Making Millions with UI Libraries: How? | Aceternity UI

Summary

In this podcast, Manu shares his inspiring journey from a college dropout to a successful freelancer and agency owner. He discusses his start in web development with JavaScript, his switch to React, and the creation of his UI library, eity UI. Manu details his experience with clients, his work ethic involving 7-day weeks and 14-hour days, and his strategies for managing multiple clients. He also talks about the challenges of scaling his business, the importance of setting the right prices, and his thoughts on the future of remote work in India.

Takeaways

• 😀 Manu started coding in 2016 and focused on JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and various frameworks, including Angular and React.
• 🏫 He attended college for one semester, then quit to study and code in his hostel room, focusing on self-learning through online courses.
• 💼 Manu's first paid gig was in his third or fourth semester, building a website for a local restaurant, including digital marketing aspects.
• 💡 He emphasizes the importance of having a mentor or someone more experienced to guide and review code for beginners.
• 🚀 Manu created a UI library called 'eity UI', which started as 'Tailwind Master kit' and has evolved over five to six years.
• 🌐 He built eity UI to understand how to manage a SaaS application, including handling support and updates for paid users.
• 💼 Manu runs a freelancing agency called 'eity', offering services like web development and UI/UX design, primarily for startups based in the US.
• 💸 His agency follows a subscription model, with a significant number of clients opting for the highest tier of $10,000 a month for comprehensive services.
• ⏰ Manu works long hours, almost 7 days a week and 14 hours a day, managing multiple clients and projects simultaneously.
• 🔗 He leverages platforms like Twitter for networking and acquiring clients, moving away from traditional freelancing sites like Upwork.

Q & A

What was Manu's initial motivation for starting to code?

Manu started coding back in 2016 during his second year of college, initially getting into JavaScript because he was into the idea that making websites was cool.

Why did Manu quit college after the first semester?

Manu quit college after the first semester because he felt that he wouldn't learn what he needed for his career in college, so he decided to study on his own.

What was the first paid gig Manu got and how did he land it?

Manu's first paid gig was in his third or fourth semester when he approached a local restaurant near his hostel to build their website and handle their digital marketing.

How did Manu transition from freelancing to building his own agency?

Manu started freelancing on the side while studying, building websites for local businesses. He also worked on eity, his freelancing agency, which eventually became registered in two places.

What programming languages and frameworks does Manu primarily work with?

Manu primarily works with React and React-based frameworks, building websites for startups and companies, mostly based out of the US.

What was the initial reaction to Manu's UI library, and how did it evolve?

The initial reaction to Manu's UI library, initially called Tailwind Master kit, was not very strong. It evolved over time, and Manu improved and added more components, eventually rebranding it as eity UI.

How does Manu manage his time while working with multiple clients?

Manu uses a linear setup for task management, similar to Jira, dedicating specific time slots for each client and their tasks, ensuring a realistic workflow and feedback periods.

What is Manu's approach to scaling his agency, and how does he plan to handle the increased workload?

Manu is considering hiring freelancers to help with the workload, while maintaining an overview of all the work. He is also open to clients knowing that a team will be working on their projects.

How does Manu handle the financial and tax aspects of running his agency?

Manu has incorporated his agency in both India and the US, and he has a chartered accountant who takes care of the financial and tax aspects of his business.

What is Manu's perspective on the value of his work and how does he set his prices?

Manu believes in the quality and speed of his work, and he sets his prices based on the value he provides to his clients. He is transparent about his pricing and the services he offers.

Outlines

00:00

💼 Manu's Journey from College Dropout to Successful Freelancer and Agency Owner

Manu shares his intriguing journey from starting to code in 2016 during his second year of college to becoming a full-fledged freelancer. He discusses his early fascination with web development and JavaScript, leading him to quit college after one semester to focus on self-study. Manu's initial foray into coding involved creating websites for local businesses and eventually registering his own agency. He primarily works with React and React-based frameworks, catering to startups mainly based in the US. Manu's story emphasizes the importance of self-learning and the practical experience gained from freelancing and building one's own projects.

05:02

🎓 Learning Coding and the Role of Mentorship in Manu's Career

In this segment, Manu delves into how he learned to code, acknowledging the value of online courses and projects. He stresses the importance of having a mentor or someone more experienced to guide and review code, which he found more beneficial than courses alone. Manu shares his experience working with a mentor named Vij, who played a pivotal role in teaching him production-level coding practices. He also discusses his struggle with Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA), eventually choosing to focus on front-end development, which he is more passionate about. Manu's story highlights the significance of finding the right learning path and the impact of mentorship in a coding career.

