Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

forbes.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

31–40 of 93 posts

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#31

Post by itazula »

downandout wrote: post #6

You do not necessarily need to start in the Valley to become successful, especially if your situation there imposes additional hurdles to success. Living out of a car or tenement is generally detrimental to one's ability to focus on the business. It's always amazing to me that as tech entrepreneurs we largely sell to others the idea that technology enables us to do anything from anywhere, but simultaneously believe t…

I agree, but the founder was able to pull the rabbit (that is, Paul Graham's own words) out of the hat at the right time.

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#32

Post by amalcon »

jimmaswell wrote: post #16
teach wrote: post #2

I wish more university students had this kind of attitude. Instead of "Let's take out the maximum amount of loans so I can get a new iPhone!" Well done.

Do people really use loans for iPhones?

Yes, in two ways:

- By buying on a subsidized contract, you've effectively used a loan for an iPhone. It's not different just because the phone company issued the loan.

- By using a loan for something else (e.g. tuition, automotive, housing), and then buying an iPhone instead of paying down the loan

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#33

Post by coralreef »

tatterdemalion wrote: post #27
coralreef wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think a lot of the time people miss the positive side of these stories. It's not just a story of impoverishment, its also story of adventure. If you were going to backpack around the world, you're certainly going to be sleeping somewhere dumpy, eating poorly, dealing with crazy situations, etc. But thats okay, because you've accepted that you're trading off comfort for some unique experience. When I was a teenager,…

I absolutely agree, but people need an honest appraisal of the situation. You should be making these sorts of decisions because this - in the moment - is the lifestyle you want, not because you believe it will make you a founder of the next WhatsApp.

I'm a bit more laissez-faire about the messaging behind these stories. Your assumption is that young, naive founders are being suckered and exploited by the perpetuation of these stories, because they don't need to live such extreme lifestyles to be successful. This is partially true.

But we already know that we all can't be winners, and most ideas will be losers anyway. In our subgroup of grinders, I don't know that there is a significant statistical difference in the outcome vs the normal population of startups. But heuristically, we know that people willing to put themselves through more pain are objectively tougher, and harder to kill. Traits that probably are pretty good to have for a startup entrepreneur.

Thus, I don't think its such a bad thing for entrepreneurs to do, even if its for the wrong reason. We don't need to protect anyone from themselves, startups are such an extreme experience that they'll quickly know whether or not they're happy with their decision.

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#34

Post by _reality_check_ »

rokhayakebe wrote: post #28
downandout wrote: post #6

You do not necessarily need to start in the Valley to become successful, especially if your situation there imposes additional hurdles to success. Living out of a car or tenement is generally detrimental to one's ability to focus on the business. It's always amazing to me that as tech entrepreneurs we largely sell to others the idea that technology enables us to do anything from anywhere, but simultaneously believe t…

From random readings, it appears that great musicians, scientists, artists live not only during the same era, but usually very close to one another. I guess today you could call the Internet the city/town. There is also something to be said about what seems to be serendipity. When there is a high concentration of people doing the same thing, you are more likely to bump into people who can help you turn your vision in…

> From random readings, it appears that great musicians, scientists, artists live not only during the same era, but usually very close to one another.

I'm highly skeptical of this claim. Can you back it up?

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#35

Post by lemma »

_reality_check_ wrote: post #34
rokhayakebe wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From random readings, it appears that great musicians, scientists, artists live not only during the same era, but usually very close to one another. I guess today you could call the Internet the city/town. There is also something to be said about what seems to be serendipity. When there is a high concentration of people doing the same thing, you are more likely to bump into people who can help you turn your vision in…

> From random readings, it appears that great musicians, scientists, artists live not only during the same era, but usually very close to one another. I'm highly skeptical of this claim. Can you back it up?

