Why Smart People Have Bad Ideas [2005] | Hacker News Reader

Why Smart People Have Bad Ideas [2005]

paulgraham.com

25 pointsjoeyespo14 comments

I want to do a startup but I can't think of anything people want that I could implement. I'm not good at meeting people and hence, probably not good at understanding what they want. Maybe I'm already doomed to failure.

What are you working on right now?

A simple story writing game - the kind played at dinner parties or on a rainy day. creating an online version. scratching my own itch but know the "problem" exists for others.

Thats good. The worst thing you could have said was that you we were not working on anything.

Why do you want to be an entrepreneur?

Edit: oh sorry man, I thought that was sown replying hah.

try "scratching your own itch". sometimes you can find a problem that way and then you can try to determine if others are experiencing it too. alternatively you could try joining a startup. if you're not great at meeting people you should focus on those skills first. its really just a case of finding a common ground with others. if that still doesnt work, i've just started out on a story writing game with one other and if that interests you. get in touch.

Hacker? Find some local hackdays (ideally with a vague topic) and go along. Build anything you like, then try to find a way to make it from a hack into a product - viable or not.

There's nowhere better to find non-bullshitters and get attention if you're not awesome at networking. Small steps though.

comments [ 1820 days ago ]:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46386

Thanks! Looks like this one has a 'www.' whereas the earlier one does not. It's still a good though.

great article that has come at a good time. i've just exited from an 8yr partnership because when we dived in we didnt think about what we were doing. and interestingly im at a similar age to what PG was after astrix so there is hope.

How long did they spend time working on Artix?

I don't know. Probably not as long as i've spent working on the various things i worked on, but what i'm saying is, that if someone that an inspirational story of learning from failure.

7 years later and this is still truer than ever.

Many are simply solutions looking for a problem.

"Why I Have to Read Stupid Titles Like This" - Title of my life

Reply on news.ycombinator.com