10:02

🛠️ Building a UI Library and Manu's Approach to Monetization

Manu talks about his motivation for creating a UI library, initially as a means to understand how to build and market a product. He shares the evolution of his library from Tailwind Master kit to eity UI, driven by a desire to provide users with ready-to-use components that offer a 'wow' factor. Manu discusses his thoughts on monetization, initially offering the library as a paid product but later deciding to make it freely available to boost his agency's business. He believes that by reducing the friction for potential clients to see his work, it increases the likelihood of securing high-value projects. Manu's narrative underscores the strategic thinking behind building a product and leveraging it to enhance one's service-based business.

15:04

🔧 Manu's Agency Operations: Scaling Challenges and Future Plans

Manu discusses the operational challenges of running his agency, including the difficulty of context switching between multiple high-paying clients and the stress it brings. He reveals that he is currently working with five clients, all on a $10,000 monthly subscription, which involves providing front-end or full-stack development services. Manu is contemplating hiring freelancers to help manage the workload, despite the potential resistance from clients who value his personal touch. He is also considering the idea of opening a company in Dubai to minimize tax liabilities and scale his business further. This part of the conversation provides insights into the realities of scaling a freelance business and the strategic decisions involved.

20:04

⏰ Daily Planning and Task Management for Efficient Client Service

Manu shares his approach to daily planning and task management, using a tool called Linear, which he likens to Jira for task management. He explains how he allocates specific time for each client, considering the realistic timeframe for updates and feedback. Manu's current workflow is largely ad hoc, but he is working towards streamlining it with Linear, which will also help when delegating tasks to future hires. This section illustrates the importance of organized task management in delivering consistent service across multiple client engagements.

25:05

🌐 Manu's Views on Remote Work, Scaling, and the Future of His Agency

In the final part of the script, Manu discusses his views on remote work, his experience with Upwork, and the strategies that have helped him scale his business. He shares his thoughts on the relevance of Upwork for new freelancers and suggests that building a personal brand on platforms like Twitter might be more beneficial. Manu also talks about other remote workers he knows and the opportunities that come from networking and showcasing one's work. He reflects on the challenges of scaling, especially the need to maintain quality while expanding the team. This segment offers a glimpse into Manu's vision for his agency's growth and the broader remote work landscape.

Keywords

💡Freelancing

Freelancing refers to the act of working independently rather than being bound to a particular employer long-term. In the context of the video, Manu started freelancing on the side while studying, building websites for local businesses. This initiative eventually led to the establishment of his own agency, eity. Freelancing allowed Manu to gain practical experience and clientele, which is a common theme in discussions about entrepreneurship and self-employment.

💡Web Development

Web development is the process of creating websites or web applications. It is a key theme in the video as Manu's journey began with learning web development, starting with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. His proficiency in web development, particularly with React and its frameworks, became the foundation of his freelance work and agency services, emphasizing the importance of technical skills in the field of web development.

💡JavaScript

JavaScript is a programming language commonly used for web development. Manu began his coding journey with JavaScript, which led him to web development. His initial focus on JavaScript reflects its prevalence in the industry for creating interactive websites. The video underscores the significance of JavaScript as a fundamental skill for developers looking to build a career in web development.

💡React

React is a popular JavaScript library for building user interfaces, particularly for single-page applications. Manu mentions switching to React due to its popularity, which helped him stay relevant and marketable in the job market. React's mention in the video highlights its importance in modern web development and its influence on a developer's career trajectory.

💡Agency

An agency, in this context, refers to a business that provides services such as web development, design, or marketing. Manu's agency, eity, is a product of his freelancing efforts and represents the transition from an individual freelancer to a business owner. The video discusses the growth of his agency, the challenges of scaling, and the decision to register it in two places, illustrating the evolution of a freelance business into a formalized agency.

💡UI Library

A UI library is a collection of user interface components that can be used to create a consistent look and feel across a website or application. Manu created a UI library as a way to showcase his skills and provide a resource for others. The library's popularity and professional quality, as mentioned in the video, led to increased recognition and potential business opportunities, demonstrating the impact of open-source contributions and the value of sharing one's work.

