

Why I'm an Entrepreneur - yesimahuman
http://maxlynch.com/blog/why-im-an-entrepreneur/

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porter
"There are days I just feel terrible, like everything could crumble to pieces
in the blink of an eye. Those days I dread reading my morning emails, fearing
for a disastrous bug report, or a cancelled paying user, or even a declined
customer credit card.

But the highs are so fucking high that it makes it all worth it. The big
paying account, the customer that loves your product, and the connections you
make with the outside world. The personal growth, seeing yourself overcome
challenges you used to be too afraid to face. There is truly nothing like it."

This is it.

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sreyaNotfilc
I'm seriously thinking about getting rid of everything I have just to try and
start a business. Might as well do it while I'm young (28).

For me, its not really the money (although, I do like money). My approach to
programming isn't to just solve problems and earn a paycheck. I want to make
something cool. Something that affects the world in a positive way. An awesome
product. We are essentially inventors of our world. To me it doesn't make
sense to waste that mindset.

Money is a powerful factor in this decision, however. You do not want to leave
a well paying job just to go out there and fail miserably, or not even get the
chance to get your idea off the ground.

For me, while I'm still getting paid at my job, I think the smart thing is to
get the basic idea up and running before I go out to Silicon Valley and see
what I'm made of. The web is good about letting folks test the waters first
before diving in. So, I will continue to punch away at this idea.

Its so scary to think about doing this. Perhaps, being scared is a good
thing...

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yesimahuman
Well, moving out to SV and trying to raise VC is certainly an option. I've
decided that's not the kind of company I want to run, so I'm bootstrapping and
couldn't afford to live there anyways. There are benefits to not being in the
valley, and there are tons of benefits of being there, depending on what
you're looking for.

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JamesNapJr
Great post! I think it's always important to take a step back every now and
then and look at the reasons why one does things - whether its your career,
your habits, or with respect to major events. That kind of introspection can
help you validate (or invalidate) what you're doing, and gives you a chance to
grow as a person. So good on you, man!

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yesimahuman
Thanks :) I really think the turning point for me was getting someone to pay
for something I made, that really changed the game for me and made me realize
this is viable way to live. I guess I'd like to inspire other people to try
that challenge and see how they feel after overcoming it.

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geon
I started my company out of the opposite need: No one would hire me.

I was fresh out of university in 2004, in the middle of the second IT bubble,
living in a not-so-hot city job market wise. I must have applied to over a
hundred job ads.

I had a short gig at a very small company without a salesperson, until they
could no longer afford having me. Then I worked on an assembly line until
2006, when a friend needed a dynamic website for his employee.

I quit my day job in 2008, but it's not until the last year or so it's been
starting to go well. An I still have a long way to go until I reach a normal
developer income level.

But I have learnt so much during those years! I really don't regret starting
my own. I have seriously considered getting a 9-5 job, but the freedom I enjoy
makes it hard to imagine not working for myself.

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pedalpete
"It's a truly special thing to convince someone to pay you for something
you've made", this is what non-entrepreneurs do all day as well. There is a
subtle difference, but I am yet to understand it.

It isn't only entrepreneurs who get paid for their craft, is it only
entrepreneurs who often don't??

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fossley
I think the difference is an entrepreneur has orchestrated the whole process
and isn't just a sales person. They are a dreamer building their dreams in to
reality. Anything that reflects the achievement is massive. If you love
carpentry, then seeing somebody love your table will be the same. Selling
tables at Ikea will probably not be.

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pcarmichael
Thanks for this yesimahuman - it was incredibly timely for me. Today was my
last day at a corporate job, and the first day of being a full-time
entrepreneur. I know that I've got a roller coaster of emotion ahead, but it's
encouraging to know the highs are higher than the lows are low.

~~~
yesimahuman
Congrats! May the patience be with you!

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fossley
Great post. It is a hard thing to sum up. I think this HBR article
([http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/09/entrepreneurship_as_disease....](http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/09/entrepreneurship_as_disease.html))
talking about it as a disease is one of the best I read.

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bocalogic
Good Stuff. It also important to do the math on your item or idea. Calculate
all costs. A lot of people just jump in assuming they are in the green and end
up in red.

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helloimben
Great post!

~~~
somethingnew
I concur

