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Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

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Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#91

Post by hodgesrm »

I'm a huge start-up fan but this article makes doing a start-up sound more fun than they actually are on the ground. Here are a few things the article leaves out.

* Years of grunt work. You just did that on your Ph.D. Don't kid yourself, start-ups are just as hard and can take longer before they are successful. As they say in show biz, it takes years to become an overnight success.

* Business smarts are non-optional. If you are in a leadership position you need good business acumen. (I.e. like Andy Grove, not like Bill Shockley.)

* You need to be an all-rounder who can roll with the punches and pitch in to do whatever needs to be done. Chances are only some of that will be science and some fraction will be downright unpleasant. My personal favorite: the head honcho in a small company is the top of the product support escalation chain. By the time users get on the phone with you they are often downright steamed.

Finally, if you don't fit the mold there's a reasonable chance you'll either just flame out nothing to show for it or get fired. That's in addition to all the normal stuff that goes wrong when you have a good idea, good funding, good co-founders, etc. Doing a startup is not for everyone.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#92

Post by bluetwo »

Screw the statistics.

If you feel compelled to start up a company, I say do it.

Put yourself 100% in. You might be 100% successful, or, you might be 100% a failure. But do not think the statistics make you one or the other.

Only advice I would give is to get yourself on decent financial footing before making the leap. It helps you from making impulsive/bad decisions later.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#93

Post by fma »

gohrt wrote: post #68
pb wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Many of the most successful founders are introverts. Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Bill Gates, none of them are very extroverted, but they've started some of the most valuable companies in the world. Of course if you are so introverted that you are unable to make eye contact or talk to people it will be a problem, but most of us are not that extreme.

Why do you think they are not extroverted? Bill Gates was a famously in-your-face person when dealing with employees, partners, and competitors.

I think they aren't extrovert because Bill Gates himself says he's an introvert.

http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2013/05/bill-gates-how-to-succe...

President Obama is a self proclaimed introvert, as is Warren Buffett.

Essentially, the two riches men in America and the leader of America are self proclaimed introverts.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#94

Post by monkmartinez »

biounit wrote: post #88

Interesting perspective. Certainly get a good feel for your potential before striking out on a startup. And have as much savings as possible. I did the PhD and while doing my Postdoc I started a company. I did many years as Research Professor before quitting and focusing on my company. Comparing the two situations I'd argue the business option is far better for a number of reasons. The most important being freedom. T…

Does a startup have?

Proposals and Stress = Check

low success rates and intense competition = Check

Need for sales = Check

I can't help but think you essentially have the same situation in academia as one has in a startup, only "it's different." The difference to me is the illusion of control. One may think that they are in control of the startup vs. the bureaucracy of government/academia/established business.

I posit that most things that are required by business are, in fact, not under your control. The illusion of control is there and one may feel that actions are leading to certain outcomes, but the truth is they have no direct control of the outcome. "Luck" plays the same role in the bureaucratic or private enterprise affair... some have it and others don't.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#95

Post by jedberg »

monkmartinez wrote: post #94
biounit wrote: post #88

Interesting perspective. Certainly get a good feel for your potential before striking out on a startup. And have as much savings as possible. I did the PhD and while doing my Postdoc I started a company. I did many years as Research Professor before quitting and focusing on my company. Comparing the two situations I'd argue the business option is far better for a number of reasons. The most important being freedom. T…

Does a startup have? Proposals and Stress = Check low success rates and intense competition = Check Need for sales = Check I can't help but think you essentially have the same situation in academia as one has in a startup, only "it's different." The difference to me is the illusion of control. One may think that they are in control of the startup vs. the bureaucracy of government/academia/established business. I posi…

Chance of extremely high returns = Check (not so much in academia)

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#96

Post by BinaryIdiot »

pb wrote: post #65
__mbm__ wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Failing at a startup sucks This. I have a PhD and a failed startup. It felt real bad, and I didn't get that far with it (9 months before calling it quits). Creating a successful startup requires significantly more energy and stress than most science jobs, even for pre-tenure professors. It requires different skills than science. Few introverts will succeed at founding a company, for example. Moreover, you have to p…

Many of the most successful founders are introverts. Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Bill Gates, none of them are very extroverted, but they've started some of the most valuable companies in the world. Of course if you are so introverted that you are unable to make eye contact or talk to people it will be a problem, but most of us are not that extreme.

