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Well, if you don't make money it's not a business, its a hobby in my opinion. I have hobbies that I put my time, effort and money into, but I certainly don't cl

by trapper 18y ago

Well, if you don't make money it's not a business, its a hobby in my opinion. I have hobbies that I put my time, effort and money into, but I certainly don't classify them as startups. Thousands do this for open source & freeware projects, it doesn't mean they are startups either. I know it's not the popular opinion, but making money is important, and having a plan to make money & testing it before you launch is a critical part of a business. Perhaps it's one thing people will learn, that a project isn't a business until you have paying customers. Getting bought may not be a viable business model anymore, if it ever was.

einarvollset 18y ago
"a project isn't a business until you have paying customers" ..is not a popular opinion because it's false. I hate to go all cliche on you, but Google & Facebook are two examples that would, per your definition, not count as startups (or businesses) for the first few years they existed. I reckon if you've quit your job and pursued whatever passion you have in order to try and make it a success, then you've earned calling it a startup. I get your drift about needing to have a plan to make money though, it's probably something that will separate the wheat from the chaff in the coming years.