4 ms·

This is why I started my own company. All of my developer friends that told me I was stupid 5 years ago are now on their 5th or more job (and are scared about

This is why I started my own company. All of my developer friends that told me I was stupid 5 years ago are now on their 5th or more job (and are scared about the next round of layoffs). While I've had continued stability. I would rather not get pushed out of my own industry for being too old or demanding too much pay. I think I would be pretty depressed if a snot-nosed kid out of college was managing me. As a side effect, my company can now hire all of the new cheap labor that will be poured into the marketplace after the next bust.

askyourmother 10y ago
A colleague at a previous firm took his severance pay, and opened a coffee shop, right in the tech area. He does very well now, even worried about their jobs, everyone still seems to buy expensive coffee!
- enraged_camel 10y ago
  >>He does very well now Does he really? That's very surprising. In a previous life, coffee shops used to be a big part of my client-base[1]. Out of all the coffee shop owners I knew, I didn't know a single one who wasn't worried about putting food on the table. It's a very cut-throat business with lots of competition, and even if you're located in an expensive area, the margins tend to be razor-thin. [1]I learned an important lesson from the experience: it is a horrible idea to have clients with little or no disposable income.
  - askyourmother 10y ago
    In London, the coffee scene in shoreditch/the city does very very well.
    - petra 10y ago
      Doesn't the costa coffee machines with their claim to quality strongly affect that business ?
      - idiocratic 10y ago
        Not in the slightest
        petra 10y ago
        But they have something like 3000 machines in the UK . How do they not impact the coffee-to-go market at all ?
        willtim 10y ago
        Because the coffee is not as good quality as the smaller independents.
    - nojvek 10y ago
      What is the definition of pretty well? Take home more than 200k after taxes?
  - blue_dinner 10y ago
    "I didn't know a single one who wasn't worried about putting food on the table" You can put pretty much everyone that owns a business or works into this category. Unless you are the top 1% or have a VC subsidized lifestyle, you are always worried about putting food on the table. Most businesses in that industry have thin margins. But it doesn't stop people from being successful. In my hometown there are at least 5 competing independent coffee shops that are all doing pretty well.
  - anonbanker 10y ago
    razor-thin margins on water strained through coffee grounds? or just razor-thin margins on the stale muffins and biscotti?
enraged_camel 10y ago
>>All of my developer friends that told me I was stupid Did they really? That's very surprising. In my experience, developers tend to be very understanding and supportive of other developers who leave stable jobs to start their own company. >>While I've had continued stability. I'd say you're in the minority. Startups are much riskier, and "stability" would be one of the last words people would use to define them. Everyone knows that.
- blue_dinner 10y ago
  "developers tend to be very understanding and supportive of other developers who leave stable jobs to start their own company." Have you ever started a business? Most people are not supportive, including developers. You might even lose friends over it. You are going against the norm and most people can't relate and find it strange. The only people that are supportive are those that have a business mindset. "I'd say you're in the minority. Startups are much riskier, and "stability" would be one of the last words people would use to define them. Everyone knows that." All businesses have some risk. It took a year or two to get to the point where it was stable. But I was profitable from day one. I'm not sure what you define as a 'startup', but if you mean create an app and hope that people come to it with no real business plan, I didn't create a startup. I formed a company around a business model and slowly built it up. Too many people in IT think they aren't replaceable or that the good times will last forever.
  - enraged_camel 10y ago
    >>Have you ever started a business? Yes I have. >>Most people are not supportive, including developers. You might even lose friends over it. You are going against the norm and most people can't relate and find it strange. Software is one of the few industries where leaving a stable job and striking out on your own is an acceptable and relatable career path. The reasons are two-fold: low cost of entry and the many inspirational and well-publicized stories about famous software startups. Google, Apple, Microsoft, Facebook... any developer who has been in the industry for more than a few years will be familiar with how those companies got founded. All of my friends were supportive when I started my own business. Not everyone approved, but they all understood. If you've lost friends when you started yours... maybe you should pick better friends next time.
cylinder 10y ago
don't you need a viable idea to start your own company? maybe they didn't.
hoodie 10y ago
As someone who aspires to start their own company. What kind of company did you start? I'm not sure if I should run with an idea or start consulting.

