This is simply survivorship bias.
How so?
When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
51–60 of 64 posts
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#52I think this article is misleading. See Figure 1 on page 8 -- only 30.4% of the entrepreneurs surveyed were in software or hardware start ups, the rest were in other 'high technology' industries such as energy and bio-tech. I would love to see the same questions asked of only web-software start up entrepreneurs, I bet the results (age, experience, etc.) would skew differently.
No - the Hacker News/PG convention of referring to 'startups' meaning only web software startups is misleading. The general use of the term is broader. Seeing the breakdown by category would be interesting though.
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't actually know the numbers. We don't keep track. But I know there haven't been any with founders in their 50s, and only 2 or 3 with founders in their 40s or their teens. Most founders are in their 20s or 30s. Completely guessing, I'd say 15-20% have founders in their 30s.
Have you noticed any correlation between age and failure?
Off the top of my head, I'd say that older founders are more likely to succeed. They don't give up so easily. On the other hand, they also tend to have much higher burn rates, which make their startups easier for circumstances to kill.
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
Are you willing to share the number of companies YC has invested in where founders were in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s or older ?
I don't actually know the numbers. We don't keep track. But I know there haven't been any with founders in their 50s, and only 2 or 3 with founders in their 40s or their teens. Most founders are in their 20s or 30s. Completely guessing, I'd say 15-20% have founders in their 30s.
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Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#55Earlier quoted context omitted.
Your theory is about a third right. Young founders do get more attention from the press. But not because of propaganda campaigns by their investors. The press doesn't have to be talked into it: they already have a bias toward writing about young founders. And it's definitely false that VCs prefer founders who are young because they can be pushed around. VCs are very unlikely to invest in someone they can push around.…
Are you willing to share the number of companies YC has invested in where founders were in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s or older ?
Another factor is that older founders will have (relatively) less need of YC: they'll have their own funds, experience and contacts. The age-distribution of YC startup applicants affects the age-distribution of those that are funded, and so doesn't necessarily generalize to all startups.
E.g. Adobe was founded by a couple of guys in their 40's.
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
> 40 is old for a startup founder or professional athlete Though I wouldn't really classify rock or mountain climbing as a profession, the really good ones tend to peak around their 40s. The books I've read on the subject indicate that though the peak physical capacity lies in the mid to late twenties, there are many other factor at play that make climbers better as they age (up to a reasonable age limit). Experience…
Yes, but 25 is probably old for a figure skater. There are outliers on both ends, but athletes usually tend towards youth. You'd be hard-pressed to name an Olympic event with a gold medalist over 40, or in the team events, a gold medal team averaging over 40. (While it's not fair to compare Olympic soccer, compare World Cup soccer instead.)
Shooting and equestrian events have had gold medalists over 40.
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes, but 25 is probably old for a figure skater. There are outliers on both ends, but athletes usually tend towards youth. You'd be hard-pressed to name an Olympic event with a gold medalist over 40, or in the team events, a gold medal team averaging over 40. (While it's not fair to compare Olympic soccer, compare World Cup soccer instead.)
Shooting and equestrian events have had gold medalists over 40.
I never said "too old to be out of the question". We've had presidents under 50 and I'm sure there are strippers over 40, too.
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm 21 and CEO of a startup and I don't know shit - I'm not even that smart - hence why I talk and listen to as many smart people as I can. I like to think I'm pretty good at working out what advice is good advice... I also feel the only way to learn properly is to do it. You'll only follow someone's advice so far till your gut sets in and you need to make your own path - even if that requires being proved wrong.
I like to think I'm pretty good at working out what advice is good advice... What makes you think that? In my experience, it's pretty easy to be talked both out of a good idea and into a bad one.
I can usually take some advice and work out if its useful. Sometimes just stopping and thinking about it makes it far clearer. Some people give great advice, and terrible advice at the same time.
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#59Word to the wise. Discount the old guys at your own peril. Discount anyone at your own peril. These days, things are often not as they appear.
Just an interesting fact to share:
Ray Kroc of McDonald's fame was in his 50s when he started the business. The McDonald's fast-food chain happened to become successful company and top-brand within Ray's lifetime. He died in the 1980s. Before McDonald's he hadn't been known for anything truly glorious and exceptional as achievement.
Perhaps, besides amounting enourmous experience and insight about restaurants and sales. Something which took him decades in the hard way and is recognizable only afterwards.
Re: When It Comes To Founding Successful Startups, Old Guys Rule
#60As an old guy '45', and an old surfer (why does there seem to be this connection - see illustration to article) and also a serial entrepreneur, this article and the HN comments made some uplifting reading. As we're applying to YC this year, we've obviously been discussing if the age and varied experiences of our team has any positive/negative influence on our application.
In our previous lives in media production, it's all about youth and energy, and seems to becoming even more so, especially in advertising where ideas are often driven by an innate understanding of the power of technology, and how it can be harnessed to create and realise ideas in completely different ways. I know many over 40's colleagues who think computers are for Googling and email (you know who you are), and that's the limit of their technological skill. These people are almost speaking a different language to the 25 year old directors they're working with, who are breaking all the so called 'rules'.
At one point, many HNer's, after years of struggle and work on projects will become 'the old guys', and still drawing on their entrepreneurial skills and drive. Some will have made that Big Deal with all the $$$, but very many will still be pushing their next idea after a series of almost made it's. I think it's important for young start-ups to project that image of themselves in the future, that they might be looking at 20 years of pushing and fighting to get the success they're striving for.