Funny, the NYC Meetup (today) is going to touch on this topic (’cause I’ve been thinking about it). It’s one of the “ways rationalists can make money”, IMO.
I agree, it does seem like a great untapped potential for a rationalist community. The obvious question is, does being a rationalist make you a better founder of a startup? Or, more relevant here, does being a rationalist of LessWrong stripes make you a better founder?
When it comes to programming prowess, I doubt rationality confers much benefit. But when it comes to the psychological steel needed to forge a startup: dealing with uncertainty, sunk costs, investors, founder feuds, etc… I think a black belt in rationality could be a hell of a weapon!
I think dealing with uncertainty is key. I think Frank Knight formulated the idea that this is where the greatest returns are; I feel that this is something rationalists should be better than average at.
I also think this should give advantage to rationalists in areas other than startups, though startups definitely come to mind.
Funny, the NYC Meetup (today) is going to touch on this topic (’cause I’ve been thinking about it). It’s one of the “ways rationalists can make money”, IMO.
I agree, it does seem like a great untapped potential for a rationalist community. The obvious question is, does being a rationalist make you a better founder of a startup? Or, more relevant here, does being a rationalist of LessWrong stripes make you a better founder?
When it comes to programming prowess, I doubt rationality confers much benefit. But when it comes to the psychological steel needed to forge a startup: dealing with uncertainty, sunk costs, investors, founder feuds, etc… I think a black belt in rationality could be a hell of a weapon!
BTW, we having this discussion here:
http://groups.google.com/group/overcomingbiasnyc/browse_thread/thread/3b91c0f4460dca63?hl=en
I think dealing with uncertainty is key. I think Frank Knight formulated the idea that this is where the greatest returns are; I feel that this is something rationalists should be better than average at.
I also think this should give advantage to rationalists in areas other than startups, though startups definitely come to mind.