Dustin Heaps

💡 What problem did you originally set out to solve with your product?

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I’ve seen a lot of makers (myself included) start building with one idea, then pivot completely after talking to users.

I launched Waivify — a simple digital waiver tool — because I noticed yoga instructors and personal trainers still using paper or clunky PDFs for liability waivers. It started as a weekend build. Now it’s used by solo business owners to simplify their client onboarding.

But along the way, I realized I wasn’t just solving waivers — I was helping service pros feel more legit and reduce admin anxiety.

So I’m curious:

👉 What problem did you set out to solve — and did it end up being the real problem your users cared about?

Drop your answers 👇 I’ll read and reply to every one.

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Prithvi Damera

We originally set out to solve a pretty simple problem: how can small teams automate repetitive business tasks without writing code or stitching together five different tools? That was the seed behind Growstack.

But as we talked to users, we realized the real pain wasn’t just the manual work — it was the decision fatigue that came with it. People weren’t just looking for automation; they wanted clarity, confidence, and time back to focus on higher-value work.

So Growstack evolved — from task automation into a full AI workflow layer that acts like a smart assistant across operations. The core problem stayed the same, but the why became a lot more human.

Initially, I built my tool to save time for creators managing repetitive tasks. But users kept mentioning how it gave them peace of mind — turns out, reducing mental load was the real win.

Dustin Heaps

@shatoolshub That’s such a great insight — sometimes the biggest value isn’t just saving time, but clearing headspace. Love that your tool evolved into something that supports peace of mind too.

Baltazar Torres

I originally set out to solve a problem I kept running into as a founder: getting honest, actionable feedback on an MVP without breaking the bank. Most existing tools were either too expensive, too generic, or gave surface-level insights that didn’t really help shape the product.

That’s why I built Probado—a platform where early-stage founders can get structured feedback from vetted testers and pair it with AI-powered insights to catch pain points before they become real problems. The goal was simple: help founders validate ideas without wasting time or money.

Interestingly, along the way I realized the real problem wasn’t just feedback—it was trust. Founders wanted to know that the people testing their product were real, engaged, and unbiased. So we doubled down on vetting testers and giving founders control over what feedback they pay for.

Dustin Heaps

@baltazar_torres Love this — it’s such a relatable founder pain. Getting quality feedback early is tough, and trust is such a key piece that often gets overlooked. Probado sounds like a thoughtful solution that really understands both sides of the feedback loop.