The "Me, Too" Startup Syndrome

There's a subtle, rather meta feeling I can't shake when I read "cautionary" blog posts like these. It's the feeling that maybe the author isn't writing it for anyone else's benefit as much as their own. Like the author writes to reinforce that, unlike said "friend" who's making all these cautionary mistakes, they themselves are in it for all the right reasons.<p>Every time the author makes a, "he" statement, you can <i>just</i> perceive a subtle, "but not me." The faintest signal for both the reader, and for himself. Here's what I read:<p>- "I let a long sigh." (Because <i>I</i> know better).<p>- "My friend wasn’t someone I’d call 'entrepreneurial'" (...but I am).<p>- "He wasn’t doing it because he enjoyed the process of starting and growing a company." (But I am).<p>- "But building a company requires a lot more than writing code." (All things I'm far more capable of).<p>- "He’s lived in Silicon Valley long enough, and that’s what people around him are doing." (Me? I'm an island).<p>Who is the author to make this judgement? Why do you need to fit some mold in order to participate in the exclusive club, without criticism from the author? And who gets to determine what that mold is?

I don't know if the author was trying to express this particular sentiment, but I am concerned by a general theme that I have noticed in articles I have been reading on HN lately.<p>1. We are in a bubble, because all these 'useless' startups are getting funding when they should not be (debatable on many levels).<p>2. Too many startups are focusing on areas that are over like 'Social'.<p>3. Some people just aren't good enough or cut out for this, so they should avoid it, and let the ones with a specific set of 'opinions' create startups.<p>My advise to anyone also sensing this theme and turning away from creating a startup is this:<p>Do it for whatever reason you want!<p>If you want to make a great product, and love hacking, awesome! Go for it!<p>If you want to get rich and jump in, awesome! Go for it!<p>There are no guarantees in life about whether anyone will succeed, but there is also not infinite time to wonder what might have been. Even if 90% of these ventures fail, there will still be more great products and opportunities for everyone. Because that crazy 10% wasn't deterred by someone else telling them what should and shouldn't be. Cautionary tales help to educate, but don't be discouraged by anyone if you really want to do it.

Regardless of the strengths or weaknesses of this article, the scansion of his/her opening poetry bothers me.<p>In the spirit of hacking, I've tried to improve it (and please help me if I've done this wrong or poorly!):<p><pre><code> Twas the Y-Comb deadline eve, when all through the valley All the hackers were stirring (it's a big night for Cali!). Scores of applications were POST'ed with care In hopes they'd be found by Paul Graham to be fair. And many a partner slumbered softly in bed, while visions of A-rounds flooded their SO's heads. Quite out of the blue my iPhone did ring: an old friend to a bar for a convo I'd bring!</code></pre>

"- But why do you want to get into YC?<p>- Are you kidding? It’s an awesome opportunity: you get to mingle with smart people, work on something exciting, get funding and mentorship, investors will chase you to give you money, and you’re much more likely get acquired in the future.<p>- That’s not what I meant. I know YC is a great place. But why do YOU want to get in?"<p>"why do YOU want to get in?" The question <i>was</i> answered.

Some advice I try to live by is to ignore others and just do "you".<p>So, don't worry about whether or not your friend is starting a business for the right reasons. He'll figure it out.<p>Your productivity will increase when you focus on your own goals instead of others.

Everytime I read a post like this, all I hear is "please don't compete with me."

Aside from all of the other possibly insulting remarks from the post, this particular one caught my eye:<p>"And a few girlfriends slept alone in their beds While visions of exits danced in their boyfriends’ heads"<p>I'm male, but let me tell you that the above statement infuriates me as it perpetuates the stereotype that women are not entrepreneurs. I'm sure I'm not the only one who believes that my better half would be wildly more successful than I would be if she had an inkling to do a startup.<p>To reiterate, this form of sexism needs to stop.

Minor observation - the last line about YCombinator being "the best place to start a company" seemed a little weird. As a percentage, how many of the recent "startup success stories" have been started at YCombinator and how many haven't?

I find nothing wrong with the "Me, Too" Startup Syndrome. I know plenty of friends who went to medical school because their parents were doctors, or it's the "Asian thing" to do, and they turned out to be decent doctors. Same for lawyers, accountants and gardners; a lot of "me too" happening outside of the startup world. Unlike 30 years ago, many more people want to go into technology because it's hip to be in a startup - hell, thanks to popular cinema (The Social Network) and mainstream technology (iOS/Android) geekie hobbies are now cool. People got mocked for playing with their Timex Sinclair in the early '80s, whereas today I have to sign up early in order to reserve my son a spot in the mobile game development bootcamp. Times are a changing, and the OP sounds like the indie college guy who's resentful that his secret band is now being followed by everybody.<p>Other "me too" activities: marriage, children, golf, smoking, religion, tantric sex... sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't. All a part of life.

I've been thinking the same things lately. Referring to what ever coding project happens to be filling your spare time as your "start up" seems to be what all the cool kids are doing these days.

Even if a startup fails helpfully everyone involved learned some lessons. I know people who have been founders or have worked in startups that didn't succeed, in-spite of that have gone on to do a variety of interesting things.<p>Companies fail for all sorts of reasons that are often well beyond their control. Being part of such a team is hardly the kiss of death provided you can explain what you did and what you learned.<p>You lose 100% of the games you never play. Go into it with your eyes open that more than likely you won't be the next instagram, but you will develop many skills can be broadly applied outside of starting a company. With the right attitude it doesn't matter if you strike it rich, because frequently good ideas(supersonic air travel, concord ) lose and a lot of seemingly bad ideas have made people wealthy(pet rocks).

Awesomepreneur in me says you should take that inner voice that makes you doubt because of public opinion out back and shoot it. Do what you need, to get the job done in whatever plan and stay focused. Most will fail, some will last but wounded, few will stick around and all of them will blog about it. Just focus on getting the job done, even if it's a local-centric social network for pets with sepia instagram avatars. Well, maybe I went too far, but keep focused on your own work, not others.

San Francisco in a nutshell.

Another issue I see is people are not afraid at all due to easy availability of capital. Although, entrepreneur can be considered as fearless (at least when it comes to failure). But he/she always lives in fear. Be it competitors, running out of money, employees quitting, not able to hire, etc. At least, I live in fear all the time.

I definitely agree, it is a lot easier to fill out an application than to rally around an idea and begin creating a great product. I think it's definitely worth doing some self examination before deciding you are ready to do a startup and understanding the reality of your situation.

I mostly agree with you; however, you do realize that your blog is called "Funtrepreneur," right?

Aaaand cue "Sexist!" outcries...