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What would you say would happen to a budding startup if the founder or key-members acted and felt opposite to the way you describe most HN contributors as being

by zo1 12y ago

What would you say would happen to a budding startup if the founder or key-members acted and felt opposite to the way you describe most HN contributors as being? Is there even a word for a virtual lynch-mob and subsequent media trial? These are very delicate topics, and individuals that are ambitious can not afford to misstep in that regard. Of course, you could be right, and these individuals are simply unusually kind compared to how kind (or not) we perceive the general public to be.

nostrademons 12y ago
A couple years ago, I was complaining about how I don't do feelings or nice gestures because they're "fake"; it felt dishonest to do things just to make other people feel better so they'd have a higher opinion of me. One of my friends replied with a story about a contractor that he occasionally did business with. The contractor had sent him a nice brief note wishing him a happy birthday (or some other special occasion; my memory is hazy). My friend's first thought was "Oh, wow, that was nice of him to remember." His second thought was "Wait, he probably has a calendar with the birthdates of all of his clients on it and software to send out a form letter on their birthday. He wants our business, after all." His third thought was "Well, it was nice of him to setup that software." As separate, individual human beings without the luxury of mind-reading, we can't actually know why anyone does something. That's why people usually judge themselves by their intentions, but they judge others by their actions. If your actions demonstrate empathy to other people, is that any different from actually having that empathy? (As a side note, this is one reason why market economies are so fascinating. It's a system built on the assumption that everyone is naturally self-interested and doesn't care about others that nevertheless manages to make its participants - even the most selfish and sociopathic of them - act in ways that benefit others.)

by zo1 12y ago

nostrademons 12y ago

A couple years ago, I was complaining about how I don't do feelings or nice gestures because they're "fake"; it felt dishonest to do things just to make other people feel better so they'd have a higher opinion of me. One of my friends replied with a story about a contractor that he occasionally did business with. The contractor had sent him a nice brief note wishing him a happy birthday (or some other special occasion; my memory is hazy). My friend's first thought was "Oh, wow, that was nice of him to remember." His second thought was "Wait, he probably has a calendar with the birthdates of all of his clients on it and software to send out a form letter on their birthday. He wants our business, after all." His third thought was "Well, it was nice of him to setup that software." As separate, individual human beings without the luxury of mind-reading, we can't actually know why anyone does something. That's why people usually judge themselves by their intentions, but they judge others by their actions. If your actions demonstrate empathy to other people, is that any different from actually having that empathy? (As a side note, this is one reason why market economies are so fascinating. It's a system built on the assumption that everyone is naturally self-interested and doesn't care about others that nevertheless manages to make its participants - even the most selfish and sociopathic of them - act in ways that benefit others.)