I want to tell you something most founders leave out of their launch announcements.

I've failed…a lot on the way to building Uplyft….And I’m still failing.

Not small failures either. Real ones. The kind that make you question whether you're cut out for this. I question myself daily….Like, WTF am I doing? Nobody cares or wants this s#^t.

I made 100 TikTok videos over the past year. Health products, supplements, wellness gadgets and things that fit the Uplyft mission and vibe. I thought that if I could build an affiliate income stream, I could fund the app development myself. I made $100. Total. After 100 videos. That’s it.

I opened an Etsy store with SVG files of uplifting sayings. Coffee mugs with motivational quotes. 5 sales, but 3 returns for poor printing. (I lost money). I built a Gumroad store with a cool product, a package of 100 videos with positive affirmations, with an editable Canva template. Zero sales. I listed notebooks on Amazon. Zero sales.

And then there was the Backflip Burrito Challenge.

I went into my backyard, got on my kids' trampoline, and did backflips holding a real burrito. On camera. Multiple times. I called out Spencer Pratt on TikTok because he's known for loving burritos, and I figured if I could get a celebrity to do a backflip with a burrito, people would pay attention, and the GoFundMe money would go to youth sports charities and school lunches for kids.

It was weird. I knew it was weird.

I did it anyway because I believed in the mission and I wasn't above making a fool of myself for it.

Spencer Pratt never responded. Nobody jumped on a trampoline. I raised $20 bucks…. my own donation.

I have 854 videos on YouTube. I've made hour-long faceless meditation videos, Christmas ambience videos, wellness shorts, and app explainers. I got on camera even though I'm not naturally comfortable on camera, because I believed the story needed to be told. I built 3,580 subscribers doing it.

I've tried everything I could think of to make Uplyft real and generate enough momentum to keep going.

I'm telling you all of this because here's what I know about failure after living it up close:

Every failed attempt was the right instinct at the wrong time. You can't sell to an audience you haven't built yet. You can't monetize a mission people haven't discovered. The sequence matters as much as the effort. I had the effort. I was missing the foundation.

That foundation is the app.

I'm a UX designer. I spend my days creating seamless digital experiences for other clients and businesses. What I didn't have was a way to build what I could see in my head without a developer. So I started with Figma. Then Replit. Then I found Claude, and everything changed. Not just as a thinking partner but as a genuine co-builder. Then Claude Code. Then GitHub, Vercel, Supabase, Shopify, Namecheap. One tool at a time. One problem at a time.

The idea for Uplyft started simply. I have two athletic kids. I'd text them before games, things like, kick some a$$, compete, reminders to visualize success, stay focused, and believe in themselves. Sometimes they'd reply with a "Thanks, Dad." Other times, nothing. But I knew the message was planted. I knew that in those moments before they stepped on the field or court, they had something to hold onto.

I wanted to build a system that made that easier for every parent. One that remembered the schedule so we didn't have to. That we could find the right words even when we’re running on empty. Just help that uplifted parent who was also grinding just as hard as their kids.

Tonight, after 18+ months and a lot of backflips, the app is live.

Not perfect. Some features are still being refined. But it's real, it works, and anyone in the world can open it right now and give it a spin.

*feedback extremely welcomed and needed*

If you've been trying things that aren't working, the content nobody watches, the store with no sales, the challenge nobody joined….I want you to know that's not the end of the story. It's just the part before the foundation gets built. Don’t stop and never give up. Keep going. I’m 50. I just keep going. I have to. You have to.

If this app is something that you’re interested in for yourself and your family, join the waitlist and be part of the Uplyft community.

First 100 founding members lock in $4.99/month forever.

And if you've ever done something genuinely ridiculous in the name of something you believe in, send me a message. I want to hear about it.

This is just the beginning.

Brad