Ask HN: Should you execute a great idea that you're not very passionate about?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1933262

by amccloud • 16 years ago

1 3 16 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

Would you work idea that you're not very passionate about? I have an idea for a simple website that I know a friend of mine and many others (who are writers) will enjoy to use very much. I enjoy making websites, but I'm no writer and don't enjoy writing for fun.

The idea is similar to http://fmylife.com/

Should I make the site?

f00li5h• 16 years ago

nothing ventured ...

michael_dorfman• 16 years ago

What do you mean by "a great idea"? An idea that your friend and many others would enjoy, or a monetizable idea that can become a sustainable business?

If you have an idea ready for execution that you deeply believe can be a profitable business, what's the downside of executing?

The fact that you are not the customer shouldn't be a showstopper. But, you should be close enough to the customers to understand their needs, and what they would pay for.

MortenK• 16 years ago

Summary: Don't do it, it's a waste of your time. Why:

There's quite a few problems with not being passionate about an idea or project, even though you might see it to be commercially viable. For any idea, no matter how great, you need to invest a lot of time. Even though you might be able to code the thing in a few months, you'll most likely have to be INTIMATELY involved for the next few years.

You'll be doing marketing, sales, product development, support ALL centered around the core idea. Product success doesn't come overnight, and if you have no passion for the idea, it is very likely that you will run out of steam before it gets to be successful.

Even in the case it does become successful, you will probably still not feel passionate about the product. This means you are very vulnerable to competition who are fiercely passionate about a similar product. You would rather NOT think about the business, whereas your competition enjoy thinking about and revising the product / offering, simply because they can't help themselves due to the field being their big interest.

I wouldn't recommend anyone pursuing an idea that they really aren't that interested in.

There are so many opportunities, that it will most likely be a waste of your time if you choose to pursue one which does not hold your interest.

That said, in the case that it truly is a very simple site, and you don't have any other pressing projects, sure, do it for the fun of building it, gaining a portfolio piece or similar. But don't do it for the money, as it will most likely never materialize. To earn serious money off a project requires full investment for a very long period of time. Without passion or interest, it becomes very hard to remain committed.

Ask HN: Should you execute a great idea that you're not very passionate about?

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