I’ve labored in each Silicon Valley and Wall Avenue. I’ve been bitten by each the “construct cool shit” bug and the “earn more money” bug. I’ve worn a swimsuit & tie for my job in addition to a hoodie & shorts to my office.
It’s fascinating to discover these contrasting worlds and the totally different sides of our personalities via the lens of Valley and NYC.
So, how is the Silicon Valley mindset totally different from the New York mindset for creating companies, fixing issues, and promoting merchandise & providers?
Listed below are 3 ways how enterprise is completed in a different way:
In Silicon Valley, founders usually give you new concepts from their day by day walks of life, develop a speculation, construct the product, and assume that clients can be interested in it like a magnet if it’s a cool product. They don’t search permission/approval and are solely restricted by their creativeness.
In New York, it’s extra widespread to gather all the necessities from a consumer upfront, map out their methods & constraints, put every part on paper, and shut a sale. That is good as a result of they aren’t playing on an untested concept. However on the opposite excessive, it may additionally lead to “vapor promoting”, by which services or products are promoted & offered earlier than they even exist.
The Silicon Valley mindset is usually related to a tradition of experimentation, a willingness to take dangers, and embrace failure as a studying alternative. Because of this the Silicon Valley mindset could also be extra conducive to pursuing moonshot tasks which might be extremely bold and dangerous.
In distinction, the New York mindset is usually extra targeted on minimizing danger & uncertainty and maximizing returns. Because of this there’s a better emphasis on belief and reliability. In consequence, the New York mindset could also be extra targeted on roofshot tasks which have extra predictable economics however decrease possibilities of outsized rewards.
The hustle mindset and tradition of working exhausting on Wall Avenue are pushed by excessive strain and the expectation of lengthy hours. Those that are in a position to put of their blood & sweat and say “sure” to new alternatives are sometimes those who thrive and have better profession success. It’s superb to see a lot one can humanly accomplish by pushing their boundaries and dealing 16-hour days.
Silicon Valley’s hacker tradition prides itself in saying “no” to the grind. They consider that decreasing stress & prioritizing total well-being is essential to inventive exploration. Techies pursue a meditative mind-set to enhance focus, productiveness, and unconventional pondering. When you understand that having an uncluttered mind-set creates the headspace to suppose outdoors the field. That may’t be accomplished while you’re consistently burned out, leaping from one activity to a different.
Is one mindset higher than the opposite? Most likely not. I’d suppose the reality lies someplace within the center.
