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Author here, thanks for the perspective. I’m absolutely on board with it being easier to build something today than ever before. SaaS, public cloud providers,

Author here, thanks for the perspective. I’m absolutely on board with it being easier to build something today than ever before. SaaS, public cloud providers, billing platforms etc. all exist and are awesome. My viewpoint is that it’s harder to build something original or financially viable. Sometimes it feels that all the low-hanging fruit has been picked hundreds of times, and anything truly significant is out of reach. I‘ve had dozens of ideas I didn’t pursue further after asking myself „if this is such a great idea, why hasn’t somebody else already done it?“. Maybe that‘s a loser‘s mindset ;-)

satvikpendem 4y ago
> build something original or financially viable > I‘ve had dozens of ideas I didn’t pursue further after asking myself „if this is such a great idea, why hasn’t somebody else already done it?“. You're conflating the two ("original" and "financially viable"). In my opinion, your mindset is fundamentally flawed. I'm not saying this in a negative way, I just mean that I've seen it before in others, and I myself used to think like you, so I can understand what you mean. The truth is, clones make money. You don't need an original idea to be financially successful, at the 4 to 8 figure range. Indeed, if you simply want to quit your job rather than make billions, you should be in a market with many competitors so you can carve out a small slice of it. If you instead are building a whole new market, like Airbnb or Uber, you can carve out a much larger slice but that requires a fundamentally different way of working, ie raising lots of money, teaching your audience (before Uber, who'd get in an unlicensed stranger's car?), and marketing the hell out of your startup. Instead, find a nice, large market with lots of competitors, and start building something. As you build, you will naturally find competitive advantages that differentiate you from your competitors. I also thought I needed to find something totally unique and original, ie an all new market, but I realized that was not the way to have success. Instead, I use an already successful market but then build something in those spaces. See https://indiehackers.com https://indiehackers.com for more info.
- alex_suzuki 4y ago
  The product I’m building right now, which I’m referring to at the end, indeed also exists in an existing, competitive space. You’ve given me something to think about, thanks.
  - satvikpendem 4y ago
    Read this: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31352108 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31352108 It talks about how the author waiting too long to ship and regretted it.
holler 4y ago
I think you have to just pick an idea you're passionate about and build it. I've had the same thought before yet even here on HN I've seen many startups shared that feel like rehashes of past ones. But those past ones got acquired... Now I believe in just build a solid product and attract customers/users.
meowtastic 4y ago
I think they're valid points. A lot of people argue that it's easier than ever before just because the costs are lower, without factoring in many other crucial aspects like timing, competition, and so on.

satvikpendem 4y ago

> build something original or financially viable > I‘ve had dozens of ideas I didn’t pursue further after asking myself „if this is such a great idea, why hasn’t somebody else already done it?“. You're conflating the two ("original" and "financially viable"). In my opinion, your mindset is fundamentally flawed. I'm not saying this in a negative way, I just mean that I've seen it before in others, and I myself used to think like you, so I can understand what you mean. The truth is, clones make money. You don't need an original idea to be financially successful, at the 4 to 8 figure range. Indeed, if you simply want to quit your job rather than make billions, you should be in a market with many competitors so you can carve out a small slice of it. If you instead are building a whole new market, like Airbnb or Uber, you can carve out a much larger slice but that requires a fundamentally different way of working, ie raising lots of money, teaching your audience (before Uber, who'd get in an unlicensed stranger's car?), and marketing the hell out of your startup. Instead, find a nice, large market with lots of competitors, and start building something. As you build, you will naturally find competitive advantages that differentiate you from your competitors. I also thought I needed to find something totally unique and original, ie an all new market, but I realized that was not the way to have success. Instead, I use an already successful market but then build something in those spaces. See https://indiehackers.com https://indiehackers.com for more info.

alex_suzuki 4y ago
The product I’m building right now, which I’m referring to at the end, indeed also exists in an existing, competitive space. You’ve given me something to think about, thanks.
- satvikpendem 4y ago
  Read this: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31352108 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31352108 It talks about how the author waiting too long to ship and regretted it.

holler 4y ago

I think you have to just pick an idea you're passionate about and build it. I've had the same thought before yet even here on HN I've seen many startups shared that feel like rehashes of past ones. But those past ones got acquired... Now I believe in just build a solid product and attract customers/users.

meowtastic 4y ago

I think they're valid points. A lot of people argue that it's easier than ever before just because the costs are lower, without factoring in many other crucial aspects like timing, competition, and so on.