Building software with a cigar, launching a lending company, the merchant-cash-advance trap, and what a small-town sewage crisis teaches about execution.
This Week
Vibe-coded a business valuation tool — built it just by talking to an AI; it’s going up on thescottsinclair.com.
Also, built two websites.
We launched Interim Credit Corp. — a new lender for Canadian businesses in transition: bridge,
DIP, turnaround, and special-situations financing
Lesson Learned: The Merchant Cash Advance Trap
“Fast money” sold as a “purchase of future receivables” is often a loan in disguise
These agreements can be far weaker than the funder wants you to believe
The lesson for owners: the most expensive money is the money you take when you’re desperate
Also, talk to your lawyer. That’s not us
Struggles: When the “Friend” Turns on You
In contested situations, even a supposedly neutral party — or a cooperative professional — can turn adversarial
Don’t get emotional, get organized: control the record and do everything in writing
What I’m Thinking About: Execution Is Everything
Recording a podcast for our town’s mayoral race — a wastewater crisis fourteen years in the making
Distressed companies and city halls fail the same way: not a money problem, an execution problem