💡Monetization

Monetization in the video refers to the strategies Manu used to generate income from his skills and products, such as his UI library and agency services. He initially offered a paid version of his UI library but shifted to a model where the library is free to use, with the intention of driving business to his agency. This approach exemplifies the various monetization strategies developers and agencies can employ to sustain their businesses.

💡Subscription Model

A subscription model is a business strategy where clients pay a recurring fee for ongoing services. Manu's agency uses a subscription model, with clients starting at a higher one-time fee and then transitioning to a monthly retainer. This model is highlighted in the video as a way to ensure long-term, stable income and align client expectations with ongoing service provision.

💡Context Switching

Context switching is the practice of moving between different tasks or projects, which can be mentally taxing and inefficient. Manu mentions the challenges of context switching when managing multiple clients, as it can lead to stress and reduced productivity. The video uses this concept to discuss the limitations of solo operation and the need for delegation or team expansion in scaling a business.

💡Remote Work

Remote work refers to the ability to perform one's job from anywhere, outside of a traditional office setting. The video features a discussion on remote work as a viable career path, with Manu and the podcast host sharing their experiences and insights. The conversation underscores the growing trend of remote work in the tech industry and the opportunities it presents for developers to work independently or with international clients.

Highlights

Manu started coding in 2016 during his second year of college, focusing on JavaScript and web development.

He quit college after the first semester to study in his hostel dorm room, driven by a desire to learn independently.

Manu's first coding project was for a local restaurant, where he built a website and handled digital marketing.

He initially learned coding through online courses and self-study, later valuing practical experience over theoretical knowledge.

Manu transitioned from Angular to React due to its popularity and job market demand.

He emphasized the importance of having a mentor or peer review for coding improvements and learning best practices.

Manu's experience with data structures and algorithms was challenging due to his lack of interest in the subject.

He created 'algochurn' to practice DSA but found more enjoyment and success in front-end development.

Manu built 'eity UI', a UI library, to explore and showcase his front-end development skills.

The 'eity UI' library started as a personal project and gained popularity, leading to commercial opportunities.

He monetized 'eity UI' by offering it for free to attract users and redirecting them to his agency for custom work.

Manu's agency, 'eity', offers subscription-based services, with a focus on quality and long-term client relationships.

He works 7 days a week, 14 hours a day, managing multiple clients and projects simultaneously.

Manu's agency has a high client satisfaction rate, with clients often moving from one-time projects to long-term subscriptions.

He is considering hiring freelancers to help manage the workload and scale his business.

Manu has registered his agency in both India and the US to facilitate international business and payments.

He prefers working independently and has reservations about becoming a manager, valuing the creative process over management tasks.

Manu's success is driven by his focus on quality, speed, and client satisfaction.

He has received job offers and partnership opportunities through outreach on platforms like Twitter.

