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December 3, 2008

| In Which I Solve All Civic Problems Before Finishing Coffee >>

Me and My Seven Genius Friends

I love this little anecdote from Paul Graham’s latest essay:

The eight men who left Shockley Semiconductor to found Fairchild Semiconductor, the original Silicon Valley startup, weren’t even trying to start a company at first. They were just looking for a company willing to hire them as a group. Then one of their parents introduced them to a small investment bank that offered to find funding for them to start their own, so they did. But starting a company was an alien idea to them; it was something they backed into.

Isn’t it sweet — not usually a word you associate with Silicon Valley — to think about these eight men and their affection for, and loyalty to, one another?

That’s an under-recognized part of the startup motivation, I think: the desire to work with exactly the people you want to work with.

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Posted December 3, 2008 at 2:04 | Comments (1) | Permasnark
File under: Briefly Noted

Comments

That’s an under-recognized part of the startup motivation, I think: the desire to work with exactly the people you want to work with.

Absolutely! That's the main reason (if not the only reason) I ever even considered the idea of starting a company.

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