Hey Neil,

I'm writing this because I was in your position just over a year ago. So don't take anything personally, and consider what I have to say, but don't do it just because I said so. I assumed you were not a programmer throughout writing this, so apologies if you are. (Also, to anyone who would be interested to contact Neil, don't let this deter you.) Most of what I'm saying will be reiterating what Sahil Lavingia conveyed to me at that time along with a few of my thoughts. What he said ultimately changed the fundamentals of how I viewed entrepreneuring and benefited me in numerous ways. And yes, I'm talking about THE Sahil Lavingia that will be a keynote speaker at the conference. If you aren't attending the conference (and even if you are), I highly suggest you read up on him. Incredible teen success story. Anyways, we're all friends here and thus lookout for another.

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So a piece of advice reiterated from a couple chats with Sahil. 2 reoccurring themes and something he constantly told me was "Learn How to Code" and "You are your own Technical CoFounder". Knowing that he was, who he was, I took that to heart and it ultimately benefited me a ton. Here's what I learned from the journey and looking back.

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1) Usually just an idea is not enough to bring in developer counterpart unless you bring something truly legitimate to the table. Here's why. To keep and execute your idea properly, you need to hold at least 50.1% ownership of the idea. When a developer is doing a majority of the work, it is unfair to to give him less than his fair share (more than 50%) for his work.

2) A partnership between a non-programmer and a programmer may not go particularly well. To have your idea executed well, you need some knowledge of the limits of programming. This is why in companies, a part of a project lead's job is very similar to being an ambassador where he/she must gauge the limits of each of his/her parties and get thoughts and ideas translated and cleanly across.

3) You're really missing out. Invest the time you will spend looking for a programmer, learning programming. It will help you leaps and bounds. When your learning for a purpose, you'll end up learning much faster due to the motivation. You might end up coding your idea all by yourself. Just ask Kevin Systrom (founder of instagram). Programmers are more likely to partner up with other programmers no matter the context of the knowledge, than a non programmer.

4) Chances are that your idea isn't as great as you think. Game changing ideas are usually molded over time. But then again, all great ideas have to start somewhere. I'm not ruling out the possibility that it is. The truly great ideas, the ideas that will change the world, shouldn't and aren't limited to finding a developer/programmer. If the idea is truly ingenious and will change the course of the world, I highly suggest contacting an angel investor to seed you. If you get an angel to believe in the idea to the point that he/she invests, you will be much, much, much better off than finding a developer/programmer partner. Angels bring an incredible amount to the table, from contacts, to capital, to a invaluable pledge of confidence. Also depending on the idea, you may be able to give up less equity in the idea. With funding from the angel, you will be able to hire the developer/programmer without needing to put down the equity. (If this is an option you are after, message me and I'll get you started.) Although getting in contact may be easier, VC's aren't recommended, but not necessarily for the stereotypical reasons. Stereotypically, the biggest negative, that is thought, comes from VCs is the aggressiveness for more equity. Although this is true with all VCs, I would say the biggest negative is that a bad idea can really ruin your credibility.

5) Sahil Lavingia actually created this site to help people find their technical cofounders. I'm not joking here, I'm serious. You'll probably find your best match here. http://yourtechnicalcofounder.com

6) In closing, I can only advise you. Ultimately, I'm just speaking from experience. The drive is certainly there, and thats all that's needed to be successful. Don't let me discourage you, and make your own independent decisions. Anyways, if you're going to the conference on thursday we should meet up!

thanks your amazing, your response was amazingly inspirational :)