There's been this stigma now that it's all about the hackers and that business guys are nothing but dead weight and really do not provide nor contribute anything to a given project. It's almost as if just because someone's forte is business, all other aspects of that person are soon ignored, despite how brilliant, creative, or motivated a person can be.
My entire life I have considered myself an extremely creative person and one who can understand, analyze, and improve upon existing technologies. In addition, taking care of the business/financial side of matters has also been a strong point of mine. So here I am, a soon to be college junior, and I am extremely serious about starting a startup. I firmly believe that I have great ideas, and would love to team up with a team of hackers to get something going. I would handle the business end, but I would be equally involved in development, being a powerhouse of ideas and creativity.
The problem is, every time I approach a hacker about starting a project and bring up the subject of my contributions to the business end and also me being a source of ideas and creativity, they are instantly turned away, and essentially treat me as someone who would be useless as far as the development of the product and one who is just trying to take advantage of their hacking skills so that I can make a few bucks.
I'm all for hackers; without them, you're really nowhere and can't get anywhere. But there are many others, beyond the realm of hackers, that have great ideas, possess creativity, and who can use his/her creativity to make something successful. Perhaps it's me being paranoid or jumping to uninformed assumptions, but I really do sense this stigma against anyone who is not a hacker, ESPECIALLY, against those who can help out on the business end. And at times, I look at myself and feel incredibly discouraged because of things that I have read and have heard essentially delivering the message that if you're not a hacker, you really cannot be successful in this world of tech startups.
However discouraged I may get, I'm out to prove this stigma wrong. :P
Well, I've been talking to a couple business people about various startup stuff.
One major thing I've noticed is that business people who don't have hacking experience do not have any experience to judge what's simple and what's hard. If you're in a startup mode where you're trying to leverage the least amount of work for the most profit, this is the kiss of death.
Hackers have heard "I can't hack, but I have this brilliant idea..." a million times, and hackers realize that the idea is easy and the execution is hard -- so by making that kind of a pitch, you're offering to the hacker the proposition that you're going to do 1% of the work and take 50% of the credit. That just isn't an attractive deal.
And I do not agree with your statement in the the fourth paragraph: "But there are many others, beyond the realm of hackers, that have great ideas, possess creativity, and who can use his/her creativity to make something successful." Creativity is not sufficient, or you wouldn't be upset that no hacker will listen to your pitch.
Honestly, if you want hackers to take you seriously, if you are as brilliant and motivated as you claim, learn to program.
'... this stigma now that it's all about the hackers and that business guys are nothing but dead weight ...'
In the tech startup world this is pretty close to the truth in small companies. In larger ones, where business types have places to hide from bully hackers, it's the other way around. The thing that comes to mind is if you can't understand technology it makes it harder to grasp the opportunities. It's hard enough as it is. I can think of only a few business MBA's who have created & run successful startup tech companies. (Donna Dubinsky, of Palm is one that comes to mind). There's a good article on "OnStartups, You Don't Need A World-Class Management Team" about why management aren't needed ~ http://tinyurl.com/35dmlz
But why concentrate on just startups? What about other examples of non-tech entrepreneurs that strike out? One that comes to mind is Shawn Nelson of LoveSac fame who saw the combination of retro 70's spirit + emerging Chinese manufacturing and a gap in the furniture market and a new company was born. ~ http://www.lovesac.com/lovesac/history.php
The irony of 'outsourcing management' in startups is not lost on me.
"every time I approach a hacker about starting a project and bring up the subject of my contributions to the business end and also me being a source of ideas and creativity, they are instantly turned away, and essentially treat me as someone who would be useless as far as the development of the product..."
It depends on what kind of impression you make. Frankly I am a bit tired of creative people who can't get things done. I am not implying you are one of them, just giving you a reason why techies may be discouraged.
Comments
This is a problem I have been dealing with.
