Solo founders: would you do it again?
I went through YC as a solo founder and I'm 6 years in now. I sometimes wonder whether I'd go solo again if I started a new company.
The good parts are obvious. No cofounder conflict, fast decisions, all the equity.
The bad part took me years to name: there's no one whose actual job is to tell you your plan is bad. Advisors are too polite and employees are too invested in agreeing with you.
And the loneliness in the trough years is genuinely brutal. The standard advice says find a cofounder, and I understand why.
I now work with an incredible team and it's hard to imagine starting something new without them.
If you've done both, which way would you go next time?
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solo founder here too, and that point about no one telling you your plan is bad hits hardest. advisors give you the polished version of their concern. what you actually need is someone willing to say "this is probably a waste of 6 months" with enough context to be right. i haven't found a structural fix for it. some people use peer founder groups, but the quality of pushback varies a lot. i'd probably go solo again just because cofounder fit is genuinely hard to get right and a bad one is worse than none, but i'd be more intentional about building in adversarial feedback from day one rather than hoping it shows up.
Basedash: AI data analyst
@rnagulapalle honestly, modern LLMs are getting much better at telling me when my ideas are bad, which is very appreciated. Nothing like the old days when it would say every idea is revolutionary 😂
@maxmusing haha fair, though i'd argue there's still a gap between an LLM telling you your idea is bad and someone who's seen the same market cycle three times telling you. the model is honest but it doesn't have skin in the game. maybe that's the next unlock though.
Solo founder myself. I've been fortunate to put some personal savings into my startup, and have assembled a small staff to help with operational tasks to allow me to focus on building and outreach. I don't think it would have been possible to do this without their support. Finding a great team is very important.
Basedash: AI data analyst
@austinbuhl great approach. Being a solo founder doesn't mean you have to do everything yourself.
I'm just starting up as a solo founder so take my current take with a pinch of salt.
I think there is never a guarantee that your plan will succeed, even with input from a co-founder and other decision makers. I am currently focused on a short to mid-term outlook so I can gather plenty of feedback from my customers. For long-term I have no idea how I will approach this.
What I can already confirm though is the loneliness.
Absolutely, would do it all over again and this time with my current team. Brilliant people, hard working, resilient and they dont take no for an answer. Nothing is impossible with them beside me.