
After Your First Big Startup Success, What’s Next? (2014) - simonebrunozzi
https://feld.com/archives/2014/06/first-big-success-whats-next.html
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duxup
Go back to school and explore.

I never had a traditional education and I work with a lot of CS grads and
people with great educations. Personally when I was college age I just wasn't
a good student, I didn't appreciate it and I wanted to work.

Recently I went back to school for a class as part of a career change and I
loved it. The idea that someone was there every day to provide me knowledge
was exciting and filled me with energy. I went to school, then head home and
care for the family, and when everyone was asleep hit the books and it was the
most fun I had in a long time... maybe decades.

I'd love to go do that again.

~~~
praxisdevel
I had the same college experience. Graduated in 2001 with a 2.8 but was deeply
passionate about my first startup job while working as a senior.

After two decades in the startup world and a couple of exits, I realized the
value of "enough." Broke free from the golden handcuffs and decided to teach
at my alma mater.

With my work experience, the university allowed me to teach without a Masters.
I'm currently enrolled in a Masters program and loving it. I now treat school
with the same care and interest I treated work. Plus I get to enjoy more time
with my 2-year old daughter.

Caring for a child during the day (unless I'm teaching) leaves me only her
sleeping hours to lesson plan and to attend to my grad school workload.
Surprisingly, I've never been so exhausted in my life, and yet, I feel much
more fulfilled.

I taught for the past 3 semesters on a volunteer, unpaid basis. This proved to
me I would do this work for free. I start full-time as a clinical professor in
the fall.

~~~
gkolli
reading this comment made me very happy. Best of luck to you in your future
endeavors, professor!

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BadassFractal
My plan was always to dedicate myself full time to the arts once I don't have
to worry about putting food on the table.

I don't need nice cars, yachts, mansions or expensive friends. I want to be
able to rent in a reasonably pleasant place, and then have the rest of my life
to pursue what keeps me interested. Maybe I'll find that terribly dull and
will need the rush of putting all the chips in every single day, but probably
now. I know people who can't wait to start company #n+1 as soon as they exit,
but that's never resonated with me.

Maybe my ambitions are embarrassingly timid, but being able to buy myself full
access to my one non-renewable resource seems like a fantastic outcome.

~~~
simonebrunozzi
This is tempting, and it sounds really nice.

I'm wondering why so many people go back to the "rat race" (as a commenter
wrote earlier) despite this seems to make so much sense.

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adwn
> _I 'm wondering why so many people go back to the "rat race" (as a commenter
> wrote earlier) despite this seems to make so much sense._

Because, in general [1], people that would retire after making "Fuck You
money" are not driven enough to make FU money. Or, put another way, people
that are hugely successful enjoy (or need in some way) the rat race.

[1] The "in general" is very important in this sentence. Of course there are
some people to which this doesn't apply, either because they got lucky (e.g.,
by being an early employee of a billion dollar startup), or because their
success and the necessary work "cured" their drive and ambition.

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cco
Start another farm but this time not have to worry about losing the land
because I couldn't afford to keep it?

My cell phone would live on my dining room table as much as possible, my
laptop would only be opened once per day; it takes all kinds but I couldn't
imagine making "fuck you money" and choosing to stay in the rat race.

~~~
TomMarius
Don't you think that technology is beautiful? There is more to it than the rat
race

~~~
mariushn
Same here :) Your ation.io project sounds interesting. How can I get in touch?

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pistachiopro
For those who have experienced their first big startup success, what did you
end up doing next? Are you satisfied with the decision? Is your life better or
worse than before the exit?

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throwaway574w
10 years ago exited with FU money.

Golden handcuffs for a while, left work 2012.

Honestly didn't do much else. Easy to find subpar ideas but lack the hunger to
execute.

Fast forward a decade and are kids, wife, unhappy marriage (with no fault
divorce so you can transfer most of the wealth over) and you really wish you
just had a "normal life". You know, where going to work each day is necessary
and thus defensible and rewarding.

Quite honestly I spend a lot of time thinking about departing life. People
thinking startup success is the end game are kidding thenselves in my
anecdotal experience.

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malloreon
As far as I can tell, the phrase "fuck you money" comes from James Clavell's
1966 novel "Tai Pan."

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tai-
Pan_(novel)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tai-Pan_\(novel\))

~~~
sertorius
Are you sure you aren't thinking of "Noble House"? That's the one that takes
place in the sixties. In it, Casey Tcholok tells her boss she's looking for
"drop dead" money, which is once also referred to as "screw you" money.

