What is a problem you need solved either personally or in your community?

[Anonymous]

Add some baking soda to your trash cans op

[Anonymous]

How to remove Trump from office.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I need a miracle to happen...for Trump + Vance + the whole clan to be thrown in jail where they belong.

+1000000

Or to be treated by RFK JR. medically.

😂

+2. I also need to improve public transit and reduce the daily car commuters around here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you live in DC, VA or MD what is a problem that you need solved either personally or in your community?

I'm looking to start up a new business and am crowd sourcing to see what problems people are having that I can potentially solve.

How to train privileged narciasist dog handlers so they don't let their dog poop on others' lawn. Anyone who can accomplish this task should win a Nobel prize.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not my problem, but I know 3 people who put off medical procedures (like colonoscopies) because they didn’t have someone to drive them home.

(Two don’t live in my area and the other was before I knew them - otherwise I would have helped!). I just had my pupils dilated and couldn’t drive after that exam and I have a procedure involving anesthesia coming up and I’m grateful my DH can drive me.

This is a good one. The caveat is many places won’t just let you take an uber home, but require an adult to be with you for at least a few hours afterward. I know because my husband had to telework to stay home with me recently when I had a minor procedure done.

So I think it would need to be more than just a driving service. Maybe a medical concierge who could stay with you, pick up prescriptions, etc.

[Anonymous]

Finding reputable home repair companies and contractors. I used to use Angie’s list and it was great

[Anonymous]

Oh boy. OP, I work in marketing and advertising, and have worked with 7, 8, and 9 figure businesses.

Crowdsourcing little rinky-dink business ideas is a great way to lose tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. Every week I have people reach out to me who have invested their life savings into this “great” business idea, it flopped because they never bothered to do any market research, and now they think spending more money on advertising will help people see the genius of the idea.

The advice I give people who want to own businesses:

1. Don’t be creative or cute. Pick something that is boring but has a long history of being successful, like a plumbing company or laundromat.

2. If you want to get cute, plan on spending 2+ years of research, knowing whatever money you put in may be gone. The really big brands really will spend 2-3 years and hundreds of thousands of dollars on research and testing before ever going to market.

3. If you’re still not dissuaded, go work for an actual business similar to what you want to start. Learn what it’s like to manage people. Learn what it’s like to spend hours a day on profit/loss statements. Learn what it’s like when you lose half your staff, half your customers, or suddenly owe a bunch of money to the IRS. Sanitizing trash cans sounds great, but what happens when the 19 year old you hired for minimum wage calls out sick because he was up partying all night? Guess who’s going to be cleaning those gross trash cans? You. When business tanks in the winter and you have to let people go, guess who’s going to tell them? You. For the medical concierge service, if a client thinks they were mishandled or assaulted while in a vulnerable state, guess who’s is now dealing with a lawsuit? You.

4. Be prepared to eat s*** for 2 years. It takes 2-5 years for a business to be profitable. Until then, you’re living on ramen noodles and your savings. Entrepreneurship isn’t some cutesy little thing where you start a business that sounds fun and everything works out. It’s a grind, working 60-80 hours a week. I’ve known people who spent years sleeping on cardboard in their brick and mortar because they couldn’t afford their own place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I need my new neighbors to start mowing their grass, especially on their side of our boundary. You’d think attorneys could figure this out.

It sounds like you are a perfect candidate for an H.O.A. If there isn’t one, maybe you can bamboozle enough people to start one with you as President.

Make your neighbors pay fines for irritating you and make some side money at the same time by skimming H.O.A. money for yourself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Finding reputable home repair companies and contractors. I used to use Angie’s list and it was great

Yes! I’m so tired of researching companies, reading reviews, scheduling estimates, etc. I have a laundry list of things I need done around the house, but it requires managing multiple types of contractors.

I need an electrician to fix some outlets and hardwire some light fixtures. My HVAC is incredibly old (have kicked the can 2x with repairs) and likely needs to be replaced soon. I want to have our sewer line scoped. There is some carpentry work (e.g. shelving and such) I’d like to do. I need someone to do a bit of drainage work and put in a walkway in my side yard. My driveway needs repaving. And on and on.

Obviously paying for this stuff isn’t fun, but I have the money. What I don’t have is time to arrange all these things. And if your project is too small there may not be interest or you won’t be prioritized on the schedule.