I'm on my way out and maybe someone else can chime in with more relevant references, but as a starting point, this is something studied at least in business/economics. Wouldn't surprise me to find something similar for the arts/sciences:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economies_of_agglomeration http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_cluster

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#36

Post by tatterdemalion »

coralreef wrote: post #33
tatterdemalion wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I absolutely agree, but people need an honest appraisal of the situation. You should be making these sorts of decisions because this - in the moment - is the lifestyle you want, not because you believe it will make you a founder of the next WhatsApp.

I'm a bit more laissez-faire about the messaging behind these stories. Your assumption is that young, naive founders are being suckered and exploited by the perpetuation of these stories, because they don't need to live such extreme lifestyles to be successful. This is partially true. But we already know that we all can't be winners, and most ideas will be losers anyway. In our subgroup of grinders, I don't know that…

Sure; I'm not saying no one should do this - and definitely not saying that people shouldn't be allowed to do this.

What I think is a problem is the way that it is memetically emerging into a life narrative. To take an example that is probably not controversial - many people are going to college who really should not be. It isn't advancing their interests and often isn't even intangibly edifying for them. Why are they going to college? Because there's a cultural messaging telling them to go to college. Their ability to self-determine is being undermined by a larger sense of what they are supposed to do.

So if there's a narrative that you should eat ramen, work 100 hour weeks, so on, to try to catch the Zuckerberg lottery - well, who wins in that game? A few of the people playing, and also the VCs.

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#37

Post by jn1234 »

amalcon wrote: post #32
jimmaswell wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do people really use loans for iPhones?

Yes, in two ways: - By buying on a subsidized contract, you've effectively used a loan for an iPhone. It's not different just because the phone company issued the loan. - By using a loan for something else (e.g. tuition, automotive, housing), and then buying an iPhone instead of paying down the loan

I wouldn't consider buying an iPhone on a subsidized contract a loan because you are just commiting to have service for a set period of time. You would be paying the same amount for service regardless if you were under contract or not.

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#38

Post by xnull2guest »

How you start a (tech) company in America:

* Move to the valley.

* Come up with a really good idea. Or at least a gimmick that will be a fad for a time.

* Find a generous person from the upper echelons of the wealth distribution (or a club of them) who have enough money to fund your idea or gimmick.

* Make a deal with them so that your business becomes part of their diversified portfolio. The risk to them is hedged by being broadly invested. The risk to you is a real ultimatum of your time.

* Work tirelessly and thanklessly. If you do succeed you will give a large part of your company, and many times control, to your patrons.

* Furthermore, because you've waited as long as possible to IPO all of the initial growth to launch your business into 9 or even ten digit figures has been captured by the upper class - the common man never had a real chance to invest in your idea.

* That's okay though, the common man probably isn't paying you with dollars anyhow. You're probably collecting his data for sale and for advertisement (or rather partnering with a company that does for you).

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#39

Post by ceejayoz »

jn1234 wrote: post #37
amalcon wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, in two ways: - By buying on a subsidized contract, you've effectively used a loan for an iPhone. It's not different just because the phone company issued the loan. - By using a loan for something else (e.g. tuition, automotive, housing), and then buying an iPhone instead of paying down the loan

I wouldn't consider buying an iPhone on a subsidized contract a loan because you are just commiting to have service for a set period of time. You would be paying the same amount for service regardless if you were under contract or not.

> You would be paying the same amount for service regardless if you were under contract or not.

No, it's lower if you bring your own device with most carriers. http://www.att.com/shop/wireless/byop.html

Re: We Just Thought, 'This Is How You Start a Company in America'

#40

Post by [deleted] »

downandout wrote: post #6

You do not necessarily need to start in the Valley to become successful, especially if your situation there imposes additional hurdles to success. Living out of a car or tenement is generally detrimental to one's ability to focus on the business. It's always amazing to me that as tech entrepreneurs we largely sell to others the idea that technology enables us to do anything from anywhere, but simultaneously believe t…

[deleted]
Post reply on HN