Nice thread.

Originally Posted by
Finn
The US is a very good example of how to do things right - domestically I might add and it doesn't stop at retailers and distributors. My brother & I were leaving his house just outside San Fran for a few weeks and had to pop into the local municipal office (Council, police and other public SERVICES in one office - well duh NZ) to pay vehicle reg. A cop overheard us say we were overseas for 3 weeks and asked where we lived. We told him and he said he'd keep an eye on the place for us and even asked what day / time we were coming back. 3 weeks later we arrived and within the hour there was a knock on the door. "Everything okay sir?"
Another example this morning. I had a breakfast meeting with a supplier that has let me down in my business (funny that) and parked in a Wilson parking building. Upon leaving, the machine wouldn't accept my credit card. Out of service. I call the number, it says "Our office hours are 8:00am bla, bla. It was 8:50. I tried for 15 more minutes to make contact then broke the barrier.
That story from the US is exceptional! I must say I enjoyed the short time I've spent state-side as well. Although I must disagree - the way they handle public services is archaic, perhaps not as archaic as here in NZ, but still very far from how it's done in Denmark. (at least that was the case on Hawaii, it may vary from state to state)
As for Wilson's Parking - scum of the earth! I'll never use one of their parking lots ever.

Originally Posted by
RantyDave
Of course, as time gets on the proposal gets worse until you eventually get to the position that potential founders of tech companies in Wellington get i.e. "make my own company and maybe become unspeakably rich" vs "contract out to the government doing some awful .net shit and make $100/hr for no risk whatsoever" in which case you'd need to be either (over) confident of success or completely barking mad to start a new company.
Being paid by the hour is not exactly what I'd consider a solid position. If you were in that situation and had a good idea for a business model it would make perfect sense to develop said model besides whatever contracting you'd manage to secure.
Now, if you had a secure position with a $100,000+ salary a year. Indeed why would you bother? Unless of course starting new businesses is your hobby.

Originally Posted by
Gremlin
The real difference is that uni brainwashes them into thinking 1, they're THE shit, 2, with the degree, they can walk into a cushy job with little work. Everybody older knows that your first job was a slog, you had at least got your foot into the industry, and you started from the bottom.
Uni... pfff... my degree is a flash bit of paper, they taught just about zero stuff I use day to day, all the programming languages aren't used, and I have taught myself others that are more practical.
Obviously the university you attended was quite a bit different from the ones I've been involved with. There has certainly not been any pep-talking or attempts at elevating our self-esteem. If anything there has been a few lecturers here and there who enjoyed making us feel stupid and worthless.
But then again, if you're going to uni because you want to become rich you're wasting time. There are faster and better ways to make a fortune than reading books. However, if you wouldn't mind having a lot of opportunities and the chance to work with something interesting of your own choosing a university degree is not a bad idea. ...especially if you can get it for free!

Originally Posted by
BarBender
Maybe we make it too easy for the wrong people to get into business in the first place.
How can you make it too easy for people to get into business? I mean, you want MORE red tape? 
To start a business you need capital, you are not very likely to secure that capital without a sound business model. As such we can only really change the amount of bureaucratic hum-ho associated with getting something started.
It is preferential to refrain from the utilisation of grandiose verbiage in the circumstance that your intellectualisation can be expressed using comparatively simplistic lexicological entities. (...such as the word fuck.)
Remember your humanity, and forget the rest. - Joseph Rotblat
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