4 ms·
I began noticing a pattern in recent popular startup founding stories. It goes something like this. Protagonist is the founder here. 1. I wanted to do X. 2
by vishnugupta 5y ago
I began noticing a pattern in recent popular startup founding stories. It goes something like this. Protagonist is the founder here.
1. I wanted to do X.
2. But I couldn't Or it was an extremely frustrating experience.
3. So I took a step back and thought, f***k it I'll build it myself.
4. So here we are; our vision is to democratise X and uplift millions out of their misery.
Examples of the top of my head:
1. The concept for Uber was born one winter night during the conference when the pair was unable to get a cab. [1]
2. ....they were having trouble paying their rent and were looking for a way to earn some extra cash. They noticed that all hotel rooms in the city were booked, as the local Industrial Design conference attracted a lot of visitors.[2]
3. The idea for ZopNow came when founder Mukesh Singh was standing in a queue at a grocery supermarket. The idea flashed in his mind that something could certainly be done to save people from the hassle of waiting in long lines at grocery supermarkets [3]
4. He was motivated to start OYO Rooms so that he could be in control of the TV remote, which wasn’t possible when he stayed with relatives when he was a child.[4]
[1] https://www.uber.com/en-IN/newsroom/history/ https://www.uber.com/en-IN/newsroom/history/
[2] https://getpaidforyourpad.com/blog/the-airbnb-founder-story/ https://getpaidforyourpad.com/blog/the-airbnb-founder-story/
[3] http://www.newspatrolling.com/zopnow-company-profile/ http://www.newspatrolling.com/zopnow-company-profile/
[4] https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/company/corporate-trends/how-ritesh-agarwals-oyo-conquered-china/multitasker/slideshow/65795183.cms https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/company/corporate-...
- 411111111111111 5y agoIs that surprising? Basically everyone says that you should solve a problem you yourself have if you want to start a business, as that's basically already validated from the start. This is just a consequence of people taking that old adage to heart
- alisonkisk 5y ago> you yourself have That's the myth. The reality is "a problem you see some people have" (where problem is defined as "anything real or imagined or incepted need that someone can be persuaded to pay for").
- scyzoryk_xyz 5y agoI think humans have enjoyed framing stories in this 'stroke-of-luck' genius protagonist style for a long time. In startups the initial moneybag investor needs a brilliant story to repeat to everybody in their network. Later, everybody who works in that risky venture wants to repeat that story to explain the risk they're taking to have this adventure. Finally, consumers who are initially convinced to buy the thing also need to tell themselves stories of how this product is somehow special, unique, made by brilliant people. It's like the origin story is an accumulation of all the narcissistic energy accumulated in order to swallow the uncertainty felt by everyone involved. I would question the importance of focusing on the story - it should naturally follow and result from all the work being done, not be invented ahead of time to fit in with expectations.
- itronitron 5y agoI was starting to get hungry while playing cards, and desired something that could be eaten without using a fork, or without getting my cards greasy as a result of eating meat with my bare hands. So I asked one of my servants to bring forth slices of meat between two slices of bread. So here we are; Eat Fresh! -- John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich