

Ask HN: What's your reason for doing a startup? - gringomorcego

I've recently been given an offer to join a startup of 10+ people. I'm very hesitant though, because for me the reason for doing a startup was that I wanted to learn about my own limits.<p>Obviously I like the idea of having money, but more than anything I want to make my own choices, and I don't think I'll be able to do it at this place.<p>Is this a stupid whiney thing to think about? Or is it something worth actually doing?
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jasonkester
Time.

More specifically, Time that I can spend doing whatever I want, with enough
income to do it.

The plan is to do it with a small pile of SaaS products that don't take a lot
of maintenance to keep alive and attract customers who don't need much hand
holding. Naturally, the target is to have as high an income as possible with
the least amount of time spent "working".

It's taken a while to get it all off the grand, but it's started to pay off in
the last year or so.

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desertfox508
I do it as a challenge for myself and a way to give back to the people I want
to help. To me there is nothing more exciting than having to potential to
shift the paradigm.

I have a well paying job now, but would drop it once my startup launches even
though I have no plans or real ideas for pulling in revenue (income). But I
have faith that the more people I help, eventually money will come.

I agree with your thinking. Do what you feel is right... there will always be
startups of 10+ people for you to join later on if you so desire. If you join
now, you will always be wondering "what if..."

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benblodgett
I do it because I love writing software and learning. I have never had a job
that I constantly learned and never got bored..

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richf
Don't do it for the money — 99% of startups fail. That's not to say that you
might not fall into the 1%. Someone's gotta hit it big once in a while, right?

Do it because you love what you do and are passionate about it. Too many
people failed trying to chase money. Don't make the mistake of doing a startup
for the wrong reason.

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rman666
If you don't do it for the money, at least do it for the chicks. The startup
culture is hot right now.

