

Hackers vs. Consultants: How not to find an idea (Part 1 of 3) - akashs
http://behindthescenes.midtownrow.com/hackers-vs-consultants-how-not-to-find-an-ide

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hoop
The premise is interesting, but there isn't anything conclusive about part 1.
Part 1 is also incredibly short. It left me wondering why the story is even
divided into parts at all.

I felt as if I started watching a 30 minute TV show and "TO BE CONTINUED"
happens 10 minutes in.

~~~
akashs
Hey, thanks for the feedback. We understand where you're coming from, but we
wanted to present the "business side" as it's own independent view. And while
you're correct that Part 1 is a bit short, it was much too long to condense
into one readable post.

Ultimately, we're still learning and we'll keep your points in mind for next
time.

~~~
alnayyir
Stop wasting our time with this. Post it when it's done, divided into parts or
not.

I will read part 1 and only part 1 if that's the only one available at the
time it was posted. I will not return to your site to look for that content
again.

I _despise_ this trend.

~~~
Bootvis
I thought: Maybe someone (me) can write a little app that notifies you after
the story is completed. But I will not, this behavior should not be
stimulated. If you have something to say finish what you want to say and then
post it to HN. It's not even possible to have a meaningful discussion right
now.

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hammock
The OP doesn't seem to be able to take any personal responsibility for his
ideas flopping. Can't put one iota of blame on himself.

 _I've spent enough time to know that the culture of a 'corporate' work
environment forces you into a particular way of thinking_

 _They can't appreciate the idea because they don't understand the technical
details_

 _Perhaps my cofounders had their judgement clouded by creating one too many
PowerPoint decks or Excel models_

Do you think maybe it has at least a little to do with a) your idea b) the way
you're selling the idea or c) you?

~~~
JoachimSchipper
Note that the next installment will presumably be business-focused. Two
unbalanced views may more-or-less balance out.

------
pkamb
_I naturally had some very tech-heavy ideas (e.g., new approaches for mobile /
social / local, new hardware devices). I found it hard to get my co-founders
to react positively, even after spending hours trying to convince them of the
opportunity._

 _I can spend hours explaining why an idea was a better technology than what's
out there, but for some ideas, it's just tough to fully appreciate if you
don't understand the technical details._

Dangerous thinking. People don't use/buy something because it's "better
technology"... e.g. the tech-specs-as-the-major-selling-point Android tablets
vs. the iPad.

Mind sharing some of your "technical" startup ideas? Maybe I'm
misunderstanding.

~~~
akashs
"Better" was probably the wrong term, but if you start thinking about
enterprise technology, a lot of it is actually just straight up based on how
much cost savings or performance improvement something can deliver (e.g., a DB
that gives an order of magnitude performance improvement for certain
verticals). You're right that consumer stuff is a different story.

And as far as the sales comment below...as mentioned in the post, sometimes
it's not worth me shoving it down their throat if they're not going to be
pumped about coming in to work everyday.

~~~
jroseattle
"sometimes it's not worth me shoving it down their throat if they're not going
to be pumped about coming in to work everyday."

Good sales pitches don't involve feelings of having things shoved down one's
throat. Don't think "sales" in the slick marketing vernacular -- think
translation that your team members can understand, in spite of their
(in)familiarity with the market.

------
wccrawford
The idea of starting a company and THEN trying to find an idea is just so
utterly foreign to me that I doubt I'll ever understand it.

~~~
cteng04
The entire premise of YC is investing in a team first and idea second.

~~~
sparky
Yes, but a (big?) part of what makes a team fundable is some ability to come
up with a viable idea. The market may not always agree with the founders' and
PG's idea of viability, so good teams can pivot, but if you don't have any
ideas or your ideas don't have technical and business merit, best-case you're
left with a couple of really great _employees_.

------
VictorHo
The fear of being an entrepreneur if you don't have a great idea is our
biggest handicap. Everyone thinks they need to have everything ironed out
before they can leave their "career". If more people just started viewing
entrepreneurship as a career path of its own (as it is), a lot more cool
products and business models would be invented.

I definitely agree with the notion "Team first, Idea second". Good ideas are
easy; execution is the hard part. Put together a good team, and good ideas
will come -- the support for this is the existence of many serial
entrepreneurs.

------
ihaveaquestion
It is funny that most people in software have no fucking clue about
software...all they have is their IDEAAAa...and they think they own > 70%
because of their idea.

I had a potential co-founder ask me once...Dont you think 30% is a lot for
just making it..I stuck to a diplomatic answer but I wish I had told him
something like.."No you retard....70% is a lot for just sitting on your couch
and reading fucking techcrunch all the time".

Bottomline is if you cant code you are not invited to the party!

