Ask HN: Work life after starting companies for entrepreneurs?

[dicefordeath]

I'm looking for feedback from entrepreneurs who have moved on to something new after starting their own company or companies. I'm three companies deep and have decided I don't have another one in me at this point. I'm not interested in taking a CEO position elsewhere or pursuing the more "standard" path of becoming an investor.

My strength/passion is in identifying a need and building things people like. Not so much running the company once the thing exists and has been properly brought to market.

Are there roles inside larger organizations that cater to this skillset? Consulting is a pretty obvious path but I'm hoping there might be some out-of-the-box ideas from anyone who has made a similar transition.

[themodelplumber]

I coached a bunch of entrepreneurs on this topic. Most were flirting over and over with burnout, so please be careful; you probably know what I'm talking about.

> My strength/passion is in identifying a need and building things people like.

I would turn this on its head and ask:

- Can you identify a need in yourself, as if working on/with a third party client?

- Can you build something that person is more likely to like?

- Is this relevant in any given long-term scope for you? That will look more like a sustainable, energy-producing system.

This is just one possible outcome or way of looking at things. Good luck to you.

[diskzero]

- Can you identify a need in yourself, as if working on/with a third party client?

- Can you build something that person is more likely to like?

- Is this relevant in any given long-term scope for you? That will look more like a sustainable, energy-producing system.

Absolutely wonderful advice and some I wish I had been given back when I started out. I also thought the secret to a successful startup was identifying a need and building things people like. And this approach can work! But if it is a problem you are solving for you and you directly relate with, it will give you so much more energy and credibility while you are out there pitching your idea. And as you know, you are continuously selling your idea over and over and over... It really helps me to have a kernel of hard, unbending belief that a solution that worked for me will work for others.