

Aha moments: overrated? - gwsaines

I am the CEO of a newly formed web based startup and I just read the NY Times article "Intuition + Money = An Aha Moment." I find this sort of article frustrating for a number of reasons and was wondering what the Hacker News community thought.<p>There was an article on HN a while back about how aha moments are often created after the fact for the benefit of soundbytes and neat and tidy PR. (I tried to find the article on SearchYC, but had no luck, perhaps someone could point me to it? It talked about Cliff Bars.) The idea for our company was neither quick to form nor entirely intuitive. There was a lot of soul-searching, preliminary programming, market research, competitor analysis, and interpersonal luck that came together before we even decided to decide to start our venture. Reading stories about people standing back from a boiling test tube (or perhaps a computer monitor) and saying eureka! seems pretty trite from my experience. It also makes me wonder if me and my co-founders aren't missing something (maybe we all need to experience this great aha if we are to make it). The essence of starting this venture for me has been conquoring self doubt and boldly forging ahead. I guess I take issue with the idea that there are these transcendant moments that make the path ahead "clear." Reading "Founders at Work" was good because it painted some of the most highly successful startups in the way that I understand: several highly motivated dudes working hard in a garage with only an idea they think might have a chance at making some money.<p>Do any other readers of HN have this reaction or am I just too sensitive?
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ram1024
If you're creating something new, whether it be filling a need, or expanding
an existing service, i'd assume the "aha moment" is necessary.

if you're able to refine an existing process to make it more efficient and
dethrone an incumbent company, then the Aha might not be so prominant.

i'm sure even with your own startup you've had a few good moments where you
realize what you can do to get ahead and compete in your market. it may not be
one major Aha, but many small ones that have shaped the way you have
progressed so far

