The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
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The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
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Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#2It really pisses me off that they are publishing this - the news of Jody's death devastated a lot of people and I don't see what new information is being reported here.
The Guatemala story is hearsay. This makes me so angry.
Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#3It really pisses me off that they are publishing this - the news of Jody's death devastated a lot of people and I don't see what new information is being reported here. The Guatemala story is hearsay. This makes me so angry.
I disagree. I think it's very healthy to open up the conversation again. I've been surprised at how much it hasn't been talked about in the last few months (not referring to online but in person). It was weird to be at startup events shortly after Jody's passing with people who knew him well and have absolutely no mention of it.
Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#4It really pisses me off that they are publishing this - the news of Jody's death devastated a lot of people and I don't see what new information is being reported here. The Guatemala story is hearsay. This makes me so angry.
How is it hearsay any more so than quotes from McClure and others? McAfee was quoted about their discussion, and Jody clearly went there - shouldn't be any dispute about that.
Why does this 'piss you off'? Seemed entirely reasonable to me.
EDIT: Perhaps you don't see any 'new' information here, but a lot of this was news to me. A great many more of us live outside the bubble that is the few square miles on the planet where so much tech activity takes place. We all didn't know Jody personally, and there seemed precious little in the days after his death that was anything more than "we didn't see this coming" and "he was always so full of life". Perhaps this will serve as a call to investors to have a closer eye o the books, regardless of how charismatic the head of the company may be. And I don't just mean for financial reasons - other people having a closer view of the books might have caused some serious discussions to happen - a forced face to face, as it were - which might have allowed them to see what was going on and offer help. Or it might have pushed him to suicide faster (assuming it was suicide) - who knows?
Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#5It really pisses me off that they are publishing this - the news of Jody's death devastated a lot of people and I don't see what new information is being reported here. The Guatemala story is hearsay. This makes me so angry.
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Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#6I think many of us have misconceptions about what drives someone to commit suicide, and thus it becomes a taboo mental health topic which isn't healthy. Often it can be a behavior that could be triggered by anything from drugs to mental disorders, and there's even a feeling that genetics may play a role.
I had a wonderful friend who passed away because of this and the one thing that it taught me was to talk about it. I'd urge everyone reading this to at least read up on the wikipedia page on the topic to educate yourself and get an overview:
Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#7It really pisses me off that they are publishing this - the news of Jody's death devastated a lot of people and I don't see what new information is being reported here. The Guatemala story is hearsay. This makes me so angry.
It's very difficult when someone you know in real life becomes a news story. People that have never met them will pass judgement, including the journalists who write about them. But the inarguable fact is that people are interested in this story, and there is probably much to be gained from being more open about the stresses of running your own company.
I can see how seeing his name again would be very unwelcome, and I absolutely sympathise. But I think it is an unfortunate fact of life. If you knew him well, nothing you will ever see written on the web about him will match the person you knew.
Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#8If you read this as a story, it's actually really well written--it's a great progression. There may not be one clear, overall thesis, but each section seems to have its own thesis and each is supported quite well. I never knew Jody but from the story, I have two takeaways:
1) Jody was a great person. The reason why I mention this first is to make it clear that the article really strives to show this. And he truly seemed to have a big heart.
2) Always be as open as possible. Many times, we don't want our problems to become others' problems so we hide it. And then it builds and it leads to a large amount of secrecy that could have been avoided. It goes back to the childhood saying we all hear, "No question is a dumb question." This phrase ultimately is saying that you might as well ask a question so that you are not falling behind in knowledge--whether it's academic or not. And please don't assume that I am saying Jody's suicide was purely because he didn't disclose Ecomom's financials; I just believe that if he would have been more open, more help could have been offered--financially and psychologically.
Of course, I gained more takeaways than this but these are the two I thought were most worth sharing.
Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#9It really pisses me off that they are publishing this - the news of Jody's death devastated a lot of people and I don't see what new information is being reported here. The Guatemala story is hearsay. This makes me so angry.
How is it hearsay any more so than quotes from McClure and others? McAfee was quoted about their discussion, and Jody clearly went there - shouldn't be any dispute about that. Why does this 'piss you off'? Seemed entirely reasonable to me. EDIT: Perhaps you don't see any 'new' information here, but a lot of this was news to me. A great many more of us live outside the bubble that is the few square miles on the planet…
I have to agree, in that the bulk of this story was news to me as well. Granted, my only prior exposure were the discussions here on HN immediately following his untimely passing.
It's inarguably tragic. What rang the truest to me were the mentions by McClure towards the bottom about keeping problems & ambitions, magnified by our own bubbles and echo chambers, in perspective.
Re: The Story Of A Failed Startup And A Founder Driven To Suicide
#10If true..
>One childhood friend recalled a time when Sherman committed insurance fraud. He described driving on a highway with Sherman when they were 16. Suddenly, Sherman told his friend to "buckle up." He slammed on the brakes and caused an accident. Later, the friend says, Sherman would collect thousands of dollars from insurance companies for the self-inflicted injuries.
Fuck the dude.