3 ms·

Why not? I collect $60k annual in dividend income and live off of it in palo alto building the next version of the web. fuck vc.

lazide 4y ago
Because that is a very, very, VERY narrow and hard to hit target. It's intentionally limiting both the upside AND the downside. If that's what you end up with, hey that's cool. There are far worse outcomes possible in the world, and that one is pretty decent. But why not be open to more? Especially when starting and planning. After all, if things go well enough, you could do the same with $1 of salary. None of that necessarily requires VC either, just an open mind. Intentionally saying 'I don't want to make enough money to be wealthy' at a job which is based on building a machine to make money, is intentionally handicapping oneself. Think of it like setting a required minimum latency for a UI or API that you would intentionally never serve a response faster. Folks are welcome to do whatever they want of course, and if my competitors prefer to do this, that's cool by me! If someone doesn't trust themselves with the potential success, I could also understand that. But maybe it would be worth working on that part first. Because that will be a huge problem regardless.
- enos_feedler 4y ago
  The issue is you can't build a machine to make money if you are trying to invite the next iteration of a web platform. You need the other money making machines to participate. Why would they do that if they fear you will become a bigger money making machine than them (by being the underling platform)? I have an open mind if you have a good answer to this question.
  - lazide 4y ago
    1) why would your long term strategic plan be relevant to them? I don’t know of anyone that CC’s it to vendors, partners, etc. 2) who knows if that long term vision ever would come to fruition! It could easily be wild daydreaming, and once you actually start doing real business you’ll realize it was fantasy. Or the market will shift, and what was a good idea is now a bad one. Then you’d need to look around and figure out a real goal. 3) iterative is important. Meeting the market where it is, is important. And that is what customers generally care about now. Not some long term ‘will take over the world’ story, but what utility can you provide them now. And that is what your marketing, sales, etc. needs to be about. Where it goes long term and what you want it to be eventually is usually tangential to that, day to day, and what it may morph into as you have success, day to day. But putting that out up front before you have a credible path to it just distracts customers, makes sales harder, and is the cart before the horse.

lazide 4y ago

Because that is a very, very, VERY narrow and hard to hit target. It's intentionally limiting both the upside AND the downside. If that's what you end up with, hey that's cool. There are far worse outcomes possible in the world, and that one is pretty decent. But why not be open to more? Especially when starting and planning. After all, if things go well enough, you could do the same with $1 of salary. None of that necessarily requires VC either, just an open mind. Intentionally saying 'I don't want to make enough money to be wealthy' at a job which is based on building a machine to make money, is intentionally handicapping oneself. Think of it like setting a required minimum latency for a UI or API that you would intentionally never serve a response faster. Folks are welcome to do whatever they want of course, and if my competitors prefer to do this, that's cool by me! If someone doesn't trust themselves with the potential success, I could also understand that. But maybe it would be worth working on that part first. Because that will be a huge problem regardless.

enos_feedler 4y ago
The issue is you can't build a machine to make money if you are trying to invite the next iteration of a web platform. You need the other money making machines to participate. Why would they do that if they fear you will become a bigger money making machine than them (by being the underling platform)? I have an open mind if you have a good answer to this question.
- lazide 4y ago
  1) why would your long term strategic plan be relevant to them? I don’t know of anyone that CC’s it to vendors, partners, etc. 2) who knows if that long term vision ever would come to fruition! It could easily be wild daydreaming, and once you actually start doing real business you’ll realize it was fantasy. Or the market will shift, and what was a good idea is now a bad one. Then you’d need to look around and figure out a real goal. 3) iterative is important. Meeting the market where it is, is important. And that is what customers generally care about now. Not some long term ‘will take over the world’ story, but what utility can you provide them now. And that is what your marketing, sales, etc. needs to be about. Where it goes long term and what you want it to be eventually is usually tangential to that, day to day, and what it may morph into as you have success, day to day. But putting that out up front before you have a credible path to it just distracts customers, makes sales harder, and is the cart before the horse.