To be fair you cited a pretty tiny sample size; I'm not sure if anyone actually has compiled the appropriate statistics to prove whether or not introverted people have a harder time creating a successful company. Those could be the outliers. Or maybe not I'm not sure as I lack the data.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#97

Post by rl3 »

__mbm__ wrote: post #62
matrix wrote: post #54

While the author does quote the very low odds of success, I think he does readers a disservice by minimizing that risk. Very few people have the right disposition, the right partners, the right idea, and the right skill set to launch a startup. Being a freshly minted PhD doesn't change that. Failing at a startup sucks, and sucks really hard. But of course, its not in a VC's interest to tell you the pain that comes wi…

> Failing at a startup sucks This. I have a PhD and a failed startup. It felt real bad, and I didn't get that far with it (9 months before calling it quits). Creating a successful startup requires significantly more energy and stress than most science jobs, even for pre-tenure professors. It requires different skills than science. Few introverts will succeed at founding a company, for example. Moreover, you have to p…

>The risk that you destroy your life is real.

Especially so for PhD recipients. Unless they're from money, they've probably already spent their post-grad years living very modestly. Starting a startup just extends and amplifies that, which can be dangerous.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#98

Post by beachy »

pb wrote: post #65
__mbm__ wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Failing at a startup sucks This. I have a PhD and a failed startup. It felt real bad, and I didn't get that far with it (9 months before calling it quits). Creating a successful startup requires significantly more energy and stress than most science jobs, even for pre-tenure professors. It requires different skills than science. Few introverts will succeed at founding a company, for example. Moreover, you have to p…

Many of the most successful founders are introverts. Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Bill Gates, none of them are very extroverted, but they've started some of the most valuable companies in the world. Of course if you are so introverted that you are unable to make eye contact or talk to people it will be a problem, but most of us are not that extreme.

Introverts often perform brilliantly when pitching or persuading. Being out in front of others is not their relaxing place, so they focus, pour their energy into it and succeed at it.

Then they withdraw to some solitude to recharge.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#99

Post by biounit »

monkmartinez wrote: post #94
biounit wrote: post #88

Interesting perspective. Certainly get a good feel for your potential before striking out on a startup. And have as much savings as possible. I did the PhD and while doing my Postdoc I started a company. I did many years as Research Professor before quitting and focusing on my company. Comparing the two situations I'd argue the business option is far better for a number of reasons. The most important being freedom. T…

Does a startup have? Proposals and Stress = Check low success rates and intense competition = Check Need for sales = Check I can't help but think you essentially have the same situation in academia as one has in a startup, only "it's different." The difference to me is the illusion of control. One may think that they are in control of the startup vs. the bureaucracy of government/academia/established business. I posi…

"It's different" is a big deal. In academics, if you're research oriented, your success is 90% or more based on your ability to bring $ in the institution. If your research field is on an upswing - novel, deemed important, hot with the funding agencies - you're good. It extremely challenging when things turn. Pivot is virtually impossible, especially before tenure. I'd argue that with business you don't necessary have to be producing the next big deal. There are plenty of mundane products from which a lot of $ can be made and you can survive. That's what gives you the freedom.

I'm not discounting the difficulties present in each scenario (or the luck). However, after ruminating about all the pluses and minuses, I believe one is likely better off trying the business route.

Re: Why building a startup is probably your most sensible career path

#100

Post by monkmartinez »

jedberg wrote: post #95
monkmartinez wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does a startup have? Proposals and Stress = Check low success rates and intense competition = Check Need for sales = Check I can't help but think you essentially have the same situation in academia as one has in a startup, only "it's different." The difference to me is the illusion of control. One may think that they are in control of the startup vs. the bureaucracy of government/academia/established business. I posi…

Chance of extremely high returns = Check (not so much in academia)

Chance of nice pension and a job for life = Check (not so much for a failed startup)

I am not saying one is right or wrong; the pension could "poof" go away with legislation for example. However, I will say there are compromises/choices to be made. I am quite indifferent to the matter as we all choose a path... The difference lies in how much we think we control vs. how much we actually control.

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