There's been this stigma now that it's all about the hackers and that business guys are nothing but dead weight and really do not provide nor contribute anything to a given project. It's almost as if just because someone's forte is business, all other aspects of that person are soon ignored, despite how brilliant, creative, or motivated a person can be.
My entire life I have considered myself an extremely creative person and one who can understand, analyze, and improve upon existing technologies. In addition, taking care of the business/financial side of matters has also been a strong point of mine. So here I am, a soon to be college junior, and I am extremely serious about starting a startup. I firmly believe that I have great ideas, and would love to team up with a team of hackers to get something going. I would handle the business end, but I would be equally involved in development, being a powerhouse of ideas and creativity.
The problem is, every time I approach a hacker about starting a project and bring up the subject of my contributions to the business end and also me being a source of ideas and creativity, they are instantly turned away, and essentially treat me as someone who would be useless as far as the development of the product and one who is just trying to take advantage of their hacking skills so that I can make a few bucks.
I'm all for hackers; without them, you're really nowhere and can't get anywhere. But there are many others, beyond the realm of hackers, that have great ideas, possess creativity, and who can use his/her creativity to make something successful. Perhaps it's me being paranoid or jumping to uninformed assumptions, but I really do sense this stigma against anyone who is not a hacker, ESPECIALLY, against those who can help out on the business end. And at times, I look at myself and feel incredibly discouraged because of things that I have read and have heard essentially delivering the message that if you're not a hacker, you really cannot be successful in this world of tech startups.
However discouraged I may get, I'm out to prove this stigma wrong. :P
Well, I've been talking to a couple business people about various startup stuff.
One major thing I've noticed is that business people who don't have hacking experience do not have any experience to judge what's simple and what's hard. If you're in a startup mode where you're trying to leverage the least amount of work for the most profit, this is the kiss of death.
Hackers have heard "I can't hack, but I have this brilliant idea..." a million times, and hackers realize that the idea is easy and the execution is hard -- so by making that kind of a pitch, you're offering to the hacker the proposition that you're going to do 1% of the work and take 50% of the credit. That just isn't an attractive deal.
And I do not agree with your statement in the the fourth paragraph: "But there are many others, beyond the realm of hackers, that have great ideas, possess creativity, and who can use his/her creativity to make something successful." Creativity is not sufficient, or you wouldn't be upset that no hacker will listen to your pitch.
Honestly, if you want hackers to take you seriously, if you are as brilliant and motivated as you claim, learn to program.
or graphic/UI design. I think you would be a much more welcome addition if you were good at something hackers are usually weaker.
'... this stigma now that it's all about the hackers and that business guys are nothing but dead weight ...'
In the tech startup world this is pretty close to the truth in small companies. In larger ones, where business types have places to hide from bully hackers, it's the other way around. The thing that comes to mind is if you can't understand technology it makes it harder to grasp the opportunities. It's hard enough as it is. I can think of only a few business MBA's who have created & run successful startup tech companies. (Donna Dubinsky, of Palm is one that comes to mind). There's a good article on "OnStartups, You Don't Need A World-Class Management Team" about why management aren't needed ~ http://tinyurl.com/35dmlz
But why concentrate on just startups? What about other examples of non-tech entrepreneurs that strike out? One that comes to mind is Shawn Nelson of LoveSac fame who saw the combination of retro 70's spirit + emerging Chinese manufacturing and a gap in the furniture market and a new company was born. ~ http://www.lovesac.com/lovesac/history.php
The irony of 'outsourcing management' in startups is not lost on me.
"every time I approach a hacker about starting a project and bring up the subject of my contributions to the business end and also me being a source of ideas and creativity, they are instantly turned away, and essentially treat me as someone who would be useless as far as the development of the product..."
It depends on what kind of impression you make. Frankly I am a bit tired of creative people who can't get things done. I am not implying you are one of them, just giving you a reason why techies may be discouraged.
Good article on the subject: http://www.tonywright.com/2007/5-reasons-you-dont-want-to-partner-with-an-idea-guy/