The Best Advice My Dad Ever Gave Me (for Demo Day)

Post by choffstein » Fri, Aug 10, 2012, 3:27 PM UTC

savramescu wrote: post #41

choffstein wrote: post #34

As someone who has started a business in the finance space trying to leverage technology, I take some offense to this. My business partners and I have worked our asses off over the last several years to get to where we are today: billions of dollars in assets powered by our investment models. Trust me: asking someone to give you money to put in your strategies is not easy. Unlike the start-up space, there is no "mini…

I see Dad's advice as going for something that can have more meaning to you and for which you need balls then for the safe/low risk model. It's not about stress, it's about the need of the individual to make a difference. Doing something that has been done before it's not that exciting for a 20-ish year old. But someone older will take comfort in it.

Post by acoyfellow » Fri, Aug 10, 2012, 3:49 PM UTC

dmor wrote: post #21

sachingulaya wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, at least you're straightforward that this is your storytelling time. I come to HN for the increasingly rare high signal:noise ratio content and discussion. Given that I don't think HN is the proper medium for this kind of expression. I read more of your blog and see that you think these are 'troll posts'. They're not.

I don't think you are trolling, I just can't control what makes it to the front page or not. Clearly this resonated with some people. I am not sure why my story as a startup founder isn't the right kind of stuff for HN, I've been a part of this community for a long time and posted a broad range of stuff from code to news to marketing advice and on and on... I'm not trying to fit the mold, I'm just sharing my experien…

Post by dmor » Fri, Aug 10, 2012, 3:57 PM UTC

Knighty wrote: post #24

dmor wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for the kind wishes. I think what I (the OP) failed to convey in my post is that going into finance, given my background, would have been the easy way out for me. Having someone tell me "oh you could totally do X" when I thought X was this crazy out of reach thing, made me re-evaluate whether other things I had put on the crazy shelf were do-able, too. Like founding a startup.

Yes, that makes more sense. In which case it feels like the point of the post is more to do with following your own path before accepting the path that is 'mapped' out? Perhaps you actually say this in the post somewhere, but it I don't recall seeing it. IMHO it would make an interesting article if you emphasised that point more. In my experience there is something to be said for NOT always following the money but fo…

Post by choffstein » Fri, Aug 10, 2012, 4:22 PM UTC

savramescu wrote: post #43

choffstein wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am a 20-ish year old and despite "what I do" has been done before, the "way I do it" never has -- and that is plenty "exciting." There is nothing safe or low-risk about starting a hedge fund. I get your point about "having more meaning" -- but I'd argue that is true for any business endeavor, not just tech startups. If what I was doing didn't have truly personal meaning for me, there is no way I could stomach the s…

I think you're reading into it too much, and you're taking it too far away from the context between Dad and Daughter. This is, and will be, their own personal experiences. For some starting a hedge fund can be seen as high-risk, when for someone that has run one for years (Dad's case) or for someone that's been around one for years (Daughter's case) it can be seen as low-risk. If Dad was an MD he would've said don't…

Post by pg » Fri, Aug 10, 2012, 5:13 PM UTC

WiseWeasel wrote: post #5

I hate to be that guy bitching without offering any constructive criticism, but this was painful to read. At least I had the courtesy to stick it through to the end to be sure before I posted this. We deserve better than this drivel at the top of HN.