Tai-pan is the original story of Dirk struan in the 1800's, and I didn't think
the concept came up there at all.

~~~
malloreon
Blergh, you are 100% correct

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flywithdolp
It depends on what kind of person are you.

I saw people who sold their company for millions and still working hard every
day just because they like what they do.

I also saw someone who made millions and now he travel all day long, diving in
exotic places and didn't work for more then 3 years

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lquist
I have a fair number of friends in this boat. Most find their way back to the
startup game in some form (investor, startup studio, etc). They just can't
stay away. I find below myself entering a similar phase (raising money at a
late enough stage that there is $10m of secondary on the table or going with a
strategic and selling the whole thing) and the fear of complete freedom is a
little bit terrifying tbh.

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Keverw
I would love to travel full time. Around the world by cruise ship, flying some
places but I think long trips would be much more comfortable at sea since you
can get up and walk around, plenty of entertainment and food unlike an
airplane being stuffed into a tube for 8 or 12 hours! Well if you are rich
enough, screw flying commercial and could buy a private jet!

Then become a full-time RVer and visit all 49 states you can drive to in an
RV. There are a few nomad friendly domicile states South Dakota, Texas, and
Florida that let people get their driver license and registration using a mail
forwarder without having to own any property. Plus would force you to into
minimalism, being organized and not having a cluttered place since less space
to work with.

I remember when I was a little kid we used to go on family road trips, but
haven't been anywhere really in like the last 7 years other than a short 3 day
trip to the smokies which I enjoyed but wish was longer. Just something about
being away from home and seeing different places just excites me for some
reason. So I think to get rich from a startup or building up enough passive
income to be a nomad I'd be probably the happiest ever. So much to explore and
do around the world!

It makes me sad knowing that many people can't afford to travel, too busy
working. Some people haven't even seen their own city or state fully really
outside of their small city. I was reading in the US people get an average 10
days a year of vacation and many end up using them for other things.
Apparently, after working 25 years at the same company you only get an extra 5
more. Then only about 36% of Americans even have a passport, however if you
are limited to how much vacations plenty of touristy areas to visit in the US
much closer, and probably less stress since the same language and culture too.

I was watching a travel vlog where someone went to China to visit the great
wall and it seems like even getting a Taxi and other daily tasks is a
challenge due to the language barrier, however there's stuff like Google
translate that might help... Then you also have to put your political and
religious views aside too.

However there's world cruises that spend like half a year sailing but costs as
much as a new car per person. So maybe more organized travel but doubt most
people could afford it both money and time wise but sounds like a fun dream! I
seen one has a excursions to the great wall, so don't have to worry about
getting a taxi and stuff. In some of the ports of call they dock overnight
too. I seen one that circumnavigates the globe as a world cruise package, but
costly and then probably some places need Visas and stuff but would be a once
in a lifetime adventure! Then I'm a picky eater, so probably familiar food
back on the ship so you don't have to starve. Take a short flight to Miami and
come back half a year later seeing a bunch of the world without flying or
packing and unpacking over and over as going from hotel to hotel. Hopefully
someday as a huge dream of mine.

CNN has a article that has many valid points about why Americans don't travel
abroad.
[http://www.cnn.com/2011/TRAVEL/02/04/americans.travel.domest...](http://www.cnn.com/2011/TRAVEL/02/04/americans.travel.domestically/index.html)

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purplezooey
Open a mobile grooming service called Mutt Cutts.

~~~
lisper
For the benefit of those who might not have gotten the allusion:

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Cutts](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Cutts)

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simonebrunozzi
I got the reference, but it's not clear why Matt Cutts is relevant for this
conversation. He made tons of money at Google, I don't know what he did next
(besides his stint working for the government at some point). Can you
elaborate?

~~~
lisper
I'm sorry, but I am utterly at a loss as to how to respond to this.

If someone said to you, "I don't understand why Albert Einstein is held in
such high regard. He won a Nobel prize for his work on the photoelectric
effect. I don't know what he did next (besides discover relativity at some
point). Can you elaborate?" how would you respond?

~~~
simonebrunozzi
I didn't get the meaning of "Mutt Cutts", and it seemed to refer to something
that he did that I am not aware of.

I am not questioning the importance of what he did at Google. In fact, I met
him in 2007 and think he's a brilliant guy. [0].

[0]: [https://ubuntista.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/matt-
cutts_goo...](https://ubuntista.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/matt-
cutts_google.jpg?w=472&zoom=2)

~~~
VaskoKuralesov
This words was on a car from film Dumb and Dumber with Jim Kerry

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kowdermeister
Any article recommendation for the opposite situation?

