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I'm gonna have to go with PG's advice here. Stop trying to start a company. You don't start a company just for the sake of it. Even if you have a project that's

by gt565k 11y ago

I'm gonna have to go with PG's advice here. Stop trying to start a company. You don't start a company just for the sake of it. Even if you have a project that's cool and useful, it doesn't mean it needs to be a company. I'd focus on working on projects and rolling them out. See if people use them. If you can find a way to monetize, do it. Just build things to get experience. Don't try to start a start-up just cause.

astrodust 11y ago
Couldn't agree more. Startup ideas are a dime a dozen. If you don't have any you're not even trying. I can usually come up with at least two or three a day simply by reading, observing, and thinking about how things work in combination. The ones that are truly start-up worthy are those you personally believe in, have a considerable market opportunity, and the timing is right. Those are more rare, but if you make a concerted effort to keep thinking and re-thinking your ideas, you'll come up with one for sure. Don't make a business to be successful, that's usually going to end in tears. Make a business to scratch an itch you have you can't ignore. Even if you fail you'll still feel like you've done something important, and if you succeed you'll be satisfied.
- HeyLaughingBoy 11y ago
  Don't plan for failure.
  - astrodust 11y ago
    Nobody wants failure, but if failure's an acceptable outcome it makes things a lot easier on you psychologically. Obviously you'll push for the best possible outcome. The alternative is like jumping out of an airplane with no parachute and hoping to hit a haystack. It's probably not going to happen. Most startups implode before they get any traction, it's a fact.
HeyLaughingBoy 11y ago
Why shouldn't you start a company just for the sake of it? Everyone's gotta eat, what if you want your employer to be yourself? I guess my behavior is the exact opposite: I won't start a project then try to monetize it, I prefer to look at what people are likely to spend money on and then build that. That seems more in line with what the OP is trying to do.
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
- gt565k 11y ago
  Most people try to start a company by forcing an idea they think is good. Just like one of my college friends, who doesn't understand the market, industry, or even the target audience for his idea. Like I said, you don't just start a company. You start a company when you realize that this is a product that can sell, until then, it's a side project. I can't tell you the countless times my college friend came up with a "great" idea. Even went as far as registering an LLC. I quickly dismiss most of his "great" ideas with 5 minutes of googling. Starting a company means you need to invest ALL of your free time into building the company, product, acquiring customers, etc. Most people register an LLC with their crappy idea and think they are running a company. Unless you are willing to drop out of school and invest 80 hours a week building this company, it's probably not worth it. The reason PG suggests to build things that don't scale, is because getting experience building applications is far more valuable than trying to force a stupid idea into a business. Building applications that already exist just for fun, will open your mind. Once you start connecting different ideas together, organically, an idea worth becoming a business will come to mind. You can sit and brainstorm ideas all day, but the best ideas, the ones that can turn into a business, they just come to you out of the ordinary.
panjaro 11y ago
I agree ! Don't start a company just to start a company !
- miguelrochefort 11y ago
  Yet you comment just to comment.

by gt565k 11y ago

astrodust 11y ago

Couldn't agree more. Startup ideas are a dime a dozen. If you don't have any you're not even trying. I can usually come up with at least two or three a day simply by reading, observing, and thinking about how things work in combination. The ones that are truly start-up worthy are those you personally believe in, have a considerable market opportunity, and the timing is right. Those are more rare, but if you make a concerted effort to keep thinking and re-thinking your ideas, you'll come up with one for sure. Don't make a business to be successful, that's usually going to end in tears. Make a business to scratch an itch you have you can't ignore. Even if you fail you'll still feel like you've done something important, and if you succeed you'll be satisfied.

HeyLaughingBoy 11y ago
Don't plan for failure.
- astrodust 11y ago
  Nobody wants failure, but if failure's an acceptable outcome it makes things a lot easier on you psychologically. Obviously you'll push for the best possible outcome. The alternative is like jumping out of an airplane with no parachute and hoping to hit a haystack. It's probably not going to happen. Most startups implode before they get any traction, it's a fact.

HeyLaughingBoy 11y ago

Why shouldn't you start a company just for the sake of it? Everyone's gotta eat, what if you want your employer to be yourself? I guess my behavior is the exact opposite: I won't start a project then try to monetize it, I prefer to look at what people are likely to spend money on and then build that. That seems more in line with what the OP is trying to do.

deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
gt565k 11y ago
Most people try to start a company by forcing an idea they think is good. Just like one of my college friends, who doesn't understand the market, industry, or even the target audience for his idea. Like I said, you don't just start a company. You start a company when you realize that this is a product that can sell, until then, it's a side project. I can't tell you the countless times my college friend came up with a "great" idea. Even went as far as registering an LLC. I quickly dismiss most of his "great" ideas with 5 minutes of googling. Starting a company means you need to invest ALL of your free time into building the company, product, acquiring customers, etc. Most people register an LLC with their crappy idea and think they are running a company. Unless you are willing to drop out of school and invest 80 hours a week building this company, it's probably not worth it. The reason PG suggests to build things that don't scale, is because getting experience building applications is far more valuable than trying to force a stupid idea into a business. Building applications that already exist just for fun, will open your mind. Once you start connecting different ideas together, organically, an idea worth becoming a business will come to mind. You can sit and brainstorm ideas all day, but the best ideas, the ones that can turn into a business, they just come to you out of the ordinary.

panjaro 11y ago

I agree ! Don't start a company just to start a company !

miguelrochefort 11y ago
Yet you comment just to comment.