[sirspacey]

It’s important to accept that your startup can fail and it’s wise to calculate the cost.

Generally, founders would be better off (even in founding another company) getting the right logos and degrees on your CV. Consider very carefully if you are trading industry recognition on a moonshot. If the moonshot doesn’t pan out to at least an acquisition (which a new report found happens 0.5% of the time for funded startups), you’ve lost years and will find it tough to compete against your peers. It sucks and the options available to you are to join other struggling startups.

The one reason to do it is - it’s super fun. If you can learn & prove something simply by building it (whether it succeeds or not), that can be a solid reason to go for 12-18months at it.

My main advice would be to set milestones of risk and achievement, then schedule meetings as co-founders to review your decision. The thing that drives co-founders a part is often divergent perception of risk. It’s important to synthesize regularly and assess against where you could be.

Taking risks is worth demonstrating. Just don’t confuse it with demonstrating success.