Unfortunately and with the pain of my soul, after 10 years working in start ups, I have to admit that yes, the truth is that politics matters and matters much more than good engineering, that is something that I have learned the hard way. And it’s the only reason I’m considering leaving the game completely, as soon as I have enough economic freedom.
> Only a crisis—actual or perceived—produces real change. When that crisis occurs, the actions that are taken depend on the ideas that are lying around. That, I believe, is our basic function: to develop alternatives to existing policies, to keep them alive and available until the politically impossible becomes politically inevitable.
I have confirmed that this is true, and a useful mental model to be successful in the world of start-ups, but also describes very well the opportunity seized by certain historic character of 1930s Europe.
> Only a crisis—actual or perceived—produces real change. When that crisis occurs, the actions that are taken depend on the ideas that are lying around. That, I believe, is our basic function: to develop alternatives to existing policies, to keep them alive and available until the politically impossible becomes politically inevitable.
I have confirmed that this is true, and a useful mental model to be successful in the world of start-ups, but also describes very well the opportunity seized by certain historic character of 1930s Europe.