The Mos Eisley Deck
An automated workflow platform for e-commerce sellers that acts as an intelligence 'droid', scanning digital marketplaces for strategic product opportunities and market gaps, not just simple price changes.
Solstice: The Automated Financial Watchtower
An automated workflow system for freelancers and small businesses that predicts cash flow 'nightfalls' based on payment data and triggers pre-emptive actions to ensure financial survival.
Inspired by the cyclical catastrophe in 'Nightfall' and the long-term survival planning in 'Interstellar', Solstice is a workflow automation tool designed to be a freelancer's financial mission control. It addresses the common 'feast or famine' cycle by treating a business not as a series of transactions, but as a long-duration mission where resource management is key to survival.
Concept:
Every freelancer or small business operates on a planet with its own financial 'seasons'. There are periods of bright 'daylight' (consistent projects, fast payments) and inevitable periods of 'nightfall' (project droughts, late invoices). Solstice is the automated observatory that constantly watches the financial horizon. It doesn't just track past payments like standard accounting software; it uses this data to predict the arrival of the next 'nightfall' and automates a survival protocol.
How It Works:
1. Data Aggregation (The Scraper's Legacy): The user securely connects their financial data sources via APIs – bank accounts, invoicing software (e.g., FreshBooks, Wave), and payment gateways (e.g., Stripe, PayPal). The system ingests real-time data on income, expenses, and outstanding invoices.
2. The 'Horizon' Engine (The Sci-Fi Core): The core of Solstice is a predictive engine that calculates a single, critical metric: the 'Runway Horizon' – the exact date your business will run out of cash based on current reserves, burn rate, and predicted income patterns. It analyzes your payment history to understand your unique business cycle and identifies 'gravitational anomalies' – large upcoming annual bills or historically late-paying clients that threaten to shorten your runway.
3. Automated Workflow Protocol (The Automation): This is where Solstice becomes an active crew member, not a passive dashboard. When the 'Runway Horizon' drops below a user-defined threshold (e.g., 90 days), it automatically triggers a pre-configured workflow:
- Automated Invoice Pursuit: It initiates a multi-stage, automated email sequence to chase overdue invoices. The tone and frequency intelligently escalate as the 'Horizon' date gets closer, moving from a 'gentle reminder' to an 'urgent follow-up'.
- 'Winter Fund' Transfers: During periods of high cash flow ('daylight'), the system calculates an optimal amount to set aside and automatically transfers it to a separate savings account, building a buffer for the predicted lean times.
- Pre-emptive Client Outreach: The system can be configured to automatically send a personalized-looking email to a list of 'warm' past clients when it predicts a future project gap, saying something like, 'Just wrapping up a major project and my schedule is opening up in a few weeks. Thought I'd reach out to see if you have anything on the horizon.'
- Intelligent Expense Alerts: It flags non-essential recurring subscriptions and alerts the user when they become a significant threat to the runway, suggesting they be paused to extend survival.
Concept:
Every freelancer or small business operates on a planet with its own financial 'seasons'. There are periods of bright 'daylight' (consistent projects, fast payments) and inevitable periods of 'nightfall' (project droughts, late invoices). Solstice is the automated observatory that constantly watches the financial horizon. It doesn't just track past payments like standard accounting software; it uses this data to predict the arrival of the next 'nightfall' and automates a survival protocol.
How It Works:
1. Data Aggregation (The Scraper's Legacy): The user securely connects their financial data sources via APIs – bank accounts, invoicing software (e.g., FreshBooks, Wave), and payment gateways (e.g., Stripe, PayPal). The system ingests real-time data on income, expenses, and outstanding invoices.
2. The 'Horizon' Engine (The Sci-Fi Core): The core of Solstice is a predictive engine that calculates a single, critical metric: the 'Runway Horizon' – the exact date your business will run out of cash based on current reserves, burn rate, and predicted income patterns. It analyzes your payment history to understand your unique business cycle and identifies 'gravitational anomalies' – large upcoming annual bills or historically late-paying clients that threaten to shorten your runway.
3. Automated Workflow Protocol (The Automation): This is where Solstice becomes an active crew member, not a passive dashboard. When the 'Runway Horizon' drops below a user-defined threshold (e.g., 90 days), it automatically triggers a pre-configured workflow:
- Automated Invoice Pursuit: It initiates a multi-stage, automated email sequence to chase overdue invoices. The tone and frequency intelligently escalate as the 'Horizon' date gets closer, moving from a 'gentle reminder' to an 'urgent follow-up'.
- 'Winter Fund' Transfers: During periods of high cash flow ('daylight'), the system calculates an optimal amount to set aside and automatically transfers it to a separate savings account, building a buffer for the predicted lean times.
- Pre-emptive Client Outreach: The system can be configured to automatically send a personalized-looking email to a list of 'warm' past clients when it predicts a future project gap, saying something like, 'Just wrapping up a major project and my schedule is opening up in a few weeks. Thought I'd reach out to see if you have anything on the horizon.'
- Intelligent Expense Alerts: It flags non-essential recurring subscriptions and alerts the user when they become a significant threat to the runway, suggesting they be paused to extend survival.