almost nothing. However, I have a wealth of experience that I can draw upon and discuss. My desire to use technology to help people solve real-world problems is probably greater than all the limitations I face, even though I live in a foreign country without a network.
So, building in public means to me the following gains:
It forces clarity
My current business idea wasn’t ready from one day to another. Even today, I still like the 20 different paths that it can take. I’m working on an online school to learn about how product teams can work better together and create better software without forgetting that it is people building for people.
You see that? That explanation can mean many things if not explained further. But it took me months of research, talking to people, hearing and reading about problems people have at work when creating software or problems that are poorly solved in real life.
When you write or share your process publicly, you can’t hide behind vague thinking. You have to turn intuition into steps and experience into something useful. It sharpens the ideas. It exposes weak spots, and it demands honesty.
A private notebook lets you lie to yourself. A public post doesn’t. So, here we are.
It builds consistency
Without an audience, there’s no external pressure. That sounds beautiful until you realize how easy it is to drift. Publishing in public creates momentum. Even if only five people read it, you still showed up. You still built something. You still kept the promise to yourself.
And that rhythm is more valuable than any early metric.
Consistency is the only way to get me to the goal I want to reach. Forget about cold showers, or the club of 5 am, or reading all the available books without taking action.
It invites the right kind of people
When you share at this stage, the people who show up aren’t here for status. They’re here for the learning, the craft, and the curiosity. They get to ask questions that really move you forward. They also happen to give sharper feedback and help shape your steps in ways that big audiences never do. That’s something I consider valuable and that I simply want to have.
This isn’t about going viral. It’s about building a space for people who care.
It removes the fear of judgment
Take a quick look around you. Everything you can see was in somebody’s mind in the beginning. Every idea, big or small, that was implemented had to be very small at some point. If you decide to learn more about how many popular apps, services, devices, or experiences were invented, you’ll be surprised more than once about how many rejections and judgments happened. Check on, as an example, JK Rowling with Harry Potter, or learn about the way Netflix or Dropbox started.
When you start from zero, there’s nothing to lose. Nobody expects perfection. Nobody is waiting for you to fail. That freedom is rare. It gives you room to experiment, explore, and publish rough drafts without shame. Yes, you might want to create something that everybody loves from day one, but the reality is that overnight success requires many failed attempts before that.
Once the audience grows, this fear comes back. Better to build the habit now, when the stakes are low.
It teaches the same thing I want to teach
My school is about product thinking that moves people to take action. Thinking that produces something testable, visible, and concrete. Building in public is the most honest version of that philosophy. If I’m asking people to take action, I should be doing the same.
If the school is built on clarity, small experiments, and continuous learning, then its creation should follow those same rules.
A small invitation
If you’re reading this early, you’re part of the beginning. You’ll see the messy drafts, the rough frameworks, the experiments that work, and the ones that don’t. You’ll watch this grow from almost zero into something shaped by the people who joined early.
And if you’re building something of your own, I hope this gives you a nudge. You don’t need a crowd. You need movement.
Start small. Share early. Build in the open. Let the work teach you what comes next.
Learn more in my newsletters:
In English - Thinking in Products
In Spanish - Pensando en Productos
