

My hobby: Following up on entrepreneurs - cool-RR
http://blog.garlicsim.org/post/3979256545/my-hobby-following-up-on-entrepreneurs

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jwr
How is that constructive? Or, phrased differently: how does doing this enrich
the world in any way?

The entrepreneurs are trying to _do_ something, while the author of the
article only waits for them to trip and fall.

I'm sorry, but I find no value in that. Actually, I find it rather sad.

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cool-RR
It adds value because it weeds out the people who talk the talk but don't walk
the walk.

 _"The entrepreneurs are trying to do something"_

Actually most of the time they just talk without doing anything. People who
_actually try_ are the minority.

 _"the author of the article only waits for them to trip and fall."_

I want them to succeed, but I also want them to be humble and realistic, so if
they declare "I'm gonna make the next Facebook!" then yeah, I'll enjoy
watching them fall.

The point of this hobby is to cut down on the level of bullshit in our
industry. If many people adopt this hobby, then entrepreneurs will be more
likely to think twice before they declare "We're gonna be the next Facebook!"
And so when someone _does_ make a bold declaration, there will be a bigger
chance that he will actually make good on it. I think that this would result
in more honesty in our industry.

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grammr
"I also want them to be humble and realistic."

Ironically, this statement is neither humble nor realistic. No one cares about
how you'd like them to be. If all entrepreneurs were humble and realistic,
we'd still be in the Stone Age. Yea, a lot of wild ideas fail, but the small
number of them that succeed usually have a big positive impact. It follows
that society is better off with a bunch of crazy, unrealistic entrepreneurs
trying to "build the next Facebook".

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cool-RR
Trying to build the next Facebook is a great thing. Declaring "I'm gonna build
the next Facebook! It's gonna have millions of users!" and then abandoning
your project after a month is a bad thing. Saying "I'm going to try to build
the next Facebook" is an acceptable thing.

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remthename
This is awesome! I personally wouldn't be bothered doing the "hobby" or
running after people myself but it would make for a cool blog. I'd love to
read through each persons reply.

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hammock
The social pressure to make good on entrepreneurial promises is important. And
doubly so, since studies show that the mere act of telling someone else what
you plan to do ALREADY gives you an internal sense of personal satisfaction,
and REDUCES the likelihood that you'll follow through.

In other words, it's dangerous to tell people your plans unless you are sure
they will continually pressure you do actually do it!

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danielayele
This actually sounds wonderful. I think a lot of entrepreneurs would actually
find that extremely helpful. It would be great to get an e-mail out of the
blue from someone who heard my team's pitch n months ago and was genuinely
interested in how far along we'd come and if we'd met the goals we had in mind
then. Startup idea? Goalcheck.com?

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nerdyworm
This is something I have been doing with the idea guys on craigslist. Most of
them are not even willing to buy me a cup of coffee to listen to their pitch.
Out of 15 or so I have yet to see even a basic landing page get put up.

