> A one-person business is an exercise in long-term anxiety management, so I would say if you are already an anxious person, go ahead and start a business. You're not going to feel any worse.
+1
+1
I hope it's a choice!
I applied for a salaried position at IBM (I think?) for a Product Management position that I could have nailed, through a head-hunter that I knew was covering the position.
He said: "No way, dude. I wouldn't do that to them or you".
I said: "Why not?"
He said: "Because you are a startup guy".
I said: "Hey - I used to work at Motorola. At the global level. Scotland, Malaysia, I lived in Japan, Phoenix and Austin. I was a great corporate droid."
He said: "Used to be. Now you would just get a couple of paychecks into feeling less homeless-bound, and tell your boss or your boss's boss to fuck off and die."
I said: "No I wouldn't".
He said: "Yes you would - and you can't change my mind".
Whatever.
In my town, I am apparently branded "a startup guy".
1) Eat shit and do the stupid thing while a small part of you dies.
2) March into the VP’s office, tell him to fuck off, and walk out like a champ.
Which option do you choose?
It was very rude but pretty declarative!
In any case - I would never have the moral rectitude to make that kind of statement.
It is absolutely important to be able to say no to people who outrank you.
I don't backstab, but I also don't lie (which includes people I'm "supposed" to sell the stupid idea to as a great one, starting with myself), I respect the "chain of command" in a way, but never blindly, and wear that on my sleeve. That closes plenty doors, but far from all, and my general experiences with "standing up to my bosses" were surprisingly good. As long as it's because you care about the thing, and the clients of it, and as long as the boss is confident, in themselves and maybe even you, there should be some leeway for that.
I'd happily work for myself with some sort of SAAS thing again, but no way i want to go back to freelancing unless I'm desperate.
I worked in startups prior to that so it wasn't a huge leap outside my comfort zone I guess.
> Running an online service solo puts one in the coffin corner between the Dunning Kruger effect and impostor syndrome.
This guy knows how to write.
I was wondering, what does it mean?
What I mean is phrasing that makes allusions. You'll find it in writing as a tool to expand meaning, change tone, add connotation, etc. It can lose power and clarity when the reader is unfamiliar with the underlying references.
Here, the writing brings in an aerodynamics concept (coffin corner), a famous bit of psychology about cognitive biases (Dunning Kruger), and a trueism about doubting one's own capacity (imposter syndrome).
Personally, the reference to coffin corner adds richness to the writing. It is from a completely different discipline, less commonly referenced in HN context than the other two, and immediately gives me a sense of greater breadth about the author's experiences.
But maybe I'm just cynical and afraid to get out of my comfort zone.