Hacker News Reader

Why do you feel you need Silicon Valley / culture / mentorship etc?

If you have a good idea, just do it. Doesn't really matter where you are if you have the determination to succeed.

I live in Europe and there's not much in the way of concept level funding here. I completely understand the OP -- having any help, let alone a few months of funding, the mentorship and Demo Day is definitely worth getting excited about, especially if you're not already in a hub area.

On a funny note: We just had TechCrunch party here in Prague over the weekend, and it was like an AA meeting. No investors, just startups pitching to themselves and consoling themselves. When you're starting you take all the help you can get. So don't tell me about it doesn't matter where you are -- it matters.

It matters if you let it matter. If you feel you need to go the whole Angel->VC schmoozing route, then definitely location matters. But there's a lot of other ways to get started.

It matters if your business is the type that can't prosper on determination alone. That kept us going for 6 years. Eventually we needed money and a supportive environment.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com