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A few mil won't get you those things, but they'll guarantee your basic necessities. For example, my dad is working into his 70s. If I could fund his retirement

A few mil won't get you those things, but they'll guarantee your basic necessities. For example, my dad is working into his 70s. If I could fund his retirement I would. And here's the kicker: you can always go build something bigger than yourself after selling. Having fuck you money means you can make the ethical choice next time. Edit: on your comment about founders regretting their first sale. I'm guessing most founders are also well off, and don't worry as much financially. But even then, regret doesn't mean they made the wrong choice. I regret exercising my Shopify stock while I worked there, but it was still the best decision for me at the time.

JohnFen 3y ago
> Having fuck you money means you can make the ethical choice next time. If you weren't able to make the "ethical choice" the first time, you almost certainly won't make it the next time, either. All of the motivations that informed your first choice will equally inform your next.
- amrocha 3y ago
  Calling it the "ethical choice" was a mistake on my part. It's more of an "ethical calculus" between doing right by your family, and doing right by your users. So it's not that choosing your family is unethical, but it does have consequences for your users. If family was taken care of them the ethical calculus shifts in the users favor.
willsmith72 3y ago
The people who get to have the option of a multi-multi million dollar exit are the ones who start at the beginning when the company is worth nothing. Most people who can't afford basic necessities also can't afford to take the risk of starting something new. In fact, I would say it's a terrible decision in that case, akin to buying lottery tickets. The far easier way to guarantee "basic necessities" in tech is train up, get a good job, be frugal. You could have enough to never need basic necessities within 10 years, max 20. The vast majority of founders I see are relatively self-sufficient already and live comfortably. They're founders because they're addicted to it, love making something new, and potentially are chasing that mega-exit. 10s-100s of millions, not a few.
- amrocha 3y ago
  Maybe the reason the majority of founders are like that is because the ones who sell out and go live comfortably for the rest of their lives take themselves out of the pool and you don't hear about them.

JohnFen 3y ago

> Having fuck you money means you can make the ethical choice next time. If you weren't able to make the "ethical choice" the first time, you almost certainly won't make it the next time, either. All of the motivations that informed your first choice will equally inform your next.

amrocha 3y ago
Calling it the "ethical choice" was a mistake on my part. It's more of an "ethical calculus" between doing right by your family, and doing right by your users. So it's not that choosing your family is unethical, but it does have consequences for your users. If family was taken care of them the ethical calculus shifts in the users favor.

willsmith72 3y ago

The people who get to have the option of a multi-multi million dollar exit are the ones who start at the beginning when the company is worth nothing. Most people who can't afford basic necessities also can't afford to take the risk of starting something new. In fact, I would say it's a terrible decision in that case, akin to buying lottery tickets. The far easier way to guarantee "basic necessities" in tech is train up, get a good job, be frugal. You could have enough to never need basic necessities within 10 years, max 20. The vast majority of founders I see are relatively self-sufficient already and live comfortably. They're founders because they're addicted to it, love making something new, and potentially are chasing that mega-exit. 10s-100s of millions, not a few.

amrocha 3y ago
Maybe the reason the majority of founders are like that is because the ones who sell out and go live comfortably for the rest of their lives take themselves out of the pool and you don't hear about them.