I wish there was some centralized contracting service that could come to your house and write up an estimate for everything and send out the people you need for each project. It feels like as soon as I knock 1-2 projects off our to do list another few pop up. I’m always looking around at the things that need fixed but I don’t have time to schedule to fix.

[Anonymous]

Anger management, meditation, morning exercise training in elementary schools, even starting in pre-k- Needs to be mandatory, we have a huge youth problem. We need to teach kids other outlets right from the beginning.

Need to somehow eliminate buying guns/ gun parts online.

Promote nationalism even ad we suck right now.

Begin!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh boy. OP, I work in marketing and advertising, and have worked with 7, 8, and 9 figure businesses.

Crowdsourcing little rinky-dink business ideas is a great way to lose tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. Every week I have people reach out to me who have invested their life savings into this “great” business idea, it flopped because they never bothered to do any market research, and now they think spending more money on advertising will help people see the genius of the idea.

The advice I give people who want to own businesses:

1. Don’t be creative or cute. Pick something that is boring but has a long history of being successful, like a plumbing company or laundromat.

2. If you want to get cute, plan on spending 2+ years of research, knowing whatever money you put in may be gone. The really big brands really will spend 2-3 years and hundreds of thousands of dollars on research and testing before ever going to market.

3. If you’re still not dissuaded, go work for an actual business similar to what you want to start. Learn what it’s like to manage people. Learn what it’s like to spend hours a day on profit/loss statements. Learn what it’s like when you lose half your staff, half your customers, or suddenly owe a bunch of money to the IRS. Sanitizing trash cans sounds great, but what happens when the 19 year old you hired for minimum wage calls out sick because he was up partying all night? Guess who’s going to be cleaning those gross trash cans? You. When business tanks in the winter and you have to let people go, guess who’s going to tell them? You. For the medical concierge service, if a client thinks they were mishandled or assaulted while in a vulnerable state, guess who’s is now dealing with a lawsuit? You.

4. Be prepared to eat s*** for 2 years. It takes 2-5 years for a business to be profitable. Until then, you’re living on ramen noodles and your savings. Entrepreneurship isn’t some cutesy little thing where you start a business that sounds fun and everything works out. It’s a grind, working 60-80 hours a week. I’ve known people who spent years sleeping on cardboard in their brick and mortar because they couldn’t afford their own place.

This is really good advice. The only thing I would add is that it is easiest if you choose a business that is related to something you are already deeply familiar with - in other words, don't start from scratch. If you already have a profession, try to branch out from there with a related side hustle. If you have a very serious hobby that you've cultivated for two decades, use this as your spring board. This is a variation of "do your research," but incorporates something that you actually have experience with and know things about that you can't learn from books and the internet alone.

[Anonymous]

I want housecleaners who don't steal, don't break things, don't judge, aren't intrusive, don't pretend to clean but really clean, don't slack off after 6 months and don't make me feel like I need to clean or tidy before they come over. Will pay top dollar. But it doesn't exist.

[Anonymous]

Persistent vaping and drug use in the bathrooms of every secondary school in the DMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Finding reputable home repair companies and contractors. I used to use Angie’s list and it was great

Yes! I’m so tired of researching companies, reading reviews, scheduling estimates, etc. I have a laundry list of things I need done around the house, but it requires managing multiple types of contractors.

I need an electrician to fix some outlets and hardwire some light fixtures. My HVAC is incredibly old (have kicked the can 2x with repairs) and likely needs to be replaced soon. I want to have our sewer line scoped. There is some carpentry work (e.g. shelving and such) I’d like to do. I need someone to do a bit of drainage work and put in a walkway in my side yard. My driveway needs repaving. And on and on.

Obviously paying for this stuff isn’t fun, but I have the money. What I don’t have is time to arrange all these things. And if your project is too small there may not be interest or you won’t be prioritized on the schedule.

I wish there was some centralized contracting service that could come to your house and write up an estimate for everything and send out the people you need for each project. It feels like as soon as I knock 1-2 projects off our to do list another few pop up. I’m always looking around at the things that need fixed but I don’t have time to schedule to fix.

Hassle Free Homes is what you want. My husband refers to them as the hassle people, but they’re actually great. It’s not inexpensive, but it totally streamlines everything associated with home maintenance.

https://myhasslefreehome.com/

[Anonymous]

Lack of skilled caregivers for those with intellectual disability and the elder population. We just don't pay enough for this important work.