Ask HN: What's Holding You Back?
I am in my early forties, and have been starting companies since I was 16. I am well into my fifth serious company now (depending on how you count). But somehow, I keep repeating the same mistakes, and I am running out of ideas on how to fix it, to a degree that I have just stopped doing stuff two years ago. (Fortunately(?) I am well enough now to just give up...)<p>For some reason, I always end up with an unhappy team. Even if the company is successful on paper in terms of numbers, there is always the feeling you hurt feelings no matter what you do, there&#x27;s always someone who will feel attacked by someone else&#x27;s internal communication. To a point where that even leaks to customers.<p>This sounds easy to fix, but I am really conscious about it, and tried various strategies, with less involvement from my side, more involvement, having someone else do the hiring decisions, etc. - with my latest company, six years ago, I tried to stay out of it, hired CEOs, but now the company &quot;works, barely&quot; but there&#x27;s nobody taking any initiative, nobody is passionate about it, everyone is just doing the minimal they can. I predict will not survive more than another few years.<p>It makes me sad sometimes because the ideas behind the companies&#x2F;products&#x2F;services seem to be fine, the market is there, the money flows work, even without VCs. I&#x27;m just getting tired of all the social problems. This is not something my CS degree and all the coding and later management books and training prepared me for.<p>(Throwaway account to protect the innocent.)