创业与商业al3x.net编辑精选
给考虑加入创业公司的年轻程序员的一封信
Letter To A Young Programmer Considering A Startup
2013 — 2015，它一次次回到首页
黑点是上首页（≥ 50 分）的那次投稿，空心点是没冲上去的投稿，点越大分数越高。
导读
这是 Alex Payne 写给考虑加入创业公司的年轻程序员的一封信，反思把创业当成职业路径或生活方式的潮流，讨论动机、风险、学习与个人选择。文章引发了对创业文化、职业现实和成功定义的长期争论。
为什么经久不衰：它把创业从光环拉回个人选择，提醒每一代年轻程序员先审视动机与代价，再决定是否投身其中。
HN 评论精选
创业不应成为盲目追逐的场景，应有具体产品目标。
创业公司已经变成一种职业路径或生活方式，发展成一个有媒体报道和戏剧性的圈子。我看到很多懵懂大学生想“做创业公司”，好像那只是普通工作。我的观点是：如果你有想大规模构建的具体产品/服务，才去创办或加入创业公司；你会通过等量的痛苦获得财富。但来旧金山瞎混，并不比盲目搬去洛杉矶当电影明星更好，有很多更好的方式度过青春。
sthatipamala查看英文原文
Startups have become something of a career path or lifestyle. It has developed into a scene, with its own media coverage and drama. I see a lot of clueless college students wanting to "do startups" as if it were any old job. My perspective is this: Found or join a startup if have a specific product/service you want to build at a large scale. You'll earn your wealth through the equivalent amount of pain (http://www.paulgraham.com/wealth.html). But coming to SF and floundering around is no better than aimlessly moving to LA to become a movie star. There are a lot better ways to spend your youth. Edit to address my last point: Sure, there are many benefits to coming out here. But there's no benefit in coming here to just be a "scenester."
早期加入精英创业公司未必利于成长，成熟团队更愿投资新人。
Alex 没谈的一点是：并非所有创业公司都能把你教成优秀工程师。如果创业公司真招最顶尖的人，经验较少的程序员很可能进不去。看看你六个月、一年、五年前写的代码有多糟？很多科技创业公司没时间等你成长，你的工作质量可能决定公司生死，精英创业公司想要“前谷歌人”。所以想变强，要和比你强、已从错误中学习的人共事。找愿意雇你的最强团队，它不一定是最好或精英创业公司；更成熟的公司承担得起你的学习曲线，你也可能赚更多，还学贷、存钱，等更有经验再创业。
dustingetz查看英文原文
one point al3x didn't talk to: not all startups will teach you to be an awesome engineer. If a startup is really hiring the best of best, a less experienced programmer is not likely to make the cut. Ever look at your code from 6 months, a year, 5 years ago? and how bad it is? Many tech startups don't have time for that, the quality of your work can make or break a startup. Elite startups want "ex-googlers". So if you want to get good, you need to work with people that are better than you, who have already learned from their mistakes so you don't have to. Find the strongest shop that will hire you. It will not be the best shop. It probably won't be an elite startup. But more mature companies can afford to pay for your learning curve. You also will probably make more money, enough to pay off your student debt and save up to bootstrap when you're more experienced.
很多人没有挑工作的余裕，不完美的公司也能提供入行基础。
我不喜欢这种预设读者有选择权的文章。想起朋友天真建议我只去自己愿意投钱的公司工作。我说开玩笑吗？我磨了几个月、面试屡败才拿到这份工作，你告诉我别去因为不是谷歌之类？很大一部分人没有奢侈说“这个创业公司还行，但我更喜欢那个，呃也许去大公司”。我接受工作是因为它们付钱让我写代码。对 90% 尽力应对自身处境的人大概也一样。多年前我写代码的烂公司？正是它们给我成功程序员生涯打下基础，因为没有它们绝对不行——它们确实愿意在我身上投一点资，而据我经验，大公司或独角兽创业公司未必会。
CloudYeller查看英文原文
I don't like this kind of article that presumes that their readers have a choice in this matter. Reminds me of a friend of mine who once naively advised me to only take a job at a company that I would invest my own money in. I said are you kidding me? I've been grinding for months and failing interviews left and right just to get this job and you're telling me don't do it because it's not Google or something? A huge portion of humans don't have the luxury to say "hmmmm, this startup is ok but myyyeehhh, I kinda like this one better, err idk maybe i'll just go to GiantCorp". I took jobs because they paid me to write code. The story is probably the same for 90% of humans who are doing the best they can in their own situations. Oh yeah, and the crappy companies I wrote code for years ago? Those are the places that gave me a foundation for a successful career as a programmer. I absolutely could not have done it without them because they were actually willing to invest a little bit in me-- which (in my experience) might not have happened, even at megacorps or unicorn startups.
文章针对风投式创业，生活方式型创业可以自定义成功。
作者提出重要且有价值的建议，对任何人都适用，确实让我反思建公司的动机。但我觉得作者说的是“做大或回家”模式的创业，而不是慢增长或生活方式型路径。不用打动投资人时，你可以不同地做事：截止日期更由自己定，只要照顾好客户，他们更支持。客户想要解决问题的产品且使用越省心越好；VC 想要显著回报。两者都有钱，但只有一个会持续给你钱。你更想瞄准哪个？总之值得反思创业如何融入你的生活、投入多少时间。不必每周 80 小时，甚至不必 40。成功由你定义，除非你拿别人的钱。个人目标：房租。如果我能做出每月覆盖房租的东西，就是成功，其余是锦上添花。
meesterdude查看英文原文
I think the author raises some important and valuable advice that applies to anyone/everyone. It certainly has me wondering about my motives for building a company. But, equally I feel the author is speaking of the go-big-or-go-home model of "startups", not the slow-growth or lifestyle approaches that one could alternatively take. When you don't have to impress investors, you can approach things differently. Deadlines are more up to you, and customers are more supportive as long as you're taking care of them. Customers want a product that solves their problems and requires as little thought as possible to use(at least in Software). VC's want a significant return on their investment. Both have money, but only one of them will continually give you money. Which would you rather aim for? Anyway, I think its worth reflecting on how the startup will fit into your life, and what kinda time you will put into it. It doesn't HAVE to be 80 hours a week. Doesn't even need to be 40. Success is up to you to define; unless you're playing with someone else's money. Personally, my goal is rent. If I can build something that can earn me enough money to always cover my monthly rent, that's success for me. Anything beyond that is icing on the cake.
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