Honestly I think that risk is overstated.

I started a company, failed miserably, but it was easy to get a well-paying job with a salary and a lot of stock when I did. And the company I'm at now I joined long after product-market fit. I was still ahead in my career of people who were in the same place but didn't start a company. And I paid myself slightly less but still well enough to get by, so the only painful part was the transition between jobs. If you're a talented engineer you'll be just fine. I've probably had a job offer per week since then, too.

Now I've Saved up enough money, and I'll make another go. If I fail? Back to the same pretty-damn-good default position.

> I started a company, failed miserably, but it was easy to get a well-paying job with a salary and a lot of stock when I did.

Your anecdotes are not an indication that the risk is overstated. Who knows what factors decreased the risk for you, and while you attribute it to 'engineering talent', it's far more likely to be something like more skill at using the network of connections you've established (most jobs are still filled this way).

Whatever that factor is, it isn't necessarily a common skill.

Find me a talented engineer in the Bay Area who started a company and now can't find a job. We have $5,000 referral bonuses and severe engineering shortages so I'd love to refer him or her.

I have known several, and rent was so high they eventually moved away.

Consider offering remote positions. Even if those positions are only used as a way to open new people to the possibility of moving to SF. If your shortages are severe, why limit your talent pool to the smallest, most competitive market?

The shortage at our company isn't severe, but in the bay area it is. And you do so because having people in-house is much more productive and decreases organizational cost. There's a reason people want employees in-house, and it's not mentioned much on HN.

I ran a remote company once before. I'll never do it again.

I mostly agree with you, but playing devil's advocate things might have looked different if your startup had failed right into the last bubble bursting.

I'm firmly on the side of the corporate career, but this is a BS argument for it. The outcomes aren't binary. Even if you don't "make it" as a writer / actor / cartoonist, it doesn't automatically mean you're broke and waiting tables well into your forties. You can find yourself part of a well-paid production crew or as a grip or something that you're better suited for that the industry actually needs.

Similarly, if you're doing startups, failure doesn't go on your permanent record and you can try again. These career fields are about choosing your priorities in life, that's how you choose one path or the other.

OTOH the time to do a "risky" startup job is when you're young and have no real responsibilities other than yourself. Being broke in your late 20s is recoverable especially if you've gained expertise in current tech; being broke at 40 with a family is a much harder challenge.

Yeah, I'm here. Ten years on the road and a lot of failed dreams. Some days I feel like finding a high beam and buying some rope. Anyway, it's been a fun 10 years - people should be aware of the risks, but it's fun to try.

I've failed at a lot of things too. I'm not doing exactly what I want to right now in terms of tech, but I'm making up for it in other ways, e.g., playing music. I look back at all the mistakes that have been made though, and I can't really fault anyone else but myself for the trajectory I've taken.

It's up to me to learn and find a better way.

Huh, I wonder if cdixon has any incentive to interest people in starting their own startups...

Well he got rich starting one, so...

I think you're missing the point that he's now a full-fledged investor and is now more biased than before. https://a16z.com/author/chris-dixon/

I'm aware. My point was that I don't consider it deception for someone to try and convince people to get rich the same way he or she got rich.

Assuming he only does it because he's an investor is assuming the worst. He can probably only invest in a half dozen companies per year, so encouraging everyone he meets to start companies would be a very indirect Nd unnecessary way of filling the top of that funnel.

You'll then get a job within 2-3 months at a higher salary than what your startup paid you ... plus you'll have a brand new network in your startups industry, with competitors that respect what you've done & gone through.

> You'll then get a job within 2-3 months at a higher salary than what your startup paid you

Assuming you live in SV or NYC

Yes, I think it is great and I am proud that YC is having a good reality check that is maturing every year. Just watch the Startup School videos, mainly the Slack founder talk.

It is also good to think about alternatives to the typical startup vs corporate dilemma. For example, securing a job and working on side projects until there is a signal they can be something more.