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My hobby: Following up on entrepreneurs

15 points by cool-RR 16y ago

remthename 16y ago
This is awesome! I personally wouldn't be bothered doing the "hobby" or running after people myself but it would make for a cool blog. I'd love to read through each persons reply.
nerdyworm 16y ago
This is something I have been doing with the idea guys on craigslist. Most of them are not even willing to buy me a cup of coffee to listen to their pitch. Out of 15 or so I have yet to see even a basic landing page get put up.
jwr 16y ago
How is that constructive? Or, phrased differently: how does doing this enrich the world in any way? The entrepreneurs are trying to do something, while the author of the article only waits for them to trip and fall. I'm sorry, but I find no value in that. Actually, I find it rather sad.
- cool-RR 16y ago
  It adds value because it weeds out the people who talk the talk but don't walk the walk. "The entrepreneurs are trying to do something" Actually most of the time they just talk without doing anything. People who actually try are the minority. "the author of the article only waits for them to trip and fall." I want them to succeed, but I also want them to be humble and realistic, so if they declare "I'm gonna make the next Facebook!" then yeah, I'll enjoy watching them fall. The point of this hobby is to cut down on the level of bullshit in our industry. If many people adopt this hobby, then entrepreneurs will be more likely to think twice before they declare "We're gonna be the next Facebook!" And so when someone does make a bold declaration, there will be a bigger chance that he will actually make good on it. I think that this would result in more honesty in our industry.
  - spacemanaki 16y ago
    > It adds value because it weeds out the people who talk the talk but don't walk the walk. Isn't the market already effectively doing this? If they try and fail, or don't try at all, or don't ship by the promised date, they haven't succeeded and they've been "weeded". I don't think that calling them out on their lack of success is going to dissuade others from making big claims. > If many people adopt this hobby... I think if many people adopted the hobby of building stuff and shipping it, that would do a better job of cutting down on the level of bullshit.
  - grammr 16y ago
    "I also want them to be humble and realistic." Ironically, this statement is neither humble nor realistic. No one cares about how you'd like them to be. If all entrepreneurs were humble and realistic, we'd still be in the Stone Age. Yea, a lot of wild ideas fail, but the small number of them that succeed usually have a big positive impact. It follows that society is better off with a bunch of crazy, unrealistic entrepreneurs trying to "build the next Facebook".
    - cool-RR 16y ago
      Trying to build the next Facebook is a great thing. Declaring "I'm gonna build the next Facebook! It's gonna have millions of users!" and then abandoning your project after a month is a bad thing. Saying "I'm going to try to build the next Facebook" is an acceptable thing.
  - jwr 16y ago
    Adds value? Think of it this way: would you want to live in a world where everyone is like the author of that article? I know I wouldn't. Nothing would get invented and nobody would take any risks. Everyone would just sit back and criticize. I would much rather live in a world of dreaming entrepreneurs, who are sometimes wrong and who sometimes fail.
danielayele 16y ago
This actually sounds wonderful. I think a lot of entrepreneurs would actually find that extremely helpful. It would be great to get an e-mail out of the blue from someone who heard my team's pitch n months ago and was genuinely interested in how far along we'd come and if we'd met the goals we had in mind then. Startup idea? Goalcheck.com?
hammock 16y ago
The social pressure to make good on entrepreneurial promises is important. And doubly so, since studies show that the mere act of telling someone else what you plan to do ALREADY gives you an internal sense of personal satisfaction, and REDUCES the likelihood that you'll follow through. In other words, it's dangerous to tell people your plans unless you are sure they will continually pressure you do actually do it!

15 points by cool-RR 16y ago

This is awesome! I personally wouldn't be bothered doing the "hobby" or running after people myself but it would make for a cool blog. I'd love to read through each persons reply.

nerdyworm 16y ago

This is something I have been doing with the idea guys on craigslist. Most of them are not even willing to buy me a cup of coffee to listen to their pitch. Out of 15 or so I have yet to see even a basic landing page get put up.

jwr 16y ago

How is that constructive? Or, phrased differently: how does doing this enrich the world in any way? The entrepreneurs are trying to do something, while the author of the article only waits for them to trip and fall. I'm sorry, but I find no value in that. Actually, I find it rather sad.

cool-RR 16y ago
It adds value because it weeds out the people who talk the talk but don't walk the walk. "The entrepreneurs are trying to do something" Actually most of the time they just talk without doing anything. People who actually try are the minority. "the author of the article only waits for them to trip and fall." I want them to succeed, but I also want them to be humble and realistic, so if they declare "I'm gonna make the next Facebook!" then yeah, I'll enjoy watching them fall. The point of this hobby is to cut down on the level of bullshit in our industry. If many people adopt this hobby, then entrepreneurs will be more likely to think twice before they declare "We're gonna be the next Facebook!" And so when someone does make a bold declaration, there will be a bigger chance that he will actually make good on it. I think that this would result in more honesty in our industry.
- spacemanaki 16y ago
  > It adds value because it weeds out the people who talk the talk but don't walk the walk. Isn't the market already effectively doing this? If they try and fail, or don't try at all, or don't ship by the promised date, they haven't succeeded and they've been "weeded". I don't think that calling them out on their lack of success is going to dissuade others from making big claims. > If many people adopt this hobby... I think if many people adopted the hobby of building stuff and shipping it, that would do a better job of cutting down on the level of bullshit.
- grammr 16y ago
  "I also want them to be humble and realistic." Ironically, this statement is neither humble nor realistic. No one cares about how you'd like them to be. If all entrepreneurs were humble and realistic, we'd still be in the Stone Age. Yea, a lot of wild ideas fail, but the small number of them that succeed usually have a big positive impact. It follows that society is better off with a bunch of crazy, unrealistic entrepreneurs trying to "build the next Facebook".
  - cool-RR 16y ago
    Trying to build the next Facebook is a great thing. Declaring "I'm gonna build the next Facebook! It's gonna have millions of users!" and then abandoning your project after a month is a bad thing. Saying "I'm going to try to build the next Facebook" is an acceptable thing.
- jwr 16y ago
  Adds value? Think of it this way: would you want to live in a world where everyone is like the author of that article? I know I wouldn't. Nothing would get invented and nobody would take any risks. Everyone would just sit back and criticize. I would much rather live in a world of dreaming entrepreneurs, who are sometimes wrong and who sometimes fail.

danielayele 16y ago

This actually sounds wonderful. I think a lot of entrepreneurs would actually find that extremely helpful. It would be great to get an e-mail out of the blue from someone who heard my team's pitch n months ago and was genuinely interested in how far along we'd come and if we'd met the goals we had in mind then. Startup idea? Goalcheck.com?

hammock 16y ago

The social pressure to make good on entrepreneurial promises is important. And doubly so, since studies show that the mere act of telling someone else what you plan to do ALREADY gives you an internal sense of personal satisfaction, and REDUCES the likelihood that you'll follow through. In other words, it's dangerous to tell people your plans unless you are sure they will continually pressure you do actually do it!