Create a business on Mars!

Mars has come near!

I am a Software Developer. The Mars was always my favorite planet (besides Saturn and Pluto). Not because I am much interested in astronomy. It is because I have played Zak McCracken and the Alien Mindbenders. The time when Zak was moving on the surface of Mars with that train… fantastic. Now with the successful landing of Curiosity we might have taken another step to send humans to Mars. Some say, it is around 2030 or so. Others, like Elon Musk say, the Mars is ready for the first Humans in 12 - 15 years! Wow! That means I am not even 50 when they land. 10 more years and the colony should be ready for visitors. I am around 60 then.

Why should programmers care about a new job on the Mars today?

With 60 I think I need to change my Job. Java, JavaScript and PHP, which I mostly code, might be like Cobol today. Ah, actually I think PHP is dead than, JavaScript has been replaced by Dart and Java is like Cobol. Have you ever seen a programmer who is 60 years old? I don’t know many. These days being a software developer is not a good reputation; if you haven’t managed to become a project manager or at least a software architect, you have somehow failed. It doesn’t matter if you like your job or not. You need to get up or out. A friend once told me:”Do you really want to develop forever?”. He is now some random guy who fills out Excelsheets and cares on burn down charts. I have lead teams as well, but never saw myself as a more important person than everybody else on the team. Today I code a lots again, because I quite the manager job and now you can hire me as a Freelancer.

Ah, but back to Mars! When I am 60 and exhausted I need an other job. With the current EU/Euro crisis and the overall situation of pensions in Germany (and I guess most other countries too) I really that I work until I drop dead. No, I am not pessimistic, but I don’t think we will live such an easy live when we are old as we hope. Many of us will work until they die. And for the recent newborn this will probably mean they work until they are 90. But I am in luck, chances are I work until I am 70 or 80 only.

As Mars is not part of the EU or any other country in crisis, I bet it will be pretty stable. One day Mars will be independent from Earth and who knows, a new Silicon Valley might rise there. But thats too far in future.

Ah, we have talked about why you should get a new job - but why on Mars? It’s easy! It is an adventure. And you have mostly geeks around you, a group of people you probably already know! And in my case of a Pizza baker this is the ultimate target group! A geek eats at least one Pizza a week. Assuming there are 1.000 geeks then I sell around 4.000 Pizzas a month. This is pretty much more than I can deliver. Guess, a Pizza will be expensive. You see, there is much potential there and much work. I already have ideas to employ others.

Use what you have learned on Mars!

I am some kind of Entrepreneur now and work as a Developer. I am used to do Open Source at the Apache Software Foundation. Despite the fact that there will be a Mars Software Foundation someday, I guess I am not able to contribute much to the new code to code-like Open Source projects.

So what can a guy like me do when he arrives on Mars?

Of course I need to build up my business on Open Source and of course I need to be self employed! What else can that be to migrate to Mars and work as an Pizza baker! I originally wanted to become a professional Shakuhachi player there (Shakuhachi is a japanese Bamboo flute). But Art is not well paid these days and it will not change very likely.

Anyway, as a self employed Pizza Maker surely I would make fine. I know about taxes, can do some Marketing on social media likeMarsbookFacebook and probably be able to code some online delivery form in one of the new languages. Even when I cannot earn money as a professional developer, my skills might still be sufficient to create a simply and ugly Pizza-site/app.

Don’t go to Mars with blank hands!

My mate Simone Tripodi is a true italian. He once wrote a blog post on how to make an “Open Source Pizza”. My plan is to create a fork of it and customize it for the needs of the Marsians. I am pretty sure there will be no flour. Instead I think much of the food in 30 years will be based on soy. I can imagine that my Mars-Pizza will use some kind of Soy-flour.

In addition I thought I would make Simone an offer. He will probably agree to found a Pizza-Startup on Mars with me when he gets a good equity. Hopefully he does not read this blog post before I can put the offer on his desk. So please don’t tell him.

Use tax deductions on Mars!

As Entrepeneurs we might get a good tax rate from the new Mars Government. I mean… look at it now. It’s just a red desert. It will take a long while until it becomes the paradise to which all the earthlings might come for vacation. The Government will surely offer reduced tax rates for new founded business. On a side note, I really hope that Mars becomes a democratic planet. Let’s say “Independent Democratic Republic of Mars”.

Do something ass kicking!

Today I read the great blog post “An unexpected Ass kicking”.

Do things that have never been done.”

- Russel Kirsch

This is a quote from the blog post. Of course I will not be the first person on Mars. But for sure I will have the first Pizza service on the red planet! Anyway I am concerned McDonalds will open there a little earlier than I can do. Therefore I thought I should offer some special, Mars-related Pizzas. For example:

• Pizza Face: two eggs and green pepper which forms a face. I have learned about Cydonia in Zak McKracken (see image below)
• Pizza Red Desert: red planet, red Pizza! Some vegetables and then tons of tabasco hot chili sauce that it looks red. We probably should consider an insurance here.
• Pizza Curiosity: Remember the Mission with this Pizza! Its a triple pizza. Means bottom - veggies - bottom - meat - bottom - veggies. The meat should come from the first Mars Cows. I really hope they will import cows. Otherwise Marsians will not have barbecues for a long time.
• Pizza Tuna: A classic!I wanted that Pizza, but it seems Tuna will not exist any longer when we move towards Mars.

I think with Pizza Face I might have a good product in place! Hopefully Facebook is not sueing me because of trademarking issues.

Get a domain!

Unfortunately the .mars TLD is not available yet. I think it will become as strong as the .com Domains. Maybe it is a good side project to become one of these domain resellers who always go on my nerves. I could simply create a random character generator and buy ALL domains in the next 30 years. I would be rich then! Mercedes.mars. What a great Domain. Or Facebook.mars. Ah, whatever, with 60 years I better stick with Pizza and focus. Maybe I manage to get gww.pizza.mar (gww is “galaxy wide web” as “world wide web” is not longer exact enough).

Make Connections!

My plan is to open the business maybe around 2037. If you want to open your own business on Mars, please add me on Twitter: @grobmeier. If you want to tweet about this post or your own Mars-Business-Ideas use #marsbiz. I could need some people in service. And I need somebody who imports drinks and food from the earth. Or you can subscribe to my mailinglist. Or you can write me an e-mail. Feel free!