One of the big problems I have with PG's essays is that, though I like the content, I have a very hard time believing everything he says without evidence. When you are in an emotional low, it's very difficult to think, "I should just persist because PG says it usually works." So it was great to see his points actually backed up by other founders' experiences.
As a side note, does anyone have a transcript of Jason Fried's talk? His was another favorite of mine from yesterday.
When you are in an emotional low, it's very difficult to think, "I should just persist because PG says it usually works."
I usually take the opposite approach: I should persist because PG says that single-founder startups don't work, and I'm going to prove him wrong, damnit.
Good for you!
But in my experience, 1+1 is MUCH greater than 2. If I'm right 99% of the time, the other guy has hauled his own weight just by correcting me that 1% - because I'd have been blocked, or gone the wrong way, or dropped a ball. And there are 99 decisions to make every week.
There are a lot of explanations why one is not enough. Think about practicing a foreign language - how it's much better when you have someone to talk to. That's also correct for almost any kind of evolving processes. Even a reading (which is a classical example of a lonely activity) could do better if you will develop the habit of reading aloud, like Tibetan and many other cultures have.
I wonder though, with the comments about how the character and commitment of your co-founders matters so much more than ability or output that, in the case you can't get someone you know well to join you, that you would do better not having a co-founder rather than spending time looking for one.
As a side note, does anyone have a transcript of Jason Fried's talk? His was another favorite of mine from yesterday.