Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on Seattle 2.0, and imported to GeekWire as part of our acquisition of Seattle 2.0 and its archival content. For more background, see this post.
By Jennifer Cabala
Tony Wright has founded three successful companies, sold two of them, and after recently leaving his CEO position at RescueTime, he is now looking for his next startup. Tony is a Y Combinator grad, a TechStars Mentor and has sorted through hundreds of startup ideas. He’s using that wisdom to speak on “Picking an Idea” at StartupDay 2010 on September 25th. We chatted with him to learn more about how he got started, the best advice he received, and the startup myth that needs to die. When did you know that you wanted to be an entrepreneur? “I’m still not sure I want to be an entrepreneur. Seriously, I just sort of fell into it when a potential employer offered me a contracting gig instead of a job.”
How did you come up with the idea for RescueTime? “We were laughing over lunch one day about how hard it was
to build any software with all of the emails and meetings we had to endure.”
What’s RescueTime’s elevator pitch? “Helping individuals and businesses understand how they spend their time and spend it more productively.”
What was the best moment in your entrepreneurial career? “Getting accepted into Y Combinator. Or maybe selling my first company.”
What was your toughest moment? “Having to fire someone is really hard. Probably the first time I ever had to do that.”
Any startup myth you want to bust? “About a zillion. Biggest is probably the order of progress. ‘Have an idea, get funding, build prototype, get traction’ is WRONG. It’s more ‘Have an idea, build prototype, get traction, get funding’. Investors want an opportunity to extrapolate success rather than make a leap of faith– unless you truly have a world changing invention — or a helluva pitch.”
What I will be talking about at StartupDay?”I’ll be talking about how to find an idea if you don’t have any and how to pick through ’em if you have too many.”
What’s the best piece of advice you ever received? “Make something people want. (Paul Graham)”
What piece of advice do you wish you had received? “Start thinking about sales and marketing sooner. Don’t invent a product that no one has ever used– reinvent a product that everyone uses but hates.”
What’s next for you? “I’ve stepped down as RescueTime’s CEO, but their next step is to continue their (accelerating) growth. My next step is to continue to relax this summer and ponder my next step (which could be a product/marketing leadership role at a small startup or spinning up my 4th company (2 have sold, 1 is still going strong!).”
If you want to hear from Tony and all of the other great founders speaking at StartupDay 2010, register today. Tickets are limited.
