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Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
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Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#2I think a lot of people who visit those two websites:
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#3Based on my experience, I think it is a extremely difficult thing to do!
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#4Not me - but, I think one of the prime examples is Warby Parker. At least according to 'Originals' by Adam Grant.
Mr. Grant scoffed at the founders meekness at not going full ahead and passed an opportunity to invest. After WP became successful Mr. Grant realized he had no idea how to gauge peoples tendency to succeed - which prompted him to write the book. Which is an excellent read.
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#5[deleted]
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#6[deleted]
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#7Tread carefully. If you’re going to do this, read your current employment agreement carefully especially the parts about Intellectual Property. Every medium-to-large company I have worked at has asserted ownership of everything I build, at work or away from work, using my own equipment, on my own time—it doesn't matter. If your employer can imagne a conflict of interest (for example could what you are working on potentially compete with a current or future business of your employer’s?), you’re screwed. I’ve had to end involvement with open source projects and home hobby projects because of the IP threats in my employment agreements. Feel free to take the risk yourself, personally I don’t feel like fighting a room full of corporate lawyers.
EDIT: jobsandjobs, sorry to have derailed your good Ask HN question but I thought this was an important and often-overlooked pitfall that people should be aware of.
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#8Might be easier to combine a day job with freelancing rather than having a startup.
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#9Bootstrapped https://artcall.org and trying to gain traction on https://ezzl.art while employed full time elsewhere.
Re: Ask HN: Who here has built a profitable startup while keeping their day job?
#10Tread carefully. If you’re going to do this, read your current employment agreement carefully especially the parts about Intellectual Property. Every medium-to-large company I have worked at has asserted ownership of everything I build, at work or away from work, using my own equipment, on my own time—it doesn't matter. If your employer can imagne a conflict of interest (for example could what you are working on pote…
Put it in your contract before you get employed. If starting a company while employed, reach out to your employer saying you're building company X which does Y as a side project and you need a document stating no IP ownership.