3 ms·

Here's another perspective: what if I only pitch one person but they're the perfect fit for our business and have the right connections. They say "yes." Meanwhi

Here's another perspective: what if I only pitch one person but they're the perfect fit for our business and have the right connections. They say "yes." Meanwhile you've been busting your butt pitching more than a dozen people, working 10 hours a day six days a week, and setting into your definition of, "working hard." You don't land a single investor. Who is more valuable to the business? There's innumerable scenarios we can concoct but I think the point is that there's no industrial-labor model for quantifying "effort" in a knowledge-based business. As a software developer my value increases exponentially beyond the menial tasks I face at my job as I learn to curate good ideas, cultivate processes for generating new ones, and avoiding bad ideas. Any attempt to quantify my value based on lines of code, number of repository commits, or any other indicator is essentially meaningless without context. I may only make a single commit after a couple of weeks that changes two files and less than a dozen lines of code... but the network effects of the efficiency I just introduced allows to process N^k more data points per second which may pad your bonus with a couple of extra zeroes in the next quarter. So I would recommend: 1. Learn how to value people differently. They bring more to the table than just a warm body. 2. Model the contractual obligations and profit sharing based on the core values of the business. Does working 1 hour have a directly positive impact on profits of some constant (or near-constant) amount? Split profits on hours worked. Is it more ephemeral based on the experience and qualities of the individual? Split it based on responsibility and risk (as a rule of thumb).

Envec83 12y ago
This is an interesting perspective, and something I am trying to consider in my equation. I agree that the contribution each co-founder brings to the table should be based on the overall value, regardless of the hours he spent to achieve it. For instance, if one of the co-founders is able to land a big client or investor with a couple of phone calls then I certainly wouldn't worry that I am working 90 hours/week developing the product. One problem remains: finding people who can close big clients or investors over a couple of phone calls is pretty hard. Identifying them upfront might be even harder!
- agentultra 12y ago
  Yes, in that regard it's much a matter of luck. You do have some control over how much luck you can expose yourself to. However I don't think there is any systematic approach one can take to identify these people.

Envec83 12y ago

This is an interesting perspective, and something I am trying to consider in my equation. I agree that the contribution each co-founder brings to the table should be based on the overall value, regardless of the hours he spent to achieve it. For instance, if one of the co-founders is able to land a big client or investor with a couple of phone calls then I certainly wouldn't worry that I am working 90 hours/week developing the product. One problem remains: finding people who can close big clients or investors over a couple of phone calls is pretty hard. Identifying them upfront might be even harder!

agentultra 12y ago
Yes, in that regard it's much a matter of luck. You do have some control over how much luck you can expose yourself to. However I don't think there is any systematic approach one can take to identify these people.