// BUILDING IN PUBLIC
A well-funded startup asked us to build their ops dashboard. Brief was crisp, deadline was kind, money was good. We turned it down because if we said yes, three niche builds would slip by two weeks and we'd start the year apologising.
Our founder ran a spreadsheet. Four engineers, six weeks, ₹14L. Revenue per engineer-week: ₹58,333. Current run rate on niche builds: ₹72,000. The ₹14L was a pay cut dressed as an opportunity.
// WRITTEN BY
PROJECT LEAD
Writes about project lead at 4AM Tech. Part of a four-person team that believes a small business deserves a beautiful website.
// KEEP READING
2026-04-18 · 8 MIN
An honest audit after four years, eleven rewrites and one almost-migration to Astro that we talked ourselves out of.
2026-04-02 · 6 MIN
The 62-year-old laundromat owner who approves every design decision. And why every studio should have one.
2026-03-22 · 7 MIN
Seventeen niches took eleven years. The eighteenth is coming. Here's the one-sheet we use to decide.