My hobby: Following up on entrepreneurs
blog.garlicsim.org
blog.garlicsim.org
The entrepreneurs are trying to do something, while the author of the article only waits for them to trip and fall.
I'm sorry, but I find no value in that. Actually, I find it rather sad.
"The entrepreneurs are trying to do something"
Actually most of the time they just talk without doing anything. People who actually try are the minority.
"the author of the article only waits for them to trip and fall."
I want them to succeed, but I also want them to be humble and realistic, so if they declare "I'm gonna make the next Facebook!" then yeah, I'll enjoy watching them fall.
The point of this hobby is to cut down on the level of bullshit in our industry. If many people adopt this hobby, then entrepreneurs will be more likely to think twice before they declare "We're gonna be the next Facebook!" And so when someone does make a bold declaration, there will be a bigger chance that he will actually make good on it. I think that this would result in more honesty in our industry.
Ironically, this statement is neither humble nor realistic. No one cares about how you'd like them to be. If all entrepreneurs were humble and realistic, we'd still be in the Stone Age. Yea, a lot of wild ideas fail, but the small number of them that succeed usually have a big positive impact. It follows that society is better off with a bunch of crazy, unrealistic entrepreneurs trying to "build the next Facebook".
Isn't the market already effectively doing this? If they try and fail, or don't try at all, or don't ship by the promised date, they haven't succeeded and they've been "weeded". I don't think that calling them out on their lack of success is going to dissuade others from making big claims.
> If many people adopt this hobby...
I think if many people adopted the hobby of building stuff and shipping it, that would do a better job of cutting down on the level of bullshit.
Think of it this way: would you want to live in a world where everyone is like the author of that article?
I know I wouldn't. Nothing would get invented and nobody would take any risks. Everyone would just sit back and criticize.
I would much rather live in a world of dreaming entrepreneurs, who are sometimes wrong and who sometimes fail.
In other words, it's dangerous to tell people your plans unless you are sure they will continually pressure you do actually do it!