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Advice for SW entrepreneurs: The Great Startup Idea that I Can't Reveal (Yet)

16 points by alain94040 18y ago

alain94040 18y ago
This post is also partly based on my experience and discussions at AngelConf. You should always be able to reveal at least vaguely in what space your startup is. So I can help you. If you refuse to give me any information at all, then there is nothing I can do. The strength of Silicon Valley is in its network and its 3 degrees of separation (if the rest of the world lives by 6 degrees of separation, then Silicon Valley is at 3 or less). Which means that I probably know someone who knows someone who will be greatly helpful to you. Allow me to help by telling me something.
spoiledtechie 18y ago
The third idea is pretty cool. You said they are already making it? Would love to know who? a community for software developers to share revenue
- alain94040 18y ago
  Let me guess.... YC? [I like your sense of humor, I hope you like mine too :-)]
- jacoblyles 18y ago
  I didn't like the third idea. It sounds like it would have a classic "tragedy of the commons" problem. Each developer spends full effort for each dollar he brings in, but gets only part of the benefit. In addition, being idle has a much lower cost than it would normally would since an individual's idleness is subsidized by the efforts of other developers. This incentivizes each developer to work less hard than they otherwise would. Now the second idea is brilliant. I can't count the number of times that we had to email our clients private messages while we were on conference calls with potential investors. Having a way to privately talk with our clients would have been beneficial.
ams6110 18y ago
Nothing really new in this post -- but the message bears occasional repeating: ideas are a dime a dozen, it's executing on one that few people can do well.
bea_l_auger 18y ago
This is "interesting"... ;) I've seen the same thing -- many people are too worried someone will take their idea, so they don't ever talk about it to a wide variety of people. If you "eat like an elephant and poop like a bird" (Guy Kawasaik in Rules for Revolutionaries), and actually talk about your idea to people you meet, then you can get feedback, develop their idea, figure out if there is a market for it, and through serendipity find a person or two who is equally passionate about your idea and may be a good partner to collaborate with you. Talking with others helps with timing too. It's important to get an idea going so you can get your software built as the demand in the market is accelerating. But at the same time, by bouncing your idea off lots of people you will gain datapoints and then grow intuition about if the market is really ready for this yet. "Too early is sometimes as bad as too late" (Sandra Kurtzig in CEO: Building a Company from the Ground Up). I've had friends who had the idea for so many things, but didn't do it -- and then someone else did. Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. And as Edison clarified that thought, "I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any of my inventions come by accident. They came by work." Talking to people is part of that work.
- physcab 18y ago
  I would consider one of my best friends to be way smarter than I am, maybe even a genius. But he has odd execution patterns. If a professor gives him an assignment, he'll produce an A relatively effortlessly. He had 3 majors in 5 years, and was in the top 1% in each department. I considered him to be an asset, so when I told him about one of my start-up ideas, I expected he'd translate his academic execution into product execution. Definitely not the case. It was 6 months before I realized this guy was brilliant, but failed to connect the dots in real applications. He just did not have the personal drive to get anything done, nor did he *care*. And this was someone who initially showed a lot interest, and wasn't even a threat! My point is that even people who may seem like they may be a threat to copy your idea, probably do not even care enough to pursue it. I'd be willing to bet that the population of individuals who actually execute on their ideas to completion is pretty rare...so those who execute on others ideas is probably even rarer.
  - DenisM 18y ago
arien 18y ago
Well, since ideas can be patented, trademarked, become intellectual property and whatever else, it's understandable that we feel scared about ideas being stolen. But I think the roots of the problem are basically in our enthusiasm and our (lack of) self-confidence. On one side, we consider our ideas awesome and that anyone who hears them will also think they are the coolest thing since sliced bread. On the other hand, we believe that, if they like it enough (which they obviously do because of the previous point), they will steal/copy it and possibly execute it better than us (because they have more experience, more people, more contacts, more money... infinite reasons). This article speaks the truth, 99% of the time people won't care or understand, and you will have to chase them to make them believe in your ideas (I'm experienced with the "that's interesting" people :P). But when enthusiasm is strong enough, it's very hard to accept that someone won't like your idea. And if self-confidence levels are low, here comes the problem and the secretive attitude.

