Skip to content

Comment on Why I Dropped Out of College to Start a Startup

Comments

I think it's ok to drop out of college to grow a startup. But it's a terrible idea to drop out of college to start a startup.

I won't argue with people who think I am crazy. That's a completely understandable deduction. What frustrates me are people who think I did it for the wrong reasons (i.e. $$$).

I wasn't really trying to convince you, just making an observation. Entrepreneurs are almost by definition hard-headed.

But if I were an investor I would seriously question your decision making ability based on the fact that you dropped out of Princeton your senior year with about 8 months to go.

If you want to take a somewhat data driven approach, I'd also ask how many successful startups STARTED after dropping out. I can't think of any off the top of my head. (Hint: Microsoft and Facebook don't fit this criterion).

I hear ya. I got inspired, I am working with an amazing team – a relentless backend engineer and ridiculously talented designer – and worst comes to worst I go back to school in a couple of years. I would always wonder "what could have been" if I passed this opportunity up, but if I fail at least I can say I learned a lot and gave it my best effort.

If people relied on data driven approaches, I don't think there would be any startups. The expected return of a startup is a massive time expenditure combined with very little cash reward.

Why not wait one year and actually get a degree?

It's okay to take risks but no reason to overdo it.

That's like saying it is a terrible idea to stop playing baseball to start a startup. And maybe it is, exercise is important, but when the desire to build your business is burning within you, you're not going to miss those games.

College is a nice passtime, but you shouldn't let it get in the way of your dreams. If you need to start a startup, do it. There is no correct path. You are just as likely to fail no matter what route you take, so take the one that feels like the best opportunity for you.

both of these are generalizations that I don't believe in

Do you think all overgeneralizations are false?

AboutSource Built by g1lg1l

Hackerly is an independent reader for Hacker News, built on the public HN API. Not affiliated with Y Combinator.