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I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

blog.42floors.com

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Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#61

Post by midas007 »

Edmond wrote: post #34
Xdes wrote: post #9

>negotiations, there are plenty good books out there. Such as? As a programmer that can't negotiate a decent salary/consulting rate I would find this useful.

The best and most valuable class I took in B-School was my last class, which was on negotiations. Nothing earth shattering but bits of wisdom when assembled together can really change your perspective on how to approach things. The basic problem is that whether due to culture or nature we tend to approach transactions as zero sum games (aka distributive), ie if I get something you must lose something. Negotiation is…

Negotiating is like a muscle. You're gonna want to work on it before the moments that really matter. Easiest way might be to start going to flea markets, because those azn grandmas are killers that make Shark Tank look like the kiddie pool.

That'll help the soft skills, but in a hiring situation, the other part is getting to what the other side really wants and what their concerns are. A hiring manager's first thoughts are: "how much babysitting is this person going to take?" and "will s/he mess up team mojo?" Don't be that person, be the net go-giver that makes 'em shine... Less talk, more walk.

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#62

Post by Grokit »

sayemm wrote: post #48

I've been working on startups more or less for most of my 20s (both as a founder and an employee at a venture-backed startup), I've learned a great deal from it, lost a lot from it and endured a lot of hardship, but I think the journey also transformed me and cut me out of wood ( http://max.levch.in/post/36289276742/strengthen-your-startup... ). So no regrets, I'm really excited about the future and I'm thinking long…

You make it sound like bootstrapping a business to 7 figures is a walk in the park.

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#63

Post by sayemm »

delluminatus wrote: post #56
sayemm wrote: post #48

I've been working on startups more or less for most of my 20s (both as a founder and an employee at a venture-backed startup), I've learned a great deal from it, lost a lot from it and endured a lot of hardship, but I think the journey also transformed me and cut me out of wood ( http://max.levch.in/post/36289276742/strengthen-your-startup... ). So no regrets, I'm really excited about the future and I'm thinking long…

Hmm, start a profitable bootstrapped business with 7 figures of revenue right out of college? And it's much lower risk. Why didn't I think of that?

Because you're too busy reading TechCrunch...

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#64

Post by sayemm »

Grokit wrote: post #62
sayemm wrote: post #48

I've been working on startups more or less for most of my 20s (both as a founder and an employee at a venture-backed startup), I've learned a great deal from it, lost a lot from it and endured a lot of hardship, but I think the journey also transformed me and cut me out of wood ( http://max.levch.in/post/36289276742/strengthen-your-startup... ). So no regrets, I'm really excited about the future and I'm thinking long…

You make it sound like bootstrapping a business to 7 figures is a walk in the park.

Obviously not, but there are plenty of success stories out there on the internet. It's far much more of a walk in the park than making it with a venture-backed startup first time around. If you don't have what it takes to make it with a "lifestyle business", then there's no way you have what it takes to make it as a startup founder.

Also, sorry don't mean to sound cocky. I'm still a failed entrepreneur, just speaking from lessons I've learned from scars of failure. I'm not giving up on the startup game, just thinking long-term about it and my development as an entrepreneur.

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#65

Post by codr »

a8da6b0c91d wrote: post #55
scarecrowbob wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Former university English instructor here; the usage you are critiquing is widely regarded as a good tradeoff between deferring to the gendering baked into our language and recognizing the integration of a population. It's often much easier to write and read pronouns, and it is my opinion (though far from an accepted truth) that alternating him/her when contextually appropriate is less clunky than using the him/herse…

In English the male pronoun is the generic and has been for centuries. Every time somebody misuses she/her as the generic I'm knocked into a moment of confusion wondering who this sudden specific chick is. Let's cut the crap; when people write she/her/womankind for the generic it's about PC. It's not standard English.

> "In English the male pronoun is the generic"

Indeed.. and that's the problem.

The times, they are a changin!