askyourmother 10y ago

A colleague at a previous firm took his severance pay, and opened a coffee shop, right in the tech area. He does very well now, even worried about their jobs, everyone still seems to buy expensive coffee!

enraged_camel 10y ago
>>He does very well now Does he really? That's very surprising. In a previous life, coffee shops used to be a big part of my client-base[1]. Out of all the coffee shop owners I knew, I didn't know a single one who wasn't worried about putting food on the table. It's a very cut-throat business with lots of competition, and even if you're located in an expensive area, the margins tend to be razor-thin. [1]I learned an important lesson from the experience: it is a horrible idea to have clients with little or no disposable income.
- askyourmother 10y ago
  In London, the coffee scene in shoreditch/the city does very very well.
  - petra 10y ago
    Doesn't the costa coffee machines with their claim to quality strongly affect that business ?
    - idiocratic 10y ago
      Not in the slightest
      - petra 10y ago
        But they have something like 3000 machines in the UK . How do they not impact the coffee-to-go market at all ?
        willtim 10y ago
        Because the coffee is not as good quality as the smaller independents.
  - nojvek 10y ago
    What is the definition of pretty well? Take home more than 200k after taxes?
- blue_dinner 10y ago
  "I didn't know a single one who wasn't worried about putting food on the table" You can put pretty much everyone that owns a business or works into this category. Unless you are the top 1% or have a VC subsidized lifestyle, you are always worried about putting food on the table. Most businesses in that industry have thin margins. But it doesn't stop people from being successful. In my hometown there are at least 5 competing independent coffee shops that are all doing pretty well.
- anonbanker 10y ago
  razor-thin margins on water strained through coffee grounds? or just razor-thin margins on the stale muffins and biscotti?

enraged_camel 10y ago

>>All of my developer friends that told me I was stupid Did they really? That's very surprising. In my experience, developers tend to be very understanding and supportive of other developers who leave stable jobs to start their own company. >>While I've had continued stability. I'd say you're in the minority. Startups are much riskier, and "stability" would be one of the last words people would use to define them. Everyone knows that.

blue_dinner 10y ago
"developers tend to be very understanding and supportive of other developers who leave stable jobs to start their own company." Have you ever started a business? Most people are not supportive, including developers. You might even lose friends over it. You are going against the norm and most people can't relate and find it strange. The only people that are supportive are those that have a business mindset. "I'd say you're in the minority. Startups are much riskier, and "stability" would be one of the last words people would use to define them. Everyone knows that." All businesses have some risk. It took a year or two to get to the point where it was stable. But I was profitable from day one. I'm not sure what you define as a 'startup', but if you mean create an app and hope that people come to it with no real business plan, I didn't create a startup. I formed a company around a business model and slowly built it up. Too many people in IT think they aren't replaceable or that the good times will last forever.
- enraged_camel 10y ago
  >>Have you ever started a business? Yes I have. >>Most people are not supportive, including developers. You might even lose friends over it. You are going against the norm and most people can't relate and find it strange. Software is one of the few industries where leaving a stable job and striking out on your own is an acceptable and relatable career path. The reasons are two-fold: low cost of entry and the many inspirational and well-publicized stories about famous software startups. Google, Apple, Microsoft, Facebook... any developer who has been in the industry for more than a few years will be familiar with how those companies got founded. All of my friends were supportive when I started my own business. Not everyone approved, but they all understood. If you've lost friends when you started yours... maybe you should pick better friends next time.

cylinder 10y ago

don't you need a viable idea to start your own company? maybe they didn't.

hoodie 10y ago

As someone who aspires to start their own company. What kind of company did you start? I'm not sure if I should run with an idea or start consulting.