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

Building a company is fucking hard

nvdk.co

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

91–100 of 181 posts

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#91

Post by coldtea »

cik wrote: post #7

There's an old adage that successful people surround themselves with success. It's all about cohort - if you don't have other friends who are pushing themselves the way you are, it will be very, very, hard. It doesn't matter if you're in tech and your friend is in gardening, what matters is the shared struggle, and dreams. It helps knowing you're in a boat others have been in before. Spouses/partners can understand a…

>here's an old adage that successful people surround themselves with success. It's all about cohort - if you don't have other friends who are pushing themselves the way you are, it will be very, very, hard.

Or, you know, riches come to riches, which amount to the same thing.

People born in slums don't have as many changes to "surround themselves with success". For one, they wouldn't be welcome by most successful people.

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#92

Post by jonbarker »

faitswulff wrote: post #83
tnolet wrote: post #66

Not dissing the general message. Startups can be brutal, but still. Dude is 22 and claims having seen more hardship than others. Try dealing with raising kids, health issues, sick family members, dying friends, mid life (all of which will probably happen as you near the age 40) and a startup will look like a pleasant distraction from the actual hard stuff in life. I,d say enjoy being 22, don’t take yourself to seriou…

I wonder if the median age of HackerNews readers has shifted through the years? I started reading HN probably around my early 20s, if not sooner, and now I'm in my thirties with children. Life doesn't get easier or less complex as time goes on, that's for sure.

HN readership is definitely skewing mid 30s at this point.

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#93

Post by BowBun »

I've already ranted against blog posts titled 'X is Hard'. Yet another hits the top post on HN. Yes, most things are hard, especially when you can describe it in detail as an 'expert'. To a layman, anything can be hard.

These always come off as ego pieces to me justifying why they're worth money or why they should be hired. How about you just let your work represent you?

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#95

Post by DoofusOfDeath »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #89
barry-cotter wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everyone you love will die and you will be a stranger in your own country.

Luckily we all get a lifetime to make peace with this.

Yeah, but I still see some elderly people who were very well-adjusted throughout their lives (AFAIK), but still be generally sad due to loneliness.

I'm curious if elderly people with many, many kids tend to be happier due to much more frequent contact with loved ones.

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#96

Post by arsalanb »

tnolet wrote: post #66

Not dissing the general message. Startups can be brutal, but still. Dude is 22 and claims having seen more hardship than others. Try dealing with raising kids, health issues, sick family members, dying friends, mid life (all of which will probably happen as you near the age 40) and a startup will look like a pleasant distraction from the actual hard stuff in life. I,d say enjoy being 22, don’t take yourself to seriou…

While you state it in a more rational way, many of the responses dismiss what OP has to say just because he is 22. As somebody who is 22 as well—everybody is facing a struggle here. The market does not care that we are 22, it is equally brutal to both of us.

Also, I agree that raising kids may be something that is more difficult that you additionally have to do (all the other things have no correlation with age), but some of the replies here come off to me like that one jacked dude in the gym giving the newbies stick for being weak. At their current musculature, they are doing the best they can. Difficulty levels are relative.

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#97

Post by drwl »

jonbarker wrote: post #92
faitswulff wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder if the median age of HackerNews readers has shifted through the years? I started reading HN probably around my early 20s, if not sooner, and now I'm in my thirties with children. Life doesn't get easier or less complex as time goes on, that's for sure.

HN readership is definitely skewing mid 30s at this point.

do you have any data to back this up?

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#98

Post by wowzap »

porphyrogene wrote: post #25
dqpb wrote: post #15

> I have yet experienced more in these four years than most people do in all of their lives. Lol, hearing that from a 22 year old.

It is difficult to take someone seriously when they introduce themselves by saying something like that. Experiencing life is not a competition, nor is it a valid bragging point. I guess it is good to know that there are some painfully obvious lessons that are not learned by building a company.

It's difficult to take someone seriously when they emphasize everything with the word fuck.

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#99

Post by arsalanb »

ArtWomb wrote: post #9

I think Mark Cuban on Shark Tank used to tell founders this. Don't start a company because you have a world-altering idea. Start a company because you love starting companies.

I think that's just a smart aphorism. What if I love starting companies, but nothing is working out? It has to be a mix of both?

Re: Building a company is fucking hard

#100

Post by larrik »

tnolet wrote: post #66

Not dissing the general message. Startups can be brutal, but still. Dude is 22 and claims having seen more hardship than others. Try dealing with raising kids, health issues, sick family members, dying friends, mid life (all of which will probably happen as you near the age 40) and a startup will look like a pleasant distraction from the actual hard stuff in life. I,d say enjoy being 22, don’t take yourself to seriou…

He did say professional hardship, it's not wildly unreasonable.
Post reply on HN