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I agree. Lots of startups are created with this goal in mind. I have a tough time believing a lot of the popular ones are because of some inner calling, vision, or passion, despite the CEO press tidbits and about pages.

My view is you should always start with a problem that is significant to you, and solve it. I know that making a living is important, but if the problem applies to more than just you and you can charge actual money for it, I feel it is worth trying. The next question is if you can afford to take on such a risk, as it is a great one. This is substantially more risk than thinking of something to think of something because you want to run a company and/or make money. In the end, if you solve your own problem, you at least have that if you lose completely or go nowhere with it.

This of course is a rosy view and things like debt and moral responsibility to employees increase the cost of such a strategy. From an optimistic point of view, this is how I would hope people try to start their companies - with good, utilitarian intentions.

I for one am so tired of all the companies that are in search of a problem that does not need solving. I am also tired of all the cash given to companies that solve some problem, but don't meet the 2nd part of what I said - make money. If you can't tell me how your company will make money in 1 sentence, you have at best a hobby, not a real company. Unfortunately, we have a billion dollar industry of glorified hobbies.

I also feel the same about advertising-based funding, but that's another minefield and to some degree one could argue at least is necessary in some spaces - ex: TV, newspapers. Too many people use ads as a hand-waiving excuse to explain how they will make money.

Unfortunately, the cold-hard capitalistic view of things and use whatever advantages you can get. Sometimes this means screw the morals, passion, soul, ethics, etc. But you know it does work and some people convince themselves they are happy. Maybe they are, but for many of us like me, I seek more intellectual purity than financial glory (as much as I want the latter).




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