Transcripts

how do you plan your day and you know

manage five clients that pay you so much

how much does your agency net right now

and how many hours do you have to work I

pretty much worked 7 days a week 14

hours a day almost I went to college for

one semester and then completely quit

going started studying in my hostel dorm

room all right hi everyone and welcome

to another podcast today we have Manu

Manu has a super interesting Journey

he's suddenly popped off on the

internet uh because of a library that he

has created we'll talk about his

experience how he got into coding what

does he do right now his experience

creating and working on his own agency

without any further Ado let's get right

into it so hey Manu welcome to the Pod

would love to have a brief introduction

about you hey hey har thanks for having

me so I I'd start off with uh when I

started coding I started coding back in

2016 I believe when I was in second year

I passed out in 2019 and I started off

working with JavaScript initially

because I was into this thing that if

you make websites you're cool but back

then that was that was a thing so I sort

of got into it and I I went to college

for one semester and then completely

quit going started starting in my hostel

dorm room so from there it picked up I

got into JavaScript web development and

general started off with HTML CSS and

then from there on I picked up many many

Frameworks and surprisingly angular was

my first one mhm so that was that was

disappointing for quite some time but

then I switch to react because it was

popular back then and I was I was rigged

whatever was popular I was into getting

this thing like I want to have a job as

soon as possible so whatever was popular

at that time I sort of picked it up and

I started coding then from there on I

also started to I mean I had this thing

like I don't want to have a job in the

longer run I want to have something of

my own so I started freelancing on the

side and I built websites for local

restaurants and businesses or agencies

which were there uh in that area and

from there on I also started working on

eity on the side which is my freelancing

agency I I used to freelance with that

name earlier but now it's registered in

two places so that is that is a bit

about me and I primarily work with react

and react based Frameworks and I built

websites for agencies and companies

which are startups mostly and are based

out of us all right makes L sense so

could you mention what was your degree

and like what college you go by to so I

went to UPS deun it is a college in

utarak deun and I did B Tech in computer

science and engineering sounds good and

you said after second semester you you

dropped off uh as I stopped going to

college I didn't drop off I completed my

degree uh I I flung mathematics in the

first semester and then I passed it

later on but then after second semester

I realized like I don't want to I won't

I I'm I'm pretty sure nobody's going to

teach me this in college whichever

College you in so I had to do it myself

so I enrolled in many of the courses

which were available back then on udy

and udity and I started learning on my

own on my own page so that's where it

picked it up from cor that makes a lot

of sense cool so you left your college

in second semester as like stopped going

to college then you started freelancing

when did you grab your first paid gig I

think it was in third semester like I

said uh third or I think fourth semester

when I reached out to a local restaurant

which was right drinks to my hostel so

we told them like we build your website

we'll give you email addresses and we'll

also work on your digital marketing

aspect which is nothing but uh starting

some Instagram Pages or some sort of

things I didn't handle it we had one

more person working with us so he sort

of tackled that and I built the website

earlier what I used to do was I used to

code it up in HTML CSS drop it off to

some hosting provider hostinger was

famous at that time so I've been through

that I also had my strength at PHP and I

mean yeah it was it was good back then I

don't I don't blame it yeah it worked it

it got me money so that makes a lot of

sense to me right on yeah I think PHP is

hated for some reason but still I think

I've heard like one third of the

internet still works on PHP which is

like yeah makes a lot sense uh cool so

next up um how did you learn how to code

and you mentioned you saw a bunch of

courses do you think that's the right

path for a beginner to take now I look

back at it the courses I took the

projects I made that helps you but

somehow you also need someone to guide

you into the right direction is what I

feel lately because once I started

working in a real job is when I realized

uh there is so much you can do with a

course or a tutorial and it will only

take you so far you need someone or

maybe a mentor he doesn't have to be

with you all the time you just have to

get your code reviewed and someone who

is experience enough or even if it is

like 2 months more experience than you

who can tell you that this is wrong and

this is right even if it is a code

review and a pull request that is also a

teaching moment and then you sort of get

into the habit of building things the

correct way and there is no correct way

whichever works works that at least that

is what I feel but uh if someone is

there to check your code and help you

out also it can be a peer as well that

helps a lot so when I was working in my

job my previous job there was this

Mentor uh his name is vij he amazing T

coder he taught me most of the things

like how things work in production so he

initially he handheld me to the point

that he had to shout at me for things to

work because I was such I mean I thought

I was the best because I had done so

much work previously I was already

freelancing on the side and stuff like

that but then I realized there are more

things to goe than just writing and

pushing it makes a lot of sense I think

I totally agree I think the learning

that you get working in a job with with

smart people is 100 times better than

