Who wrote this? I'd like to talk to you - chrisjtow@gmail.com
Me too - Dave.trindall@gmail.com
The Truth about a Failing Startup
151–160 of 169 posts
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#152Things may not be as bad as they seem. Don't worry about the investor's money - it's called venture capital for a reason. You've probably learned a tremendous amount from the experience. Think about what the next step for you is after this company. Sounds like you're a developer and can easily get a well-paying job. Sounds like there is still some money left and you can take some time and decompress from the experien…
Absolutely agree with this - it's venture captial. They're taking a risk, sure you should be responsible with their investment, but it's a risk. They're not buying guaranteed success, if they were I'd imagine it'be a far larger pricetag than what they paid.
Best of luck, but definitely do _not_ feel guilty.
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#153Best post I've read yet on HN. The feels man, the feels.
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#154I've started four companies in my career, two of which ended up nicely, one of which was an utter train wreck that bankrupted people, and one a work in progress.
You'll learn more from a bad outcome than from a success. I agree with everyone saying don't worry about the investors. They invested in a highly risky business. Turned out it wasn't the next Facebook. Well, that's 99.999% of startups.
More likely than not, the business was doomed by circumstances before it even began (bad timing, bad market fit, etc). If this was your first or second business (likely), no reasonable investor can blame you, even if you did make avoidable mistakes.
So treat it as a learning experience, and don't obsess about the impact on your reputation, etc. Shit happens, and anybody who knows the tech business understands the odds are stacked against you.
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#155Earlier quoted context omitted.
Same thoughts here. My parents are simple people. If I would tell them I had less sign-ups this week than last week, they would be pretty devastated. Talking anything more serious is no-go.
Same here. Love them, but they don't really understand and I don't want to trouble them.
[edit: removed baseless cheap shot]
I bet they understand a lot more about life than you do.
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#156Earlier quoted context omitted.
Same here. Love them, but they don't really understand and I don't want to trouble them.
[edit: removed baseless cheap shot] I bet they understand a lot more about life than you do.
> I bet they understand a lot more about life than you do.
Dude, WTF?
I know this isn't a reply to me directly but here's an example of the sort of thing I had in mind. I have premature twins that were born last January three months early (they are doing great now, BTW). While they were in the hospital, family came and visited sporadically. One of our parents (I'll be vague) was with us in the hospital when my wife and I were mistakenly told by doctor that our son had potentially severe brain damage (IMMEDIATE PARENTHETICAL NOTE: he did not and is doing great, they misread the MRI). So, my wife and I are pretty alarmed and stressed.
The visiting parent, on the other hand, was stammering and incoherent for days afterwards, totally unable to handle it.
If we had been counting on him or her for emotional support, understanding, really anything at all of substance this meltdown would have been a problem. But we weren't, because, you know, we've known this parent for a while now and realize and accept his or her limitations. This response was unsurprising.
The point I was trying to make in my initial comment[1] is that, for some people, it is naive and dangerous to think of your parents as a "safe harbor" and you need to look elsewhere. Not everyone has all of the strengths and perspective that I can only assume your parents do. Mythologizing people as universally "knowing more about life than you do" because they're a little older is bullshit.
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#157Try not to let the thought of letting down investors bring you down. They're investors, they put money in knowing they might not get it back. Obviously, they've moved on...probably without much trouble. You're going to have a much harder time of it.
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#158Try not to let the thought of letting down investors bring you down. They're investors, they put money in knowing they might not get it back. Obviously, they've moved on...probably without much trouble. You're going to have a much harder time of it.
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#159Hey, fellow failed entrepreneur here. My startup failed about 6-9 months ago. It was a very difficult time, our business partners went back on their promises and with that 3+ years of my life went down the drain. It was a terrible couple of months, lots of lost sleep, high blood pressure, I'm still dealing with it. I was unemployed for a couple of months, then finally took a job at a great company, where I feel great…
"The buddhists are right, the only constant in life is change" Not totally true. I want to point out that there's a huge gap between what Buddha saw and taught and what is said by the teachings in modern Buddhism. Gautama Buddha went to people basically every single day for 45 years and tried to awaken them. He absolutely did not teach people that it's possible to eliminate suffering while alive, and he never taught…
I'm not sure exactly what the correction that you're supposed to be issuing is. He cited the buddhists, not Buddha, and you say right away that "there's a huge gap between what Buddha saw and taught and what is said by the teachings in modern Buddhism." What is your objection, exactly?
Re: The Truth about a Failing Startup
#160My company failed (unexpectedly) in 2008.
I had signed piercing agreements on a large contract, and on some financing before the failure, so I ended up on the hook for a little over $500,000. The risk/reward payoff looked much better the odds were in favor of reward.
Here's my progress to date: http://i.imgur.com/IGQ3rz6.png
It's an anchor. It's killing my dreams. I worry that the stress will literally kill me.