5 ms·

People were also shocked when Zuckerberg turned down $1+ billion offers. Hindsight is 20/20.

jaggederest 10y ago
I don't know about other people, but there's a number past which I do not care. N > 10^7 in my pocket after tax, I'm out, regardless of circumstances, regardless of ability to earn more. No ragrets.
- orthoganol 10y ago
  With the caveat that maybe you derive deep satisfaction from growing your business and by it impacting the world. I always think, if I had "FU money" and didn't have to work, what would I do? I would probably start working on the greatest possible venture I could image myself doing. If that venture (maybe akin to a Tesla or a SpaceX) becomes a billion+ dollar company, still doesn't matter to me as a founder, there's no point for me to sell it. That said, a social network centered on photo sharing and a slightly more handy version of email or event sharing is definitely not one of these high impact ventures in my opinion, so yes, I would have sold that long ago and went to work on something more meaningful.
- harmegido 10y ago
  I suspect it's not about money at a certain point.
  - spriggan3 10y ago
    It is always about the money. The more money you have the more money you need to manage the money you already have. So it is always about the money. The Zuck was confident his website was worth way more than a billion. that's why he didn't sell.
    - mywittyname 10y ago
      If it was about money, he wouldn't be giving away most of his company while trying to retain a controlling stake. The fact that he is giving away his money suggests that he's more interested in being a successful business mogul than he is about being "FU rich."
MichaelGG 10y ago
To accurately judge though, we need to know how many people/companies are offered large sums and decline, and how that works out. It might still have been a bad decision that just happened to work out.
- riyadparvez 10y ago
  It's the same story as college dropout entrepreneurs, who became very successful and made million dollars. But, how many college dropouts are out there who are barely earning their livelihoods?
  - charlesdm 10y ago
    I would assume both are highly situation dependent. If things seem to be going relatively well, and you've already taken $10-20-50m off the table, what's the point in selling? At that point it's only really cash in a bank account that you then need to manage and reinvest. Obviously, if you feel the wheels are going to come flying off, sell. Same for a college degree. If you're a self motivated person and a learner, you don't need it. But if you need your hand held, you won't achieve much. Degree or no degree. More than anything this has to with the person and his/her work ethic and intellectual curiosity.
dredmorbius 10y ago
Facebook wasn't a failing company at the time.

I don't know about other people, but there's a number past which I do not care. N > 10^7 in my pocket after tax, I'm out, regardless of circumstances, regardless of ability to earn more. No ragrets.

orthoganol 10y ago
With the caveat that maybe you derive deep satisfaction from growing your business and by it impacting the world. I always think, if I had "FU money" and didn't have to work, what would I do? I would probably start working on the greatest possible venture I could image myself doing. If that venture (maybe akin to a Tesla or a SpaceX) becomes a billion+ dollar company, still doesn't matter to me as a founder, there's no point for me to sell it. That said, a social network centered on photo sharing and a slightly more handy version of email or event sharing is definitely not one of these high impact ventures in my opinion, so yes, I would have sold that long ago and went to work on something more meaningful.
harmegido 10y ago
I suspect it's not about money at a certain point.
- spriggan3 10y ago
  It is always about the money. The more money you have the more money you need to manage the money you already have. So it is always about the money. The Zuck was confident his website was worth way more than a billion. that's why he didn't sell.
  - mywittyname 10y ago
    If it was about money, he wouldn't be giving away most of his company while trying to retain a controlling stake. The fact that he is giving away his money suggests that he's more interested in being a successful business mogul than he is about being "FU rich."

MichaelGG 10y ago

To accurately judge though, we need to know how many people/companies are offered large sums and decline, and how that works out. It might still have been a bad decision that just happened to work out.

riyadparvez 10y ago
It's the same story as college dropout entrepreneurs, who became very successful and made million dollars. But, how many college dropouts are out there who are barely earning their livelihoods?
- charlesdm 10y ago
  I would assume both are highly situation dependent. If things seem to be going relatively well, and you've already taken $10-20-50m off the table, what's the point in selling? At that point it's only really cash in a bank account that you then need to manage and reinvest. Obviously, if you feel the wheels are going to come flying off, sell. Same for a college degree. If you're a self motivated person and a learner, you don't need it. But if you need your hand held, you won't achieve much. Degree or no degree. More than anything this has to with the person and his/her work ethic and intellectual curiosity.

dredmorbius 10y ago

Facebook wasn't a failing company at the time.