

Why your startup won't make it - Void_
http://codingwithlove.com/thoughts/why-your-startup-wont-make-it

======
jonpaul
This is more or less a linkbait headline. Regardless, if those who are
successful listened to those who told them they would fail, they wouldn't have
been successful.

~~~
Void_
Bingo ... :-D

------
mattmanser
So, you had an idea, your idea was validated because there are competitors and
someone else just got funding to make that particular idea.

And then, because you'd have competition, you gave up.

And our startups won't make it because we'd give up if we found a competitor,
which most people actually think of as a good thing?

A very odd post. Feels more like an attempt to justify your decision.

~~~
Void_
I'm sorry if it didn't make sense to you. I posted it, because I would find
enjoyable reading it. Maybe you're just not kind of reader I tried to target,
but I believe there are some.

~~~
mattmanser
The title is a bit inflammatory, that's all.

~~~
orblivion
It fits a certain attention-getting trend with these titles, really.

* Why [bad thing will happen to you]

* Why I gave up [popular service].

* Why [popular tool] sucks [optional], and how to fix it [/optional]

There are a few more but I can't think of them now.

------
benatkin
<http://github.com/scrod/nv/blob/master/License.txt>

You wanted a mac client and you wanted tags.

You settled on a web interface "replacement".

Somehow I think the itch will return soon.

When it does, you can just fork Notational Velocity, add books/tags/whatever,
make it sync with a web app, and get back in business!

~~~
sudafed
>When it does, you can just fork Notational Velocity, add books/tags/whatever,
make it sync with a web app, and get back in business!

Awesome! That should be easy then, because Notational Velocity already has
tags, and it already syncs with Simplenote — very well, in fact:

[http://scrod.posterous.com/interesting-facts-about-
simplenot...](http://scrod.posterous.com/interesting-facts-about-simplenote-
support-in)

------
healthyhippo
I agree that competition validates a market, but as an entrepreneur I'm still
hesitant to launch a competing product that I had an idea for. Here's why:

1\. My competitors may be ahead of me. If something is just out there
launched, that means that someone's been working on it for 3-6 months prior.
I'm at month 0 and have catch-up to do.

2\. Sometimes, competitors are just really good-- like their products are
fully adequate for your specific needs, and probably pretty good for a bunch
of other people as well. I have a hard time saying I should pursue something
if I'm content using someone else's product.

The whole issue is that this leads to a conundrum. If my idea is fresh and
new, then market validation becomes difficult because competing startups are
in stealth mode. Only 6 months later do I say "Shit, that was actually an
awesome idea". The only thing I can rely on are my own convictions and market
tests that customer need exists.

------
devmonk
Great post!

And the other reason you were smart to quit that idea is: "Easy to use note-
taking application with cloud syncing and simple organization." That sounds
like overkill if I've ever heard it for a simple note-taking tool. If I'm
taking notes I use a text editor or paper. For task and project tracking, I
use Jira.

~~~
Void_
Thanks. I know it sounds like overkill - but it's exactly what SimpleNote dies
:-) I would be very curious to know more about how successful they are.

~~~
pchristensen
Let's hope that SimpleNote never dies :)

They do something simple, but they hit it so far out of the park that it
crosses town and lands in a completely different park! I think of it as
Dropbox for Text. It's always where I need it.

------
guynamedloren
I couldn't disagree more with the author of this post. When I think of
entrepreneurship, I think of innovation. I think of creativity. I think of
drive. The author expresses none of these qualities - especially drive. I'm
all for knowing when to stop, but this is just pathetic.

Congrats - you're a quitter. The next time you feel like spreading your
pessimism, keep it to yourself. I don't think your little rant is benefiting
anybody.

“The only real failure in life is the failure to try.” Trying is what drives
humanity - it's all we have. If nobody ever tried, we'd have nothing.

------
wonster
You need to think about the whole market size. What if the existing note
taking applications like Simple Note are utilizied by only a tiny percentage
of the possible market? Intead of just giving up, think of what other features
you could introduce to beat Simple Note. Have you done any research to see how
they are even doing? Don't be discouraged by competition. Google always pops
up in my mind whenever I hear a story like this.

------
Void_
What a #FAIL my server died :-/

PDF: <http://cl.ly/12dd4e4abff3939fa3c8>

------
CatalystFactory
The post/link doesn't seem to work :( update?

