How do I find the right balance between learning and working on a startup?
I'm just wondering how do I find the right balance between learning about more in the field and starting a startup. If i start a startup too early (most probably tech startup) I'm afraid that I'll lack the necessary experience to build/improve the product. But on the other hand if i spend too much time learning new things I might lose opportunities? So for example I could have a choice between starting a web app right now (just an example) or spending the next 2 years learning about machine learning. How would I decide which one to pursue? Thanks
Best Answer
Man, you are over thinking. Startup itself IS learning. Starting a company does not mean you will have business. Getting business is hard and illogical. You learn everything books do not teach, and you learn by failures, which is inevitable because the books never warned you about real life.
Other points
If you really want to start a business asap, then you'll have to forget about the joy of learning the ins and outs of building a product and focus on the fastest way to validate your idea.
Used to be in the same position, wanted to learn JavaScript and launch a startup at the same time. Realised that it was much faster to validate the idea by using a website builder to create an MVP so I had to make the tough choice and follow my ultimate goal.
That can be an incredibly difficult question, but I might have some advice.
Technical knowledge is something that you will have forever, so invest in education. It’ll open your opportunities and ideas later on, especially with machine learning and AI.
However, if you’re certain that you want to pursue a startup, do it! You’ll learn an incredible amount of valuable information which you can take away. Before you choose this option, ask yourself what you want from your startup, and if you have a precise plan on how to get there. You can lose an incredible amount of time developing something, only to find out it’s not scalable, it’s not investable, or maybe people don’t even want it to begin with. (Which happens pretty often!)
I would lean towards studying machine learning and surrounding myself with people in that community. You can always launch a startup later, and perhaps using a completely different design or architecture than you’re thinking of now, alongside additional knowledge and a new community of people.
Whatever you decide, it’ll all work out!
Keep it up!
Start side project on every domain that interests you. Build things. Try, experiment. Figure out what you're good at and what you like working on.
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