I didn't say it's bad to have a smaller business. I said it's bad to have a smaller startup. Because by definition a startup is a company designed to grow. If a business isn't growing then it's not a startup. Between the two extremes of being a Google or a barbershop, it's closer to a barbershop.

It also isn't as weird that I wrote that comment considering I alarmingly find myself falling into Colin's shoes as a single founder. If there's a trap laying ahead that I could avoid, I'd rather know about it sooner than later. It's not to disparage Colin that I wrote the comment. It's to learn from him. I like Tarsnap and I'm a Tarsnap customer.

If there's a way forward that is unexplored terrain, I at least would like to learn more about it.

I wonder how far YC pondered over this question actually. What do you do with the cpercivas?

This gutsy, uncompromising quality is a trait of successful founders. I'm curious to see what will happen.