I met a guy in college who was trying to take vector calc, physics, and data structures and algorithms, while supporting himself in San Diego working part time at Nordstrom. He had to drop data structures. I didn't stay in touch, of course I hope he did alright.
I find it depressing that a promising student, who has gained entry into a college like UCSD with good grades in math and basic CS, is struggling to afford to continue. We live in a state where multi multi billionaires lament the shortage of highly educated engineers (who are essential to their billions), but this guy has to drop out because he's having trouble balancing paying the rent with a very rigorous curriculum.
I managed to get about 70% of my entire undergrad (tuition, books, and living expenses) covered by academic scholarships.
Even with working every summer, every Christmas break, and through 3 of the 4 years while at school, I still had to miss many classes to pick up extra shifts at work (thankfully only a handful of courses are strict about attendance, so my GPA only suffered by about ~0.3). And I still came out with the "average student loan debt" of about 22k.
Unfortunately, despite how "smart" I am. I was too retarded to see what a mistake the life sciences were and I'm still working on that debt.
College is a scam if you're at least decently intelligent. It's an 80k stamp.
He didn't run away when he saw I was reading a nerdy book. Instead, he approached me. Is that your book? He liked my brain.
I knew it was time to get married about a week after we met. Everyone else paled in comparison. It took another 6 months to make it official - but I was really married in my own mind after that first week together.
I'm also a big HN fan and I've been lurking around here for the last 10 years. Start your own firm, go get VC, someone will fund you. If you are at a well known company now someone will fund you.
Otherwise, expect more of the same for the next 20 years. I doubt anything will change. At least if you run your own firm you can work very cleverly, and over time build up $$ from equity in your own projects. Trust me, you will learn much more and faster at your own startup.
Founder, big data startup
4 kids in 4.5 years
Lots of patents and nerdy stuff.
I have no hobbies.
I don't go to networking/startup events.
I don't watch TV,Netflix, etc and I don't have cable.
Rarely go on vacation, unless a family obligation to visit grandma.
Tactics:
Office with 24/7 access outside house (worth the rent)
Coffee shop open at 6 am/closes at 1 am with wi-fi.
Basically I work every morning at coffee shop before kids get up. Partner works late after kids go to bed at 8 pm.
We work at the office lab every weekend, taking turns, with a sitter, or we just bring kids to office with coloring books, games etc.
Doing this you can work about 35 - 50 hours a week, but obviously it's not for everyone!
I'm surprised they kept her around so long. I am wondering why they just didn't bring her in, transfer her to a new team, and tell her she was no longer "a good cultural fit" with the team. In a at will:right to work state that is a totally legal way to fire a high performing employee (I think).
It's almost like they enjoyed watching her complain. Glad she got out.
Founders don't start companies to live a "pretty good life in the top 10%".
We do it because we are ambitious, want to solve huge technical and business problems, make our mark, and change the world.
We usually have more energy and sleep less than others. We love work. We love our business. Most of us would not want to be corporate "drones". It would be like a living death.
I fear most entrepreneurs really do care about leaving a mark. Any mark. Ad tech companies? Big data (selling) companies? Marketing (convince the consumer to buy something excessive) companies? LinkedIn and other companies that intentionally force dark patterns on their users? Security companies selling spyware and hacking tools to anyone who'll pay?
The same could be said about the corporate raiders that run many tech companies. They leave ethics at the door "I'm just doing my job to support my family".
I think people who start their own companies sometimes do so because they can have more control over product quality and quality of life for their team.
I'm confident most entrepreneurs care about leaving a good mark. It's just that people that are intent on leaving a bad mark, any mark, generally have an easier time of it.
> We do it because we are ambitious, want to solve huge technical and business problems, make our mark, and change the world.
That's a theory.
I've been around this world a while and I'm pretty sure ego is the primary driving force for entrepreneurs. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I do have little patience for people telling me they want to "change the world" by creating an obviously inconsequential consumer web app or the equivalent. People want to be in charge, they want to be the boss, they want to be looked up to and praised and rewarded and feel different and exceptional. It's not so bad to just admit it.
> I do have little patience for people telling me they want to "change the world" by creating an obviously inconsequential consumer web app or the equivalent
I know what you mean - while also building a consumer app to change the world (well, the worlds of people).
There is certainly BS out there and it does draw out my patience. But likewise, there are apps and services out there that really are trying to change the world.
But in the end, you're not a mind reader. Everyone is different and has different reasons, although there are certainly trends.
While it's true that you can't read minds, it is at least somewhat possible to read actions. You can certainly see guys like Craig Newmark or Scott Heiferman who make obvious visible decisions against their own material self interest in service of a broader principle. For the most part it's those exceptions that prove the rule in my opinion.
Again, I don't think it's a pejorative observation at all. I think wanting to feel valuable and special, and a desire to have resources, are quite fine things to cultivate in life, and I think a decent measure of our society is to see how well we do at giving everyone an opportunity to do those things.
The original article in this thread seems to be written by someone who is consumed by regard for their own self image, and has trouble admitting it. Being self-deprecating is not the same thing as being humble at all, it's just the other side of the oversized ego coin.
He goes on about how great he is and then how horrible and hurtful he is as if those are the only two ways to possibly evaluate him, while excluding the obvious first default theory we all start with, which is that his life is mostly inconsequential.
That's true and I told the guy that he has to make a choice. Either he has to be willing to "settle" with being a corporate drone and enjoy a nice work life balance or come up with a great idea and go all in and execute. Very few if any of the well known startups get successful by doing it "on the side".
From the entrepreneurs I've talked to, it's usually a combination of money and ego. They want to change the world because then "people will know who I am".
Work as an independent contractor. You are not an employee and even if you create IP for your client, they do not own your off time. For example, if you had two clients, they would not own the others ip.
If they send you a blanket ip agreement as a contractor, modify it to only agree to the created ip during working hours.
Rules are:
Not on company equipment
Not on company time
Work on projects not related to your day job
Being employee status is trickier than a independent consultant though.
I wish I could have just enjoyed college without worrying about food, gas, and keeping a roof over my head.
Working to pay for all that as a science major was no easy task. I cut corners and sometimes took too many credits to graduate in a timely manner.
It wasn't Animal House or Legally Blonde.