I think there's a lot of validity in the assumption that if you are extremely technically capable (a good programmer), then it is also extremely unlikely for you to not have come up with an idea (and thus be passionate about it) and committed to its realisation. That is, if you truly are good, it's pretty unlikely that you never implemented something on your own.<p>But also keep in mind it's a tip for hiring into startups, and startups at the early level require a certain amount of passion that usually comes with programmer who actually love to program (and if you love to program you've probably done it outside of necessity before).