"Don't think that you can't do what other people can. And I agree you shouldn't underestimate your potential. People who've done great things tend to seem as if they were a race apart. And most biographies only exaggerate this illusion, partly due to the worshipful attitude biographers inevitably sink into, and partly because, knowing how the story ends, they can't help streamlining the plot till it seems like the subject's life was a matter of destiny, the mere unfolding of some innate genius. In fact I suspect if you had the sixteen year old Shakespeare or Einstein in school with you, they'd seem impressive, but not totally unlike your other friends.
"Which is an uncomfortable thought. If they were just like us, then they had to work very hard to do what they did. And that's one reason we like to believe in genius. It gives us an excuse for being lazy. If these guys were able to do what they did only because of some magic Shakespeareness or Einsteinness, then it's not our fault if we can't do something as good.
"I'm not saying there's no such thing as genius. But if you're trying to choose between two theories and one gives you an excuse for being lazy, the other one is probably right."
In other words, if you are content with being mediocre, there is no problem with being lazy. Lots of people all over the world are lazy. But if want to accomplish something in life, don't rely on "genius" alone--roll up your sleeves and do plenty of work.
Ahh, youthful optimism! While work is obviously useful, the fact is, PG's business model relies on others doing lots and lots of work, very quickly, to get a good return on his capital. In reality, the hardest things to come up with may be the ideas, and he solicits those for free. It's a bit of scam, really. What holds true for some tiny percentage of people engaged in Silly-Valley startuppering is not that which holds true for most of us in most of our lives.
I don't quite see why the quote from PG doesn't hold true for the rest of the population. I've come to the personal conclusion that tokenadult's last paragraph holds true for everything in life. I don't believe life is deterministic as you seem to imply, that your genetic makeup and upbringing set in stone. I see it as more like a tree, even if a tree grows in wind and bends, you can always straighten it out (to a certain age/size), it's hard but not impossible.
In reality, the hardest things to come up with may be the ideas, and he solicits those for free. It's a bit of scam, really.
I don't understand how else an investor-founder relationship would work. Should he pay to listen to ideas/pitches before deciding whether or not to invest? Do you think NDAs should be the industry norm? Please elaborate.
Real discussions are bidirectional. By assuming a haughty 'we hold the cards' position, and soliciting info from those looking for funding, they often ask for lots of details before promising even a comment. A better service might provide a forum for Q&A in both directions before details were shared. Ideally, it would also be global, and take centralized parties out of the equation entirely.
You've misunderstood me. The part I've found motivating was that these seemingly amazing people are also regular people. I'm also more interested in bootstrapping my business without funding so I was never part of "PG's business model" as you would put it.
http://paulgraham.com/hs.html
"Don't think that you can't do what other people can. And I agree you shouldn't underestimate your potential. People who've done great things tend to seem as if they were a race apart. And most biographies only exaggerate this illusion, partly due to the worshipful attitude biographers inevitably sink into, and partly because, knowing how the story ends, they can't help streamlining the plot till it seems like the subject's life was a matter of destiny, the mere unfolding of some innate genius. In fact I suspect if you had the sixteen year old Shakespeare or Einstein in school with you, they'd seem impressive, but not totally unlike your other friends.
"Which is an uncomfortable thought. If they were just like us, then they had to work very hard to do what they did. And that's one reason we like to believe in genius. It gives us an excuse for being lazy. If these guys were able to do what they did only because of some magic Shakespeareness or Einsteinness, then it's not our fault if we can't do something as good.
"I'm not saying there's no such thing as genius. But if you're trying to choose between two theories and one gives you an excuse for being lazy, the other one is probably right."
In other words, if you are content with being mediocre, there is no problem with being lazy. Lots of people all over the world are lazy. But if want to accomplish something in life, don't rely on "genius" alone--roll up your sleeves and do plenty of work.