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#66

Post by sjg007 »

mbesto wrote: post #18
untog wrote: post #14

It’s no surprise that Alex mistakenly chose a big company over a startup straight out of school even though he was already interested in startups. That was not necessarily a mistake. As a fresh college grad (and particularly as an engineer) I'd argue that you are ill-equipped to judge a good startup opportunity from a bad one. There is absolutely nothing wrong with spending time at a large company, benefitting from t…

I started my career at SAP. Although I feel like I'm behind the "startup curve" because I spent 4 years there, the lessons I learned about managing teams and understanding complexities in a large company are absolutely priceless. I don't believe it was a mistake whatsoever. You and I are probably being too pedantic, but I agree, it was a poor choice of words. Lately, I've noticed a meme from investors about discernin…

Don't you.. just hire experienced folks in for specific roles to help scale? Mark hired Sheryl Sandberg. Perhaps the best skill is knowing how to delegate.

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#67

Post by failed2 »

sayemm wrote: post #64
Grokit wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You make it sound like bootstrapping a business to 7 figures is a walk in the park.

Obviously not, but there are plenty of success stories out there on the internet. It's far much more of a walk in the park than making it with a venture-backed startup first time around. If you don't have what it takes to make it with a "lifestyle business", then there's no way you have what it takes to make it as a startup founder. Also, sorry don't mean to sound cocky. I'm still a failed entrepreneur, just speaking…

I'd add an important lesson that I have learned: it takes money to make money.

A ton (perhaps most) failed businesses fail because they're undercapitalized. Even if your costs are low you can only go so long without eating, and if you're worrying about how your life savings is going to run out in 4 months I guarantee that you won't be as effective at building your business.

Your chances of bootstrapping a successful business are much much higher when you have money.

The best thing you can do is not start up a different kind of company (bootstrap vs. VC) but build up your bank account. In this market there are a lot of opportunities to earn good money, particularly if you're a developer. Save, save, save and in a few years, you should have enough to start a business from a credible, realistic cash position.

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#68

Post by failed2 »

nlh wrote: post #27
untog wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then you don't want to get into startups. That's not really what this article is about, though.

Exactly. What you want is "the fun of an energetic culture and the chance to make a ton of money when the startup goes public" but without taking the risk associated with that, which is precisely giving up your stable (high) paycheck and 9-5ish schedule. *although, thankfully, the schedule-regularity theme is starting to show up more regularly in startup culture, which is a good change.

Change "the fun of an energetic culture and the chance to make a ton of money when the startup goes public" to "the stress and chaos of a childish, incompetent culture and the delusion of making a ton of money when the startup gets bought by Facebook" and you'll be spot on.

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#69

Post by failed2 »

peter303 wrote: post #46

The key points of the article are "Engineer" and "side projects". The engineers are an important and fun part of startups. Side projects are applications and code you can show people outside your company. One sugggestion is to look for public developer groups in your area in meetup.com. Type keywords "java" or "mobile" and you get a number of them. Go to those meetings and hear about interesting things people are dev…

Sorry but in practice side projects usually don't mean much at most companies. Companies generally hire by one of 2 things:

1. Track record (i.e. you worked at a big name company and/or shipped product that's public facing/commercial). 2. Interviewing ability.

The former don't care if you built something on the side and the later are going to hire you based on your whiteboarding ability.

Re: I want to get into startups, but I don’t know where to start

#70

Post by datboitom »

untog wrote: post #14

It’s no surprise that Alex mistakenly chose a big company over a startup straight out of school even though he was already interested in startups. That was not necessarily a mistake. As a fresh college grad (and particularly as an engineer) I'd argue that you are ill-equipped to judge a good startup opportunity from a bad one. There is absolutely nothing wrong with spending time at a large company, benefitting from t…

Completely agree here. I had the option to join a startup or go with an established web company this past year when I graduated and I chose the more established company. The reason I did this was because I wanted to learn what was tools and technologies were being used and how they were being implemented by established web companies today and build upon that knowledge. Obviously the larger company has done something right in order to get to where they are. Plus, there is a level of stability. Bigger companies also tend to be able to help international students better and provide a little more financial security to someone who may have college loans. I have learned so much this past year at my job and will carry that knowledge when I do start or join a startup.

I also feel the same in regards to working for a startup when you're not a founder or a very early employee. It is completely true you likely will be making your bosses rich and not as much yourself, unless you're like an absolute rockstar their equity is still going to be at least 20-50x more than you (this is just a rough guess). If you think you can do it on your own, might as well.

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