I salute the cynics.
There's nothing worse than throwing good at a bad idea only to one day realize you've wasted your time, money, and effort.
If one cynical comment is enough to derail your ambitions, you shouldn't be doing a startup.
There's nothing worse than throwing good at a bad idea only to one day realize you've wasted your time, money, and effort.
If one cynical comment is enough to derail your ambitions, you shouldn't be doing a startup.
The problem I see is that OPs tend to receive a reliable and sustained torrent of cynicism, and little else. Sure, there is value in those comments, and often super enlightening exchanges, but the default attitude of being the smartest-guy-in-the-room can get exhausting and counter-productive. Oftentimes would-be worthwhile discussion get buried or passed up for a bitter exchange with both parties just trying to prove their intellectual worth and cleverness.
- I don't think it's fair to call people out publicly (or necessary). Especially as they are unlikely to see my comment and have the opportunity to defend themselves.
- I don't tell myself anything of the sort.
The fact is, building something is hard. Criticizing something is easy. There's no special skill involved in picking apart somebody's project, making a big deal out of what is otherwise a minor flaw, and using that to dismiss that guy's work. That was a great way to make myself feel better about the fact that someone else built something, and I didn't.
There are also a lot of people who are just giving their honest reply.
Key is to tell who is who. Someone who just rants and rants about how bad it is, versus someone who's giving some useful criticism.