what a course can teach you you're

you're you have like tunnel vision I

think when you're in a course because

you're doing you're pretty much copying

a tutorial super interesting I I totally

align on that next question did you do

DSA at all yes yes there's a funny story

I have the cracking cracking the coding

interview book also with me I've tried a

lot but then lately I realized I'm not

meant for it because for me DSA is like

uh 12th grade ke mathematics the more

you solve the better you get at it and

there are only handful of patterns that

you have to apply to different problems

and I was never good at it I failed my

11th standard mathematics I failed maths

all the time in college and you know I

was never that disciplined person who

could just sit and solve problem till it

gets solved when it comes to DSA so I

didn't click with it I tried a lot of

times but the discipline Factor was not

just kicking in and I thought I'd ditch

it completely I mean I do arrays and

strings and when it comes to dynamic

dynamic programming I quit doesn't like

someh so yeah I tried I mean coding in

C++ putting my Solutions on gab I also

created algo churn for that matter to

get good at DSA so I built that platform

so that I could push more code and

people could also see my solution like

uh what's correct and what's wrong but

then I realized I was not enjoying it

then I completely switched it to front

end because that's what I love doing now

it's it hosts like 30 40 Front End

questions got it oh wow super

interesting what is this website again

it's called alo.com I'll bring in the

chat also Al super cool yeah man I think

most deaf people this is like the first

project that every deaf person who was

forced into TSA makes like a lead code

clone as yeah makes a lot of sense cool

this is super interesting let's see what

what else I have uh so what was your

motivation behind building a UI Library

it looks like an extremely professional

one if I'm being honest like I super I

super surprised and happy to see like

someone from core of India like born and

brought up in India build something like

this I would love to know what was the

motivation behind it how long did it

take for you to build and how did you

you know Market it considering you know

it's suddenly become very famous so

right now it has become famous because

now it's eity UI earlier it was called

Tailwind Master kit which was three

years back so I've been I've been

building compound for around five six

years now I really like building UI

which looks good and gives you that wow

factor so I've been doing it for quite

some time now and the reason I built

tailin Master kit initially was to get

my hands dirty with SAS so how SAS

applications work how real world users

use your application and the ones which

are paid how do you actually deal with

those people how do you handle support

how do you handle updates to your

components and all those things so I

sort of released a product which was

called Tailwind Master kit and which was

Tailwind component it's still there 100

100 components are there I started off

with that but it didn't perform that

well because I was relatively new to

this field but then I stopped working on

it and I started building components for

blogs when I write blogs as well for

free code camp and my my own blog

section so I keep on Silling out these

components just for the for the heck of

it like why not if you like doing

something share it with the world is

what what I think I do and from there on

meanwhile I registered aity as well so I

sort of had a component page there where

I shared a blog post on how I built this

component it picked up SEO wise like it

was performing really well if you search

frame motion components or something

eity pops up but then I realized people

are not really interested in blogs or

learning how things work with framer

motion or how I built it with framer

motion they just want to click a button

copy it into their code and just use it

and make a landing page out of it so

from there on I thought of why not make

a separate project out of it wherein we

already have Shaden right so e is a fog

of shad's uh web page which is already

there so I foged it I added my

components into it and I had some to

begin with I think it was six or seven

components that I already built some for

clients some for my own personal

purposes and then I simply deployed that

project on a separate separate instance

it's now it's called e UI ui. estry.com

and you can just copy paste and you know

request components and all sorts of

things and I was not really ready for it

to be picked up like that so some of the

components are not that great because I

didn't care much back then but now I

have to sit down and improve on all the

components which are there currently

performance- wise at least but I picked

up pretty pretty wild yeah it's pretty

well I think I saw it uh I was super uh

intrigued considering yeah okay I didn't

know it was a folk off Shad I knew it

was like built the same way where you

can copy over components over to your

code base and super interesting that you

took that path how did you think of

monetization did you even think of

monetization when you were building it

yes yes I did think of monetization

actually the code is also there I

released it as a as a paid product uh I

had a payall setup but then I realized I

really didn't want to get into the get

more users to sell out more components

race I was like let people use it for

free and if they want anything custom I

can redirect them to my agency business

so a person comes who's a Founder he

sees that he can build this component he

can see my code he doesn't have to

interview me to see if I can write code

for his company or his product so the

friction is drastically reduced once you

reduce that friction then it goes to the

pricing page that's a really high intent

person who really wants to buy it not

everyone clicks on pricing if you see if

I if my website gets 1 million page

views it'll be hardly 100 person

clicking on the pricing page so those

