Paul Graham said something about startups that I think was very, very wrong for most people. That you "compress your career into a few short years." That might be true for a very small number of very smart people, but for most everyone, it's a long road of several failed startups and well over a decade before they find success. It's like being a musician, only not quite as depressing. You don't know beforehand what you need to be focused on, all too often you're buying in whole-cloth to a idea that hasn't been vetted being implemented by a team that's never worked together and you just ignore all the risks because reasons and oh god this is too hard to think about so I'll just focus on what's in front of me.
You only get to compress your working life if your startup actually finds legs, and manages to find a lucrative exit, and you didn't get screwed on the cap table. Unless it does, you're working awful hard for what's effectively a lottery ticket.
Some people really really really need to work really really really hard. These people would be well-served to do some self-inquiry as to why they need to do this rather than try to find the right vehicle for their efforts, because that kind of effort is rarely rewarded, no matter what vehicle you put it in.
There is a quote which goes by "Nothing to fear but fear itself". Doing startup is for the brave hearts who believe in this. To the people on sidelines it may make little sense (varying from career suicide to lottery tickets). But for the people in middle of it, they are just doing what needs to get done (albeit with lots of fighting/sacrifices and more)
There is a bias in startup world towards young ( early 20's) founders. Though it looks unfavourable towards the rest (in 30's and more), it seems more humanly justifiable. Guys in the former age group could easily squeeze in 5 to 7 years of life and still do a career/life reboot if things don't work out. But, if you are in 30's with family/kids, it becomes a lot more tragic and difficult( or even worse if you did'nt even get to start a family and missed life).
But even then, there are people who have ventured and found success against all odds. There is something about human will/courage/tenacity which is difficult to quantify and applied generically to people. Everyone needs to decide for themselves.
> it's a long road of several failed startups and well over a decade before they find success
How is that not compressing your career into a few short years? Most people start working at about 20 and retire at about 65. That's 45 years of a career.
A decade sounds like "a few short years" compared to four or five decades if you ask me.
You don't need to exit to stop missing out on your family life. Some people may choose to focus exclusively on work, but there are plenty of founders who have a life outside of work long before an exit/ipo event.
Not to mention, at least as a musician you may create some beautiful things, even though people may not appreciate them. With a startup, you may not do anything of the sort. It only makes sense if it makes you a lot of money, and that's not likely for most founders.
You only get to compress your working life if your startup actually finds legs, and manages to find a lucrative exit, and you didn't get screwed on the cap table. Unless it does, you're working awful hard for what's effectively a lottery ticket.
Some people really really really need to work really really really hard. These people would be well-served to do some self-inquiry as to why they need to do this rather than try to find the right vehicle for their efforts, because that kind of effort is rarely rewarded, no matter what vehicle you put it in.