How to quit your job and build a startup

http://shelfmade.wordpress.com/2008/01/22/how-to-quit-your-job-to-build-a-startup/

by mikesabat • 19 years ago

25 23 19 years ago

shelfmade.wordpress.com

tptacek5• 19 years ago

I read this article for literally all of 5 seconds before getting pissed off. The answer to this "question" is simple, but you can get 1500 word blog posts voted up for it because nobody wants to hear the answer, which is (1) build a viable startup, and then (2) quit your job. Or! If you're daring and an extremely excellent salesperson, you can try (1) quitting your job and then (2) starting a company.

If you need to think past either of these two strategies before "deciding" whether to start a company, you're not going to start a company.

tptacek5• 19 years ago

Also? Arguing for a raise, and then quitting 3 months later after mentally checking out of your job for 3 months? Bit of a dick move.

mikesabat5• 19 years ago

Yes, it is a dick move. I wrote this post in response to a YCr asking about quitting their job to work on a startup in the face of this possible recession.

Not to be a jaded asshole, but there are many companies that don't really care about their employees and cutback etc to increase profits. Sure 2 wrongs don't make a right, but this raise will fund your company which can care about employees. Also, asking for a raise is empowering and a boost to your self confidence. In my example this comes at a time when you are overworked and a bit uncertain about your future.

tptacek5• 19 years ago

It's funny that everyone thinks of "the evil company" when they make decisions like this, but never talk about what they're doing to their coworkers.

pkaler• 19 years ago

Hmm, and I think I'm gonna cheat on my girlfriend before she has the chance to cheat on me. That sounds like a perfectly healthy relationship. Right?

Not so surprisingly, maintaining a positive work relationship and a positive romantic relationship requires the same skill set. Not so surprisingly, poor performance in the first facet seems to correlate with poor performance in the other facet.

By the way, I tendered my resignation last Tuesday. I am starting my own business because I am holding myself to a higher standard. Making money is easy. Being congruent with what you value in life is the hard part.

mattmaroon2• 19 years ago

Does this guy have any credibility? He sure doesn't speak as if his rant is mere conjecture, yet doesn't have any supporting data or even anecdotes. As far as I can tell from the about page, he's a guy with a flaming turd of a startup telling other people how to be successful.

This article seems to be mainly about how to not succeed.

mikesabat5• 19 years ago

Hey Matt, Good to meet you as well.

Some perspective: I'm not a coder, yet I am starting a web business. I previously founded and grew a non-tech startup to 2 million in revenue in our first 18 months. I fucked it up and made a horrible exit with very little cash.

Currently, I'm on step 5 of the blog post, with a new raise working both a full-time job and a startup company.

I do worry about market risk, so I'm researching several customers for the technology besides the obvious B2C. My biggest concern is a roadblock with google also focusing on the concept for ShelfMade. http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/11/19/google-magazine/

Not to start a fight, but I will be kicking your ass in fantasy football next year. And if ShelfMade has revenue or funding, we'll be doing it on Yahoo fantasy sports, agreed?

mattmaroon2• 19 years ago

Ha, sorry to hear about the bad exit. And if we qualify the revenue with some dollar figure then I'll even agree to the yahoo thing.

edw519• 19 years ago

"...I will be kicking your ass in fantasy football..."

The nerdosterone is getting a little heavy here.

mynameishere• 19 years ago

You know, even with an anonymous account, I don't think I would use the phrase "flaming turd of a startup" unprovoked.

tx3• 19 years ago

Don't you give people advice on your blog as well? Since when YC-accpetance counts as "creds"? None of us is Bill Gates here, chill out.

The blog post does indeed sound childish. It assumes that "beta" (what a stupid beaten up word that lost its original meaning) can be accomplished by just one person working "nights and weekends". Outside of web-based to-do lists, not a whole lot can be built into even a prototype this way.

aditya3• 19 years ago

how do you qualify that? wasn't del.icio.us built while joshua was moonlighting?

mixmax• 19 years ago

Start-ups are a cut-throat business where very few succeed. The less serious you are about it, the greater the chance that you will fail. And to be frank, working on your startup in weekends probably won't get you ahead of the pack.

If you want to do a successful startup I think that you it needs all your attention.

How to quit your job and build a startup

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