u/Timmotti22

Do other founders experience this?

I am trying to get a business concept off the ground, and I have realised that some “friends” seem more worried that I am going to sell to them than interested in helping me think through the idea.

I am not asking them to buy anything. I am asking what they think, what is unclear, or whether they have any feedback. Yet I keep getting replies like, “I am not your target audience.”

I already know that. That is actually why I am asking.

In this particular case, the person has a lot of experience in the space and tends to do things themselves, which is why they are not my target customer. But their perspective and experience in the space could still be incredibly useful. They also mentioned that even if they liked what I was putting together, they would not purchase from an untested company.

That is completely fair. I am not expecting them to become a customer. I was simply hoping they might be willing to share their perspective, or at least refer me to someone in their network who might be a better fit to give feedback.

And yet, sometimes it feels like people are more interested in gossiping about what you are doing than genuinely wanting to see you succeed.

To be honest, it hurts to realise this too. You expect that the people you consider friends will at least be curious about what you are building, even if it is not something they would personally buy — or perhaps even help connect you with someone who might be interested. It actually feels like they are waiting for me to fail....

Is this just part of being a founder? Have other founders experienced the same thing? How to remain not bothered by such situations?

Edit: I did not think this post would generate so many comments. Really appreciate the different comments and POV on how to handle such situations going forward. Market research was actually done with POC completed. It was more like being told by a friend that "even if I like your product, I will not buy because you are new" sort of comment. because I am thinking, if a friend who knows me is not willing to buy from me just because I am new, then who will - I am thinking really hard on how to resolve this though, because if a friend is having trust issues, then a stranger will have even bigger trust issues....

Do other founders experience this?

I am trying to get a business concept off the ground, and I have realised that some “friends” seem more worried that I am going to sell to them than interested in helping me think through the idea.

I am not asking them to buy anything. I am asking what they think, what is unclear, or whether they have any feedback. Yet I keep getting replies like, “I am not your target audience.”

I already know that. That is actually why I am asking.

In this particular case, the person has a lot of experience in the space and tends to do things themselves, which is why they are not my target customer. But their perspective and experience in the space could still be incredibly useful. They also mentioned that even if they liked what I was putting together, they would not purchase from an untested company.

That is completely fair. I am not expecting them to become a customer. I was simply hoping they might be willing to share their perspective, or at least refer me to someone in their network who might be a better fit to give feedback.

And yet, sometimes it feels like people are more interested in gossiping about what you are doing than genuinely wanting to see you succeed.

To be honest, it hurts to realise this too. You expect that the people you consider friends will at least be curious about what you are building, even if it is not something they would personally buy — or perhaps even help connect you with someone who might be interested. It seems they are actually waiting for me to fail.....

Is this just part of being a founder? Have other founders experienced the same thing? How to remain not bothered by such situations?

Just sharing experience - I have been experimenting different AI video platforms and thought would give capcut a go. Now, I decided I want to cancel the trail subscription and realised capcut made it impossible for me to cancel because that option cannot be found at all. I was also forced to use applepay when I first subscribed. I don’t know if revoking Apple Pay permission will stop auto billing but will see.

Hi all, I have an existing website created in webflow. I got Claude design to redesign it and am happy with the design mockup. The next step is to use Claude Code to help me make some of the modifications - wondering if anyone had done this before.

If yes, what is the difference between using Claude Code desktop or web? Are there any risks I have to take note of? My website has e-commerce features...

Thanks in advance!

Looking for text prompts to video AI generator to save time on reels and ads creations. wondering if anyone have good recommendations? Have tried a few different ones but they look like AI slop.....

Looking for recommendations that is not higgsfield. Is there a tool where I can provide my own script, the story and goal and the design can be generated with minimal editing?

Looking for recommendations that is not higgsfield. Is there a tool where I can write what I want on each slide, the story and goal and the design can be generated with minimal editing?

Hi everyone,

I am looking for some help with a brand-new pair of Meta Ray-Ban Meta Headliner glasses. They were sitting in their original packaging, untouched and unactivated, for 1.5 years.

I can't get the lights on the charging case turn blue to setup and pair the glasses.

When I take the glasses out and slide the power switch to ON, nothing happens.

When I put them into the charging case with power switch on, there is a brief white blinking light.

Is there any way to jumpstart a battery that has been in a deep discharge state for this long, or are these completely dead?

For those who booked only hotels and transport for clients, have you noticed that the b2b rates may actually be higher than commercial rates from platforms like Agoda or Booking even after deducting commission?

This observation is mostly for hotels base in Asia - wondering if this is the case, are we allowed to book hotels from commercial sites and repackaged it for clients?

Hey everyone,

We are an early-stage startup looking for an AI video generator that fits our needs, and hoping the community can point us in the right direction.

Our requirements:

1. No watermark on exported videos
2. Videos should remain private (not published to a public gallery or feed)
3. Use case: generating ad creatives and short-form reels for marketing

We have already looked at Synthesia, HeyGen, and InVideo AI — but their free tiers all add watermarks, which isn't viable for client-facing ad content. We are open to a paid plan, but want to make sure the tool actually meets our privacy and branding needs before committing.

Specifically wondering:

1. Which platforms offer watermark-free output on their entry-level plans?
2. Do any of you have experience with tools that keep generated videos private by default (no auto-publishing for public usage)?
3. Any hidden gotchas to watch out for (e.g., usage rights, content ownership, output resolution limits)?

Budget is flexible if the tool genuinely delivers — we just want to avoid paying for something that still plasters a logo on our ads. Any recommendations or first-hand experience appreciated!