In other words, what is 'success' within the realm of a start-up (excluding $$$)?
I personally feel that a start-up's success is measured on its number of active users and its impact on other businesses and/or the world/society.
What is 'success' for you? I'm curious to see how other entrepreneurs view 'success'.
Level 1: Actually make something that is functional.
Level 2: Actually have someone test it.
Level 3: Actually have someone buy it/use it for real.
Level 4: Actually have the users from the previous Level maintain their use, i.e. convert to real users.
Level 5: Get to some level of profitability.
Level 6: Make a decent amount of money.
Level 7: Make a lot of money, i.e. from an exit event or just large value of company, etc.
I know this includes financial stuff, which you specifically didn't want. However, I think this is inextricably tied to the higher levels of startup success. Obviously in the lower levels, some people may have other metrics beyond other use, like organizational metrics such as hiring employees or making something that grows beyond themselves, i.e. can be passed on.
I have not yet reached a "Level 7" in my endeavors as an entrepreneur, but I have a feeling that it goes beyond "Level 7".
I guess my suspicion comes from observing those that have already reached "success" in the start-up world. For example, why would PG still work after reaching the elusive "Level 7"/MONEY, why would Steve Jobs keep working, etc....
But if I understand your reply correctly, I think you are saying, what is beyond all those monetary levels? That is, assume you reach a monetary level that is enough for you financially, what is beyond that? (This is why I just stopped at Level 7 in my scheme btw.)
Having achieved some degree of Level 7 myself, all I can say is that startups are what I like to do (at least for now). I want to start all over again and climb up the Levels because each level is rewarding to me its own right. A different project brings different users and solving different needs, and I guess I just like that. So in this scheme, I guess I think of it sort of as a reset for myself; not a circle exactly, but a new path.
Other things beyond Level 7 are charity, prestige/celebrity, and doing things with bigger impact. Steve Jobs is obviously a celebrity, and I would assume he sees that as part of his success. PG seems to be in the bigger things category, hoping that YC will really change the world in a big way. Maybe he can jump in here and speak for himself though. I remember an article on here a while back (but can't find it right now) about what people do after exit events. It had these categories, but it was a little more thought out, if I recall correctly. Maybe someone can provide that link.
Hearing that sincerely puts a smile on my face and makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside
In all seriousness, I agree that having happy clients is a strong indicator of success. But for myself, success is more than just being at the front of the pack.
Success is having the satisfaction of knowing you put out your full effort (and then some). Success is personal struggle and personal growth, regardless of the problem or project.
- Meetup.com is getting people out and into social situations with lots of benefits - Google maps helps people to find things more quickly without getting lost - Ebay and Craigslist changed the whole value structure of entire classes of goods and enabled a lot of people to do useful work and earn money they couldn't have before. - Reddit and related sites are the office-worker's version of talk radio. I'm thinking they're going to have a noticeable affect on politics, hopefully for the better (besides creating a significant drop in productivity of the average programmer.) - Google.
I'm not sure how social networking sites fit in all of that.
But the revolution isn't anywhere near over yet. - Government http://radar.oreilly.com/archives/2007/07/why_congress_ne.ht... - Medicine - Portable medical records, better understanding of outcomes and genetics can make us all healthier. - Business - People waste way too much time in offices moving data from one place to another and then trying to balance back to the original. Businesses go broke and partners sue each other because they didn't understand or keep track of or share information. People waste money and time because they didn't understand trends unfolding around them.
And there's a lot more.
And then there's all that money, too.
"When all is said and done, the journey is the reward." - Randy Komisar
I'd say when you have customers who want to keep being customers is a pretty good measure of success. Customers are the people who pay the bills... So if you have a free service, it means advertisers who are reaching an audience they care about and getting a good return on their investment.
I find the emphasis on 'users' to be a bit too simple, and decidedly not very bubble-proof. It's probably also important to qualify who your users are and how much you know about them. 100,000 users that you have no information about aren't very valuable.