100 people are high intent people who

really want their websites to be really

good and they sort of trust me on that

front so I wanted to boost my agency

business with it um A7 is a byproduct of

that I think cor that makes a lot of

sense I think so suddenly it's become

really popular to you know have a

subscription agency business is that

similar to what you're building I have a

subscription model uh but the lower tier

doesn't generally work for me as an

engineer so let's say if I if I have

four tiers $2,000 5,000 10,000 most of

them are 10,000 people 2,000 ones really

doesn't work because it's a lot of work

and a lot less money compared to the

what we are getting in the bigger bigger

clients one so that is that is my target

audience currently subscription model

generally works even I didn't believe if

it'll work or not when I started with

this but it picked up all right super

interesting so so you're saying most of

your clients are picking the $10,000 a

month package and and what do they get

in that they get Landing w b basically

anything related to front end or if they

want full stack prices go higher that

starts at 10,000 but if it is just a

landing page or let's say five pages for

their startup they want to have uh

landing page or five other pages with it

or some of the dashboard Works which

comes inside of the application that

comes under that cor and is this is this

is a one time Fe or is this a

subscription until they work with you

10,000 is a subscription generally what

happens with that is once they pay

10,000 they switch to the subscription

month because most of my clients are

long-term all right so they they see

okay for them that's less friction like

they pay 10,000 and then then then they

see if that works or not if it works for

them they switch to the 5,000 monthly

retain all right super and and then I'm

I'm going to increase prices man I can't

I can't take more clients with this one

all right super interesting prising wow

insane so you're saying okay uh super

cool and how so if you don't mind me

asking uh how much does your agency net

right now and how many hours do you have

to work I pretty much work 7 days a week

14 hours a day almost uh this was last

month which because it was picking up

initially and then some of the videos

also know build mean went through and

last month actually I stopped counting

after a point right now I'm currently

working with five clients at this time

got and all 10 ones and it becomes

increasingly difficult if you're doing

it

singlehandedly because uh the worst

thing that you can do with code is

context switching so you're working for

one client and then you have to switch

your context work for a different one

work for a different one all the time

you're feeling the stress that you're

missing out you're not providing value

and stuff like that so now I'm what I'm

trying to do is trying to help uh get

some help from Freelancers initially and

see if that works out I mean not me all

the clients are not super happy when it

comes to me asking other developers but

and I informed that beforehand that this

is going to happen I'm not having that

much of bandwidth to work on all these

projects so I'll be requiring some

design help some developmental help and

the and stuff like that but I overview

all the

work yeah I think eventually an agency

will can only scale scale if you

increase the prices or or get more

people on um and interesting that so it

is super interesting that you've build

almost like 50k a month 600k year

business uh Alone um zero expenses uh

you don't have employees as you said and

you can pretty much increase prices and

and you're working 14 hours but but at

the same time you know you can probably

do that for a year and you know that's

enough money um and I don't think a lot

of agencies in India do that I think

agencies in India are famous for you

know underpricing themselves and giving

up like the shittiest code a lot of

agencies in Delhi Pune small ones are

like famous on a park I'm glad to see

like someone who's providing value and

you know people are also super happy

with you know being overcharged or even

charged as what you feel is fair U this

is super cool uh and I don't think I've

heard many stories from India doing this

so like I've seen I've seen this a lot

the clients who I charged $1,000 for a

complete projects were more difficult to

deal with the people who are paying me

10,000 and they're like do it and and

it's totally a s uh this's this person

John who runs moon beam and Rogue I'm

working for him fulltime so I've been

I've been working with him for over two

years now we built moon beam we have

built R and there is absolutely zero

calls that has happened it was just one

call for five minutes that was the day I

joined after that it's totally acing

it's WhatsApp and slack and we buil

products which are like scaling to

thousands and thousands of users yeah I

agree I think the the more the price

bracket the more the trust the clients

have and yeah once you get into the

$1,000 $500 range it's just super

nitpicky um so oh wow so you mentioned

you have a full-time job and you have an

agency on the side yeah I mean full-time

as an Eastern is providing full-time

consultation to Rogue right now earlier

I was an employee there but then we

switched to this exterity model go makes

a lot sense and exterity is is it uh

Incorporated in India or is it a foreign

entity both both Solutions private

limited is in India Labs LLC is in the

US LLC because I was working with us

clients and they they were facing some

issues transferring money to a private

limited here in India so I through the

stripe Atlas rout of incorporation then

now it's smooth I've got to maintain to

when I understand zero financials I have

zero idea how taxation Works where do I

have to pay taxes so my CA takes care of

it but then I'm trying to learn as I go

all right yeah makes a lot of sense I

think so few agency owners I know and

which this might be a path that you

might take is open a company in Dubai

stay out of the country for like 6

