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by ArtWomb 2764 days ago
I think Mark Cuban on Shark Tank used to tell founders this. Don't start a company because you have a world-altering idea. Start a company because you love starting companies.
3 comments

What would he have you do if you have a world-altering idea? A company is still the best vehicle for seeing it actually change the world.
If you have a world-altering idea, and you want to alter the world, but you don't actually like to do the work (which is what Cuban was warning about), then don't build a company -- tell people your idea (try to sell it if you want, but if you don't like doing the work of selling, just give it away) and let someone who wants to the work do the work.

This is how academics and think-tanks and pundits operate.

Of course, what you'll find is that ideas are a dime a dozen and yours likely aren't novel. Execution is the best vehicle does changing the world, and it doesn't matter whose ideas you execute on; what matters is that you like executing.

The quote was that you should only start a company if you "love starting companies." It's not about being willing to do the work or not. I can do work I don't love. In fact, that's most of the work I do.
And what to do when you want to do the work, and not the surrounding nonsense? I.e. you want to develop your world-altering idea, instead of dealing with VCs, markets, customers, HR, hiring, firing, and all the countless other things a founder ends up doing instead of working on the actual product?
Recognize that you most probably don't.
Well, that's just no fun at all.
That's not to say an idea isn't worth pursuing and building a company around. But if you set out to change the world, you're not going to. The people who have built world changing things didn't assume their work would lead there (exceptions will prove the rule).
Find someone who has experience starting a company and try to start a company together.
Open sourcing it.
...you're not super familiar with Mark Cuban, are ya?
The handful of successful entrepreneurs I know fit in this mold: they are addicted to starting companies. Once it's showing stable growth and beginning to mature these people get restless and starting wondering what they can start next.
I think that's just a smart aphorism. What if I love starting companies, but nothing is working out? It has to be a mix of both?