What was your most painful realisation of 2012?

Are you writing software or running a company?

As a business person it's fiscal suicide to release a product for which there is no market. Most people see more benefit from a mediocre mechanic than a world-class buggy whip manufacture.

If the people who will see your product on the first iteration are the majority of your potential customers then chances are your business is a failure anyway.

How many of us think less of PG because HN uses tables?

Working at a successful startup is no fun at all.

I would be cautious on your labeling them as incompetent--perhaps they are very competent at protecting their positions, you just have a different agenda.

Of course, I don't know your exact situation. But, people act according to their alignment of incentives. If one is more motivated by the work they're doing rather than the pay they're receiving, then you get one set of behaviors. Likewise, if they're motivated by power, you get another set of behaviors. It's folly to assign your values and incentives onto somebody else and call them incompetent because they're different.

You may just be golfing, and they're bowling, and looking at the scoreboard, you think they have a miserable score, when in fact, they're a strike away from a perfect game.

If you understand how folks like that behave, you can work with them to make decisions that will be in your best (or at least better) interests.

That's a profound thought that transcends technology, thanks.

That during a double dip recession things can still get worse. A lot of my friends are now jobless.

That my boss wants to hear compliments. Nothing else. Ever.

Reading HN is the closest I'll ever get to seeing a start up grow any larger than 3 people struggling in a tiny office paid for by the EU.

I won't ever pay off my credit cards or mortgage. I'll never own a new car or any new hobby equipment. eBay and freecycle are integral parts of my life.

My performance based quarterly bonuses won't get paid.

America sounds like a bonkers place to live, I hope they (you?) start to do something about climate change.