months and you know pretty much don't

pay any taxes uh only pay taxes on the

income that you bring to India something

to think about in case you're you know

thinking of continuing down this route

because I think you're reaching the

range where you're going to make like a

lot of money um probably going to hit a

mill every year very soon um the 30% of

that is is a lot of money to save in a

very legal path by moving my money to

the buy I'm still thinking about it

because uh the moment I hire a

freelancer I become a manager which I

don't really like I like to write my own

code and you know the feeling is

different when you push something and

the client really likes it people really

like it that's a different feeling yeah

but have to be a lot of on the manager

front which I don't know if I like it or

not but that's the way to scale nothing

you can do about it for sure it's the

difference between being a developer and

an entrepreneur right you think you have

to be an entrepreneur you eventually

have to take the like bite the bullet

and become a manager U that's said you

don't have to do it so whenever I

freelanced I almost had similar you know

uh working hours thought of doing it in

the end it's just so much pain to make a

junior engineer understand things and a

sen engine is going to charge a lot of

money so uh I don't know if you know

agencies scale that said in your case if

you know U you can like if you're

charging 10K you can hire someone for

like 3K which is you'll probably get a

good developer for 3K in India I'd be

curious to see I I it never worked for

me but yeah maybe do it for a year and

then see if you if you want to skill

that way definitely I'll have to try a

lot of things there whichever whichever

work I mean I think I need one good

engineer that sees some long-term Vision

with me and willing to be a part of aity

as a whole and then I think things will

be easier from there makes a lot of

sense yeah super interesting man let's

see if I have more questions here uh all

right I had a question around full-time

job experience well which you don't

really have a full-time job um but let's

say agency experience you mentioned a

lot of context switching so would love

to know how do you plan your day and you

know manage five clients that pay you so

much I have linear setup on my system

for my company I pretty much do

everything with linear for those who

don't know it's a task management sort

of jira if you have experience with it

so I dedicate time for every client how

much time it will take me to

realistically push this update and how

much bandwidth I'll have for that to be

reviewed and if there are any changes to

make it for example if I'm working for X

client I'll be dedicating this amount of

cars let's say in the morning I wake

wake up I do this and I push it then I

have a two days bandwidth for feedback

and stuff and from there on it picks up

I mean right now it is all ad hoc basis

been tackling all things and juggling

things at once I'm really trying to

streamline it with linear I think it has

a lot of help there so I write up my

tasks I prioritize them and I sh them so

that's what working for me right now but

I think in the long run when I hire

people I'll be delegating these tasks to

them instead of me doing it correct I'll

be managing a linear board is what I see

later on right on yeah that makes a lot

of sense are you so you mentioned your

clients might be little Del tally about

this how are you thinking of you know

scaling this out considering yeah you'd

hire employees still figuring out out

out options I think people what I think

is people hire me for my design and

developmental skills the speed I work I

think these three factors come into

picture if I find someone who can do

something similar and provide the same

amount of things things and quality in

that time frame I think I think I'm

pretty much done with it I'll be I mean

I'm anyway open to clients that I have a

team working with me and they'll be

doing it for you even if I don't have it

I say it in a way so that even if

tomorrow I hire someone they'll not be

complaining about it but if it is the

quality which is getting suffered it it

makes no sense right then I have to uh

reduce the amount of clients that I'm

working with and focus on quality

otherwise they will be no business Ian

there are many agencies like you said

working in India doing the same amount

of things what makes me stand out from

them is the quality and the speed at

which I build things I think I think

that might be a factor but I'm still

figuring out it is it is very new to me

too all right makes a lot of sense uh

super interesting um oh I had a question

skipped my head one second uh I think

I'm out of questions uh but this was

super interesting thank you Manu for

taking out the time do you have any

questions for me yeah I think uh you you

have a YouTube channel I've seen some of

your videos on remote jobs and I think

you're doing a great job by promoting it

I don't see many people uh many people

post like uh do this do that there are

job portals you you show them path which

is like proven with your experience I

think that helps a lot I resonate with

one of your videos wherein you say you

were hired at upwork and then you sort

of went off of upw work and then started

working up there that's my story too

with uh with John oh

up work initially because I started upw

work in college itself but then I was

not getting anything then I started

building products which helped me get

that proposal phase off and reach

clients uh in a way that they trusted me

with their code so I worked for him

there and then we went off of he paid

some piece to up work and then we we

started working off of it and from there

on we've been working till now so that

my journey with that one client and I've

got a lot of those as well I've stopped

working on upwork now because Twitter

and you know Word of Mouth goes on but

yeah that is how I started with my my

first big paycheck was $3,000 and it was

from upwork that sort of opened

everything that that crossed all the

