My PhD. Sure I learnt lots of great stuff and met some great people - but I could've done all that with a master's.
Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
11–20 of 102 posts
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#12I think this is in terms of startup mistakes, seeing as how "life mistakes" could start an entirely new forum all together. Here are my top 3: 1. Wasting money on a legal entity. If you're not making money, you cannot be sued. Wait until you make money or have someone willing to give you money before you waste money on protecting yourself. 2. Bad business partners. Judge your partners not by how much you like them bu…
Your #1 item is dangerously wrong. If you're not making money you can still be sued for personal assets (house, car, etc); and if you don't have those, you can be sued for debt.
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#13Focusing on quality rather than volume.
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#14Thinking other people are dumb. Even if it were true, it has yet to get me anywhere.
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#15Not playing football in 6th grade. I would have been a completely different person, I believe.
Football meaning soccer or american gridiron? I played the latter and the injuries I took affect me to this day. Back in the day, nobody mentioned the 100% injury rate - i.e. anyone who plays football will eventually get hurt bad enough they can't play. Thus, as I type this from bed, because one of my slipped discs has acted up, I have the opposite opinion - playing football was one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made.
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#16startup-wise:
1. working as employee #6 at a startup in boston instead of google in 2001.
2. working as employee #6 at a startup in SF instead of youtube in 2005.
whoops!
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#17Quitting work in the physics lab at the University of Florida my freshman year and then switching from a physics and mathematics major to a finance major.
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#18afraid of making mistakes .
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#19.Getting a degree.
Honestly, I didn't need it. Contentious subject I know, but from the Hacker perspective, I have always relied on self learning in concentrated bursts to get me through - want a thorough understanding of TCP/IP? Spend 3 weekends going through the documentation and then playing around. Not 6 months in rigidly structured classes with no leeway for progression above and beyond what is in the curriculum.
I could have got a job that paid my pocket money, whilst learning more and coming out with less debt.
"but would this have paid off?" I hear everyone say.
My degree or time in education has absolutely no standing of where I am now, apart from the fact that I feel I could have been here by early twenties instead of mid twenties
Re: Ask HN: What has been your biggest mistake?
#20Not playing football in 6th grade. I would have been a completely different person, I believe.
Football meaning soccer or american gridiron? I played the latter and the injuries I took affect me to this day. Back in the day, nobody mentioned the 100% injury rate - i.e. anyone who plays football will eventually get hurt bad enough they can't play. Thus, as I type this from bed, because one of my slipped discs has acted up, I have the opposite opinion - playing football was one of the biggest mistakes I've ever…
Almost every sport has a 100% injury rate where you eventually get hurt bad enough you can't play anymore. The trick is choosing a sport where the most common injuries prevent you from playing the sport but don't prevent you from walking. A good percentage of swimmers eventually develop shoulder injuries, but (AFAIK) that doesn't prevent you from doing anything except swimming.