Suffering From Depression? Don't Do That Start-up

I don't think depression necessarily means you shouldn't do a start-up.

People who know what depression is and know how it works can actually quite often cope with it better than people who don't know what depression is. If all you've ever had in your life was happiness and success, then a depression can suddenly have a far greater impact on you than someone who knows how it feels.

In that sense, I think that people who are suffering from suicidal tendencies should stay away from startups at all costs.

When running a startup, the ups and the downs in life are far greater than when working for someone else. The thrill when things are going up is why it's so attractive, but everyone who has ever done a startup knows the horrors of crashing and burning - and you will crash and burn at one point or another.

Almost nobody I know will come out of a crash without some mental bruising, some hurt ego, some depression. They may not show it, but even the most ruthless businessmen have to deal with failure and the associated feelings of depression.

If you are unable to handle the lows that come with startups, and if you are at risk of hurting yourself, startups are not for you and I would recommend working for someone else. Otherwise, if you do occasionally get depressed when something in life doesn't go so well, but you always get back on the saddle after a short period of depression, then startups are perfect for you.

> You don't start something because you want to. You start because you feel you have to.

Seconded. Though i haven't done any new startups, except work at a small one.

OTOH, as someone known to have been depressed, i would say he makes a good point. i could identify with that eiffel tower climbing as an attempt to cure the fear of failure analogy very well.

I agree very much ! But I would say that then the statement becomes 'general-good-advice' rather than 'suicide agent'

This is just about the most patronising, idiotic, misguided and damaging piece of bullshit I've ever had the misfortune to read.

For some people, yes, a high pressure environment that risks failure will put some in harm's way. But if somebody is prone to suicidal thoughts, it's likely that simply living life will put them at risk. Rejection in love. Loss of income. The death of a family member. There's so much in life that can lead to feelings of hopelessness and regret, plenty of them arguably more meaningful than a startup.

And here's the kicker - put somebody who's hugely creative and talented into a 9 to 5 environment or a workplace where they can't express themselves freely to "keep them safe" as the author suggests? There's the equally real danger that they'll feel stifled, trapped, desperately unhappy and will consider taking their own life as a result anyway.

And why does it seem that depression is prevalent in startups, wonders the author? One reason that startups might be a magnet for for such people, is the same reason music or art attracts its fair share of people with depression. It's an outlet, it allows you to define yourself and explore your creativity.

Another reason might be because startups are predominantly founded by young males; according to WHO, suicide in males is twice as high as females in most countries. There's also evidence to suggest young males are most at risk of taking their own lives. And how many founders have undiagnosed depression? How many founders suffer depression as a result of being a startup founder?

Startups aren't for everyone, whether they have mental health issues or otherwise - that's fair comment. People with depression should seek help, and friends should look to support them however they can - that's only to be encouraged. But to make blanket statements about depression just reinforces stereotypes. It's stupid, stupid behaviour.

Paul (has Bipolar Disorder, startup founder and accelerator program director)

Most of the people I know who have killed themselves (hrm...10 or so over the past decade?) were not involved in startups in a senior role. One had sold a successful company a year or two before, and another was a senior engineer at a fairly successful tech company, and of course the other was aaronsw (who was involved in non-profit, activist stuff; it would be hard to say startups were involved in his death).

If you excluded people with depression from startups, I don't think you'd meaningfully change the suicide rate, but you probably would reduce the number and quality of startups. IMO, if one's internal emotional state is relatively independent of the outside world, it's not so much that losing a client or having a startup fail will lead to suicide, but that depression/withdrawal/etc. will lead to the startup failing.

The question is more can depression and startup success coexist.