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Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
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Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#2Well what's an early stage? A co-founder would need to be existent at the founding, right? Otherwise he wouldn't be a co-founder but rather an addition to your team. But it's altogether possible to develop ideas on your own before locating a partner. If you plan on having a co-founder, I say it's best to have him involved from the beginning.
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#3Prashant -- where are you located? I got the feeling from some of your postings that you might be around the Northern California region.
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#4If you've got this feeling that says: "why do I need somebody else? I can build/do everything myself", then I know what you're talking about. But if you only look at the fact that there are only 24 hours in one day, and that everybody can make an honoust mistake easily spotted by another person, it's a neccasity :)
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#5You need someone to bounce ideas off of and help you refine your product well before the company is started. And then when it comes time to get into company mode, you definitely need someone to help bear the load and continue to develop the service and product. It usually ends up being that same person. No matter how brilliant you think your idea is, I guarantee that if you spend a few days hashing it out with someone you consider your peer, it will end up being 10 times the product. So here's my answer a slightly different question than the one posed- at no time does it make sense to be alone developing a business.
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#6I think you should know by now not to listen to what others think and just go for it if you believe you can do it alone and have enough determination. Be prepared to be a developer, web designer, marketer, salesperson, etc., all at the same time. If nothing else you will at least have fun!
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#7If you have a large skill set and can wear all the "hats" that need wearing then you can forgo a cofounder. If you can't wear all the hats then you want to partner with someone who can fill the hats you can't wear! (Did I take the hat analogy too far? ... lol)
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#8There's one other problem with single founders that I don't think gets enough press:
When you're a single founder, it's very easy to think in terms of "You against the world", with other people being mere tools in your quest for global domination. Because, well, a single-founder startup really is you against the world. ;-) Unfortunately, that attitude can carry over into dealings with employees, investors, etc. No employee is going to give his best effort when he thinks he's just a tool for some entrepeneur's quest for world domination.
When you have cofounders, there's much more of a shared sense of working towards a goal. If your smart, that'll carry over to employees too: they'll feel like they're working for the company and customers and not just for you. That kind of culture is very difficult to generate after the fact. You can start with it and lose it, but you can't start without it and hope to gain it.
It's interesting that one of the more successful single founders - Bob Metcalfe of 3Com - said that the secret of his success was "giving away his company". It's that kind of attitude that you need.
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#9One of the most compelling reasons to have a co-founder is the support and shared perseverance. You could be an absolute whiz programmer but that means nothing if you collapse under the pressure.
When your company is in some trouble or you're facing an uphill battle, at least you know someone else is in the craziness with you.
"Our product won't scale, our user base growth is stagnant, and we're running out of money. We're in some mess." You'll eventually come to a situation such as this.
A good co-founder would respond, "Yes we are. Let's get working."
Re: Is having cofounder at early stage really that important?
#10I agree with the fact that "having confounder really helps in a great deal". But lets say if one can not find a good confounder, then does it make sense to just get someone for the sake of having confounder. Honestly I struggled a lot to find confounder because most of my friends are busy with their comfortable life now. Hence I decided to do it by myself.
I am founding company called Onista, which is a Social Marketplace. http://www.onista.com I am developing everything by myself and I am on pretty good path to release Onista for public use in Summer time-frame.
Sorry if I was not clear, but what I meant by "Early Stage" was "Stage at which company releases 1.0 product for public use".
And yes I am in Silicon Valley.
Do I have all the required skills? Off course Not, but yes there is one strongest point I have is that I have a lot of determination and persistence. I am willing to learn whatever it takes to get things done. Hope I will find a confounder or partner once I release Onista for public use. At least I will have something to show.
Am I doing the right thing? Or is there any way I can change strategy?