lpas that I had in mind like 20 LPA 40

LPA 60 LPA that crossed of everything I

was like 15 days I can make $3,000 then

sky is the limit and it was such a

simple project it was just a UI thing

where I had the data from the back end I

had to display a dashboard was really

simple today task but that sort of open

doors for me like what's possible and

what people are paying realistically

people outside and then Co happened

eventually and open the doors for you to

work anywhere so I think I resonate with

you on that one for sure uh yeah I think

I don't up do you think up is still

relevant for someone who's just starting

out today do you think they I don't I

don't personally it's it's all personal

opinion I think if you're building your

thing on Twitter and coding and sharing

it with the world on Twitter it will

give you more chance and more

opportunity rather than submitting on

proposal where people are unting like

crazy like I mean I get a lot of hate on

my chat box as well people say you're

charging 10,000 are you crazy I mean

they abuse for no reason I don't know

why this my first time encountering that

but they can't believe that this can be

done with this much of money which is

very normal for people working outside

of India I mean if I think about it

$5,000 for a dashboard application I

still think I'm undercharging if it was

me three years four years back I would

have thought I would do it for let's say

$500 but then off upw work I mean if if

you start off with up work right now it

is very difficult because the

competition is too high people are

bidding you here and there everywhere

your your if a project is realistically

2,000

people are pitching it for $100 which

makes no sense and if the client is good

he won't go with the $100 person it

anyway go with the bidder who thinks

he's is is right for the job sometimes

they relate money with quality too which

is which is human nature I mean I

started 3 four years back so it was

easier right now you've got AI all over

I mean I use it also in my code editor

also cursor I use by the way if you're

not familiar with it I build their

landing page as well mhm so you the

cursor landing page yeah oh wow super

interesting that's awesome it's a funny

story I reached out to report a bug into

their application was not working for me

and I had that aity and mantin in the

signature so they said looking for a

landing guy I said I can help that

that's opportunities all over the place

so what I would say is keep yourself

open to these sorts of things wow that's

that's insane I think uh yeah I think

your brand is like word of M brand is

working like really well for you

considering companies as biggest cursor

which I think raised I don't know some

100 Mill or something like that are like

willing to Outsource the landing pages

to you so I think this is a super

interesting strategy um yeah this is

this was insane my last question to you

is do you know other people in japur

otherwise who who have followed a

similar path doing remote work I'm I'm

not in touch with many people who are

doing remote work mostly are in jobs

here in India mhm but uh I have a lot of

friends on Twitter who are doing it one

is

MH name is sandep he built dogs right

and he's also building his Loom

alternative he he's a really great coder

and he was doing this remote work for

quite some time for this this gaming

platform called Blitz blitz. GT if I'm

not wrong he was working for them then

he worked for two desktop he was the CTO

there he's doing it and Rishi from p.

style if I'm not I'm not sure if you

know about it but p. style is an app

where and you can customize screenshot

and it looks really cool on Twitter twit

so he's doing remote work he was I mean

he's doing it for Hive do1 if I'm if I'm

not wrong some Twitter scheduling tool

is there so he's doing remote work none

none from jaur I think go it yeah so

makes sense I think still extremely

Niche but but as you said people stand

out and you know um the people who do

have like outsized outcomes like you did

um so this was super interesting thank

you Manu for coming on the Pod uh do you

have any more questions for me uh none

so far you are doing already a great job

helping people out this I'm really

really happy someone from India is doing

it not I see many controversies here and

there but I sort of stay away from them

yeah I think it's part of life I think

India's little zero some as you

mentioned people surprised that you know

$10,000 which I guess just the phase of

life you're at I think $10,000 seems

like a lot of money at some point for a

dashboard but as you you have a lot of

experience you you'll build the thing in

like an hour and some people might take

days so makes a lot of sense for you to

charge and plus it's your product you

get to charge it at like price it at

what whatever price you want I think

right I mean if I'm going to price it

like I was thinking of changing the

pricing yesterday but I think I'll wait

for one more client and then I'll switch

it once I switch it to ,500 I don't

$115,000 I'm not sure how what what I'm

going to get in the chat box because

that's really scary chat box is there

for clients but then people ask all sort

of questions but it's part of the game I

think yeah I think you can just ignore

uh there super interesting people are

coming to your website reaching the

landing page and then trolling you in

your chat box that's meant for cents

not even trolling they're like brutally

rude and know I was initially it

bothered me but then I stopped caring

all together like yeah whatever yeah I

think it's part of life I think expect a

lot more hate in your comments after

this video I'd say uh but yeah I think

what matters is a lot of people taking

more value from this and a lot of big

products coming out of India so super

excited to see that and thank you so

much for coming on the part this was

super interesting would love to have you

on some more time for like a technical

discussion if you're open to it

definitely definitely would love to all

right thank you Manu

[Music]

thanks