51–60 of 91 posts
It's interesting to see people put their studies on hold to pursue something they loved. I don't quite understand why they moved to San Francisco; the article didn't really make that clear. I'd love to have a cup of coffee with either of them though. Great people!
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I know that (and this often confuses people), I didn't want to add all the explanation there. But yes, you'll pay 41% on what goes over a certain limit (that is, above $41k annually or 32.8KEUR). About your second statement, not really: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_rates_of_Europe
Comparing taxes is hard. There are various other 'hidden' taxes that Ireland doesn't have. e.g. no 'council tax' or property tax (though they are bringing one in, most likely just for people who own, not rent), there are no water charges (yet), etc. All of this can mean that someone can have more in their pocket at the end of the month in Ireland. It all depends.
If you're paying less taxes and taking more home but things cost more then it may negate the advantage.
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I was born the same year as this guy . How do I reconcile myself to the fact that I may never achieve so much even in my entire life ? Is it a matter of lowering ones expectations ? If this is the kind of brilliance it takes to succeed in the start up world I'm quite discouraged.
Don't stress out over it. I'm Patrick, John's brother. I too constantly feel that I should be more successful, and I'm pretty sure the feeling doesn't go away -- no matter what's achieved. I think looking at others can be a useful gut check: am I working as hard as I could? Am I as focused as I'd like to be? But given that there's so much randomness and circumstance there too, it's a bad benchmark for anything. (For…
As a quick check: How important has luck been to you guys?
Ok, stripe's wonderful, but... why is stripe wonderful? It's a payment service provider. An expensive payment service provider. They have an API. It's nicely written - but a nicely written API doesn't make a product. They're available in the US and Canada. OK, but there's a whole planet out there. So, yeah. What exactly is it that's so amazing about stripe? I work in eCommerce, run and developed a little platform tha…
You have to remember, they are a Y Combinator funded start-up and this is a Y Combinator site, so there is a fair amount of hype on here about Stripe.
That said, I think they are doing something interesting and useful (in a real-world commerce sense), and wish them well with it.
Ok, stripe's wonderful, but... why is stripe wonderful? It's a payment service provider. An expensive payment service provider. They have an API. It's nicely written - but a nicely written API doesn't make a product. They're available in the US and Canada. OK, but there's a whole planet out there. So, yeah. What exactly is it that's so amazing about stripe? I work in eCommerce, run and developed a little platform tha…
> So, yeah. What exactly is it that's so amazing about stripe? You have to remember, they are a Y Combinator funded start-up and this is a Y Combinator site, so there is a fair amount of hype on here about Stripe. That said, I think they are doing something interesting and useful (in a real-world commerce sense), and wish them well with it.
I guess their principle differentiator is the market they target - but pitching to developers is a big bet. If you've worked around enough enterprises you know by now that developers have little say in business decisions - meaning that their main opportunity is to be chosen by startups, and to hope to high hell that one of them makes it big, and piggyback - and hope to high hell that a big player doesn't use their clout and cash to undercut them and shoulder them out.
Either way, kudos to them for building what's undeniably a good product, but I just don't see it as a gamer-changer in the same way as others seem to.
Ok, stripe's wonderful, but... why is stripe wonderful? It's a payment service provider. An expensive payment service provider. They have an API. It's nicely written - but a nicely written API doesn't make a product. They're available in the US and Canada. OK, but there's a whole planet out there. So, yeah. What exactly is it that's so amazing about stripe? I work in eCommerce, run and developed a little platform tha…
I believe you should revisit that assumption. Stripe is successful because of its API and UI. Likewise, Facebook and the iPhone largely succeeded because of their UI and API.
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He's also a pilot and pianist and he's only 22. I'm now asking myself where did my life going wrong?
He also got his company sold to eBay at the age of 17 for $5 million. Our Dani Fong here has a similar story -- dropped out of Princeton at the age of 17... where she was doing her doctorate . I think the parents of these two need to come out and explain to us what exactly their parenting methods are.
Having mom or dad to go running to trains you to spend your entire life hiding under the wing of "mom" or "dad". Having parents who go "So?" when you go "Timmy hit me at school" teaches you to sort out your own problems and find your own solutions.
The vast majority of people I know who've made it/are making it (the one's who're actually profitable, or have product(s) attracting investment) have either no, or highly dysfunctional, relationships with their parents.
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Comparing taxes is hard. There are various other 'hidden' taxes that Ireland doesn't have. e.g. no 'council tax' or property tax (though they are bringing one in, most likely just for people who own, not rent), there are no water charges (yet), etc. All of this can mean that someone can have more in their pocket at the end of the month in Ireland. It all depends.
Yes, also cost of living is important. If you're paying less taxes and taking more home but things cost more then it may negate the advantage.
"Biggest drop in cost of living since 1933" http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/biggest-drop-in-cost-of...
And between 2009 and now, our economy has been flat at best. I think it's important to look at all of these factors when examining a country's economy. The real problem Ireland has is unemployment: we went from ~4% to ~14% unemployment in just a few years. This has added to the decline in the cost of living however (less demand for goods and services).
Ok, stripe's wonderful, but... why is stripe wonderful? It's a payment service provider. An expensive payment service provider. They have an API. It's nicely written - but a nicely written API doesn't make a product. They're available in the US and Canada. OK, but there's a whole planet out there. So, yeah. What exactly is it that's so amazing about stripe? I work in eCommerce, run and developed a little platform tha…
> It's nicely written - but a nicely written API doesn't make a product. I believe you should revisit that assumption. Stripe is successful because of its API and UI. Likewise, Facebook and the iPhone largely succeeded because of their UI and API.
iPhone - marketing, marketing, marketing, marketing, and the US had never really seen a smartphone before. Then, ecosystem and snowball.
That said, I agree that UI is a fundamental part of any product - API, however, not so much - Joe Public doesn't care and neither does your CFO - and as posited, developers, no matter how much we'd like to think we are, are not influencers in the markets where PSPs are entrenched.
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Yes, also cost of living is important. If you're paying less taxes and taking more home but things cost more then it may negate the advantage.
Ireland's cost of living has been in decline in recent years due to the recession triggered by the global credit crunch and a substantial local property market collapse. For example, this is from 2009: "Biggest drop in cost of living since 1933" http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/biggest-drop-in-cost-of... And between 2009 and now, our economy has been flat at best. I think it's important to look at all of these fa…
Rent and property have also fallen in value, making it cheaper to rent.