3 ms·

Is it OK to Want to Make Money? Slaying Some Silicon Valley Myths

48 points by SRSimko 16y ago

kondro 16y ago
Isn't money the reason most of us start businesses? The road of an entrepreneur is a long and difficult one and, unless you already drive a Porsche, surely money (or freedom, which is usually bought by money) is a primary motivating factor?
- JacobAldridge 16y ago
  We did a study on this a few years ago [1], primarily in the UK, US and Australia, which supported the anecdotal experience I've had working with a number of businesses (and therefore business founders). That is, most people start their business for reasons other than money; financial ambition is usually important, but not the primary factor. Even those who 'just want to get rich quick' usually want to get rich for some reason - family, holidays, ego etc. That's what drives them. [1] http://www.shirlawsonline.com/editorials/54-what-motivates-people-to-start-their-own-business http://www.shirlawsonline.com/editorials/54-what-motivates-p...
  - endtime 16y ago
    The three things I value in doing a startup rather than working for e.g. Microsoft or Google are, in no particular order: 1) Freedom to work on what I want, how I want. Would Google let me use CoffeeScript? I doubt it. 2) Variety - I get to touch all aspects of the business (business decisions, software-related stuff, customers, management) and also get to touch all aspects of the software cycle (spec, design, implementation/testing, deployment/server administration). I'm learning way more general, transferable skills than I would at Microsoft. 3) Potentially, lots of money. As you say, I don't want money for its own sake...I want it so that I can assign relatively higher priority to how interesting my next job is versus how well it pays, and to support my eventual family.
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
  - te_chris 16y ago
    I just want to build a big ass recording studio but only record good bands - surely a philanthropic venture in today's industry!
- c0riander 16y ago
  I think it's more about temperament. Some people start business with the major objective of making money; others look to build something or test something or prove that their theory is right. I think his point was that no one way is "better" -- that they are both legitimate. But if you're someone who is motivated by building an empire, focusing on money won't do you any favors... and vice versa.
- patio11 16y ago
  I do this because it is the easiest and most fun job I've ever had. Money is nice, too, but it doesn't really motivate me that much. (And, strangely enough, the more I say that the more of it people throw at me.) If I wanted money, I'd say "no" less often, or do what a lot of my classmates did and do management consulting. All the fun of being a salaryman, five to ten times the pay.
rdl 16y ago
I find it hard to be motivated by "want to make money", at least once basic starvation is solved, on an ongoing basis. I definitely am motivated in the decision making process by "wow, owning a $100m exploration yacht would be awesome" or "I'd like to afford a house in Palo Alto someday". It doesn't motivate me every single minute, or even every morning, though. Learning something new, building something fun, or making customers happy, general professionalism, or desire for and having respect of teammates, is a much more continuous reinforcement.
zacharycohn 16y ago
One of my main reasons for planning to do a start up soon is the freedom to work on what you want, and the freedom to work toward creating your own vision. I think a healthy goal for money is to have enough money to not have to worry about money.
Dylanlacey 16y ago
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1978785 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1978785 Here, sans video, with more comments.

48 points by SRSimko 16y ago

Isn't money the reason most of us start businesses? The road of an entrepreneur is a long and difficult one and, unless you already drive a Porsche, surely money (or freedom, which is usually bought by money) is a primary motivating factor?

JacobAldridge 16y ago
We did a study on this a few years ago [1], primarily in the UK, US and Australia, which supported the anecdotal experience I've had working with a number of businesses (and therefore business founders). That is, most people start their business for reasons other than money; financial ambition is usually important, but not the primary factor. Even those who 'just want to get rich quick' usually want to get rich for some reason - family, holidays, ego etc. That's what drives them. [1] http://www.shirlawsonline.com/editorials/54-what-motivates-people-to-start-their-own-business http://www.shirlawsonline.com/editorials/54-what-motivates-p...
- endtime 16y ago
  The three things I value in doing a startup rather than working for e.g. Microsoft or Google are, in no particular order: 1) Freedom to work on what I want, how I want. Would Google let me use CoffeeScript? I doubt it. 2) Variety - I get to touch all aspects of the business (business decisions, software-related stuff, customers, management) and also get to touch all aspects of the software cycle (spec, design, implementation/testing, deployment/server administration). I'm learning way more general, transferable skills than I would at Microsoft. 3) Potentially, lots of money. As you say, I don't want money for its own sake...I want it so that I can assign relatively higher priority to how interesting my next job is versus how well it pays, and to support my eventual family.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- te_chris 16y ago
  I just want to build a big ass recording studio but only record good bands - surely a philanthropic venture in today's industry!
c0riander 16y ago
I think it's more about temperament. Some people start business with the major objective of making money; others look to build something or test something or prove that their theory is right. I think his point was that no one way is "better" -- that they are both legitimate. But if you're someone who is motivated by building an empire, focusing on money won't do you any favors... and vice versa.
patio11 16y ago
I do this because it is the easiest and most fun job I've ever had. Money is nice, too, but it doesn't really motivate me that much. (And, strangely enough, the more I say that the more of it people throw at me.) If I wanted money, I'd say "no" less often, or do what a lot of my classmates did and do management consulting. All the fun of being a salaryman, five to ten times the pay.

rdl 16y ago

I find it hard to be motivated by "want to make money", at least once basic starvation is solved, on an ongoing basis. I definitely am motivated in the decision making process by "wow, owning a $100m exploration yacht would be awesome" or "I'd like to afford a house in Palo Alto someday". It doesn't motivate me every single minute, or even every morning, though. Learning something new, building something fun, or making customers happy, general professionalism, or desire for and having respect of teammates, is a much more continuous reinforcement.

zacharycohn 16y ago

One of my main reasons for planning to do a start up soon is the freedom to work on what you want, and the freedom to work toward creating your own vision. I think a healthy goal for money is to have enough money to not have to worry about money.

Dylanlacey 16y ago

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1978785 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1978785 Here, sans video, with more comments.