Thoughts on Startups

paulstamatiou.com

7 points·terpua··6 comments

Opportunity cost? Terrible argument. If you even let yourself think about this, you'd never do anything.

I bring in that for reasons why most people don't think about starting a startup. My argument is entirely against that.

Yes, we agree. Lots of good reasons for not starting a startup. That isn't one of them.

Care to explain your reasoning?

This kinda reminds me of the old argument that Bill Gates earns so quickly, that he'd be wasting his time if he bent over to pick up a $100 dollar bill.

I remember the first time I got a billing rate of over $100/hour. I literally stopped fixing food in my kitchen and started buying carry out food so that I could bill more hours. If I save $8/hour cooking but lose $100/hour because I'm in my kitchen instead of my office, then I'm effectively LOSING $92/hour. Can't have that.

So I started changing other things. Dry cleaning instead of laundry. Got a maid instead of cleaning my own office. Even cut my hair short to save 3 minutes in the shower.

Starting to see how easy it is to get carried away with the "opportunity cost" argument?

What's the worst thing you could possibility do? Anything that takes time without earning. Which is EXACTLY what happens in an early stage startup. That's why I simply can't let myself revert to that kind of thinking.

If accountants ran the world, we'd still be riding horses to work.

I think that's the same point the article makes... If you worry about opportunity cost... then you aren't going to want to join a start up.

Did you even read the article?

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