I talked with a friend this week who was debating taking a job offer or starting her own company. She asked, "is now a good time to start a company?" The answer is "no". But before you lose hope, the answer is always "no".
Successfully starting a company is long odds. The press holds up the big wins (Google, Apple, Facebook), but the bulk of the failing and failed companies toil away in darkness. No matter how smart you are, how good the idea, and how hard you work, the deck is stacked against you.
But do it anyway. Even failed companies offer rewards. Years of controlling your own fate. The opportunity to succeed or fail under your own terms. Great coworkers and small triumphs. If you're waiting for everything to line up in your favor, it won't. But you can do it, if you really want it.
The one time I'll tell people not to try is if they're unprepared for the difficult tasks in front of them. If you've been at Oracle for 20 years, and you're thinking of starting a company to escape the stultifying air of middle management, starting a company is trying to fly before you can walk. Let's see where your inclinations lie:
- Which game do you prefer, Chess or Backgammon?
Chess is the ultimate battle of wits. Great intelligence, careful strategizing and iron will let you triumph over your opponents. And it's wholly unlike small business. A startup is a backgammon player: you have limited options for where you can move--you have to work with the die rolls you get. And there are other people busy trying to get to their own goals who will get in your way, and sometimes set your efforts back to the beginning. Startup success is built on coming up with some skills to take advantage of opportunities that present themselves, and then being in a position to seize those opportunities when they appear. - Which sport do you like, Golf or Football?
Football is a great thinking-man's game. You need to outwit your opponent, using the copious resources you have to put the right specialist in the right place. Carefully set up the right play, and then power your way to the win. Here's how a startup works: Need to launch a marketing campaign? That's you. Servers are down and need emergency maintenance? That's you. The new desks are in and need assembling? That's you. The toilet is overflowing? That's you. The great delight and great irritation of working in a tiny company is that you are part of every aspect of the operations. In great companies, the CEO rolls his sleeves up and helps ship products during the Christmas rush. In bad companies, the CEO makes a point of never talking to any of his customers. When playing golf, you don't get to bring on the "designated putter" once you're on the green. Wherever the ball is, you are the guy who's got to get it closer to the goal. Even if you're not very good at that part of the game. If you like variety, you'll like it. If you like being left alone to concentrate, forget it. - Which do you like, Windows or Linux?
Linux is secure, extensible, and easy to develop on. It's built on appealing principles of good citizenship and creative community action. And it's a really crummy business. Windows is a shambling mound of an OS, a stack of compromises pushed on us by years of aggressive marketing. And that's the business you want to be running. I'm not telling you that success in business is only comes from sacrificing moral standards (although it is possible), but success in business is built on hustle. People don't flock to a good product. Right up front, you'd better think how you're going to get people to use your product. Viral growth sounds really great, and it almost never happens. You'd better think about how you can buy users, and to do that, you'd better think about where the money to buy users is going to come from.
- Startups require luck. Will you be ready to seize the moment when it presents itself?
- Startups are interrupt driven. Are you ready to deal with everything, legal, accounting, operations, marketing, sales and design?
- Startups don't get an audience for free. Where is your audience going to come from? How are you going to get their attention?
Shoot, can I get partial credit? ;-) I'm 1 for 3... I like chess, play golf, and use Linux (or OSX nowadays).
Posted by: Yee Lee | June 26, 2009 at 10:41 AM