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Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

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Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#31

Post by david927 »

milkshakes wrote: post #28
lachyg wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've always thought a Kickstarter for startups / websites would be such a brilliant idea, but not feasible. This guys idea sounds fantastic, but I think the whole registering in Malta wouldn't be too appealing.

check out profounder.com they do just that

Not really. You must have a substantial, pre-existing relationship with the investor and you may only have a few investors. Even then, because these are non-accredited investors, you may have trouble raising financing in later rounds.

The idea of OpenStarts is that you can be funded by thousands of people you've never met and there's no penalty later.

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#32

Post by pitchups »

david927 wrote: post #29
lachyg wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've always thought a Kickstarter for startups / websites would be such a brilliant idea, but not feasible. This guys idea sounds fantastic, but I think the whole registering in Malta wouldn't be too appealing.

You simply can't do it in the U.S. There are very, very strict regulations against it. Many have tried different angles but it's amazingly airtight. Malta isn't appealing, I'm sure, to those outside of the EU. But the way I mentioned makes at least possible what otherwise is impossible.

We originally wanted to do something similar to what you are proposing. Since crowd-sourced investment was out in the US, we decided to just set up the site pitchups.com to allow people to get feedback/comments on their startup idea and connect with others, and just develop it as a community. There may be some value and synergies in combining what we are doing at pitchups with your site - maybe it can serve as a funnel for great ideas to get to the crowd-sourced funding stage. Let me know if this is something that would be of interest to you, by emailing admin@pitchups.com

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#33

Post by cmer »

Woah! Did you just copy/paste my mind or what? I am exactly in the same situation and feel exactly the same way as you! Every word and sentence you wrote describe me perfectly. I also sold a few startups, I'm both business and technical, can't get excited again, love Square, etc. We should hang out ;-)

I showed your post to my wife and she really thought I wrote it.

Please reach out to me and we'll talk. You can find my email on my about page. Cheers!

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#34

Post by petervandijck »

zorked wrote: post #14
petervandijck wrote: post #9

Here's an idea. You'll quickly find many challenges/problems with it, but if you can fix those (that's called innovation) you'll have something. Many immigrants to the US go back to their home country for surgery and similar health services. It's cheaper and often better. Why can't non-first-generation-immigrants take advantage of the same services easily? Ie. why can't you easily go to countryX and cheaply get your…

AirBNB for offshore medical services. That could be a billion-dollar business in fact.

There's the high-concept pitch.

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#35

Post by petervandijck »

joelhaasnoot wrote: post #19
zorked wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

AirBNB for offshore medical services. That could be a billion-dollar business in fact.

Once people find a doctor they like (and a foreign hospital), they stick with them, and would be going behind your back to get follow-up/repeat treatment. Not to mention all the redtape

Right. And you're saying you could not figure out ways to fix these problems? Innovate!

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#36

Post by cmer »

mike_esspe wrote: post #7

If you like Square, then try to build a bitcoin billing? :) The bitcoin market is relatively small now, but it's growing very fast.

Betting on such a small and unproven platform doesn't give you very good odds in my opinion. People who've been around the block a few times are usually looking for a bit more certainty than that. Not that anything is certain in the startup world, but this seems beyond risky/crapshot. My 2 cents...

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#37

Post by open »

david927 wrote: post #2

Funding seed-stage startups is broken. The ratio of accredited investors to startup is so skewed that most startups don't stand a chance of getting funding. As the LinkedIn IPO shows, average people are extremely excited about getting involved, but they are locked out in the US due to strong regulatory laws. Disruptive startups can't get funding and there are many people who would like to fund them with small investm…

Thanks David, I appreciate the offer. I think I'll stick with US base companies for now, it's something I understand more. I don't have any understanding of Malta or the EU and doesn't sound like something I'd want to get into but I genuinely thank you for the offer.

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#38

Post by open »

Vivtek wrote: post #24

If you ask me (and I think you did!) this is kind of a mini-burnout. Take a vacation - a real one. Don't think about anything, just take a month in Sicily or something. Meet some new friends who aren't in the startup scene. Go hang out with your dad, or some cousins. Disengage. Then come back. I'll bet you'll find you're more excited.

Thanks Vivtek, I honestly don't think it's being burnt out. After my last startup, I did take a leave and traveled for a bit. I think it's really more of, the ideas I'm coming up with or encountering are just not very interesting to me personally.

Re: Help Me HN: Can't think of new ideas I am interested on working on

#39

Post by open »

cmer wrote: post #33

Woah! Did you just copy/paste my mind or what? I am exactly in the same situation and feel exactly the same way as you! Every word and sentence you wrote describe me perfectly. I also sold a few startups, I'm both business and technical, can't get excited again, love Square, etc. We should hang out ;-) I showed your post to my wife and she really thought I wrote it. Please reach out to me and we'll talk. You can find…

Will make a note to reach out to you later =]
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