16 points by alain94040 18y ago

This post is also partly based on my experience and discussions at AngelConf. You should always be able to reveal at least vaguely in what space your startup is. So I can help you. If you refuse to give me any information at all, then there is nothing I can do. The strength of Silicon Valley is in its network and its 3 degrees of separation (if the rest of the world lives by 6 degrees of separation, then Silicon Valley is at 3 or less). Which means that I probably know someone who knows someone who will be greatly helpful to you. Allow me to help by telling me something.

spoiledtechie 18y ago

The third idea is pretty cool. You said they are already making it? Would love to know who? a community for software developers to share revenue

alain94040 18y ago
Let me guess.... YC? [I like your sense of humor, I hope you like mine too :-)]
jacoblyles 18y ago
I didn't like the third idea. It sounds like it would have a classic "tragedy of the commons" problem. Each developer spends full effort for each dollar he brings in, but gets only part of the benefit. In addition, being idle has a much lower cost than it would normally would since an individual's idleness is subsidized by the efforts of other developers. This incentivizes each developer to work less hard than they otherwise would. Now the second idea is brilliant. I can't count the number of times that we had to email our clients private messages while we were on conference calls with potential investors. Having a way to privately talk with our clients would have been beneficial.

ams6110 18y ago

Nothing really new in this post -- but the message bears occasional repeating: ideas are a dime a dozen, it's executing on one that few people can do well.

bea_l_auger 18y ago

This is "interesting"... ;) I've seen the same thing -- many people are too worried someone will take their idea, so they don't ever talk about it to a wide variety of people. If you "eat like an elephant and poop like a bird" (Guy Kawasaik in Rules for Revolutionaries), and actually talk about your idea to people you meet, then you can get feedback, develop their idea, figure out if there is a market for it, and through serendipity find a person or two who is equally passionate about your idea and may be a good partner to collaborate with you. Talking with others helps with timing too. It's important to get an idea going so you can get your software built as the demand in the market is accelerating. But at the same time, by bouncing your idea off lots of people you will gain datapoints and then grow intuition about if the market is really ready for this yet. "Too early is sometimes as bad as too late" (Sandra Kurtzig in CEO: Building a Company from the Ground Up). I've had friends who had the idea for so many things, but didn't do it -- and then someone else did. Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. And as Edison clarified that thought, "I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any of my inventions come by accident. They came by work." Talking to people is part of that work.

physcab 18y ago
I would consider one of my best friends to be way smarter than I am, maybe even a genius. But he has odd execution patterns. If a professor gives him an assignment, he'll produce an A relatively effortlessly. He had 3 majors in 5 years, and was in the top 1% in each department. I considered him to be an asset, so when I told him about one of my start-up ideas, I expected he'd translate his academic execution into product execution. Definitely not the case. It was 6 months before I realized this guy was brilliant, but failed to connect the dots in real applications. He just did not have the personal drive to get anything done, nor did he *care*. And this was someone who initially showed a lot interest, and wasn't even a threat! My point is that even people who may seem like they may be a threat to copy your idea, probably do not even care enough to pursue it. I'd be willing to bet that the population of individuals who actually execute on their ideas to completion is pretty rare...so those who execute on others ideas is probably even rarer.
- DenisM 18y ago

arien 18y ago

Well, since ideas can be patented, trademarked, become intellectual property and whatever else, it's understandable that we feel scared about ideas being stolen. But I think the roots of the problem are basically in our enthusiasm and our (lack of) self-confidence. On one side, we consider our ideas awesome and that anyone who hears them will also think they are the coolest thing since sliced bread. On the other hand, we believe that, if they like it enough (which they obviously do because of the previous point), they will steal/copy it and possibly execute it better than us (because they have more experience, more people, more contacts, more money... infinite reasons). This article speaks the truth, 99% of the time people won't care or understand, and you will have to chase them to make them believe in your ideas (I'm experienced with the "that's interesting" people :P). But when enthusiasm is strong enough, it's very hard to accept that someone won't like your idea. And if self-confidence levels are low, here comes the problem and the secretive attitude.