[gh0stcat]

In what way is this "ruining your life"? If things don't go as planned, I imagine the person would be in a good position to pivot to higher education/a different job/starting something new. I think this idea that ruining one's life == not following the exact k-12 -> college -> big corporation route is short sighted.

[tossandthrow]

Do a risk based calculation of compensation and learning.

Your will see that you are putting you self at risk - especially if you had the opportunity to work at an renowned business.

Eg. Having 2 no name defunct businesses on your resume you claim as startups over 3 years will likely not benefit you so much.

[hnthrowaway121]

All depends on the person, their goals, their expectations, the experiences they want to have.

Agree we should not deceive anybody that doing this would make them rich or have a successful business. Most startups fail, startups by new college grads who never had a job might fail even more than normal startups. But if an adult wants to burn a few years of their 20s this way, fine. Maximizing earning efficiency of earnings in your 20s might not be optimal either. Maybe you hit a local maximum and would have much higher earnings later after discovering something by following your nose for a few years.