(ThyBlackMan.com) Silicon Valley is the place where entrepreneurs can find real ecosystem and easy money to launch their ideas. But, despite having all the luxuries and world’s greatest minds in one place, there are problems in Silicon Valley people rarely talk about. Life is super fast in Valley, and from the beginning, it makes you believe in a global perspective. But, at the end of the day, it’s sad to see people who aim to address some of the world’s biggest challenges don’t want to acknowledge the problems in their own place.
The Money Problem
Finding money is easy for Silicon Valley startups. Money is available and that too in abundance which is leading many startups to failure. Venture capitalists do not have a direct interest in the process and they focus more on the financial part of businesses. As a result, startups get money to run their business but other than the financial support, they get nothing, not even meaningful advice or guidance from investors. Having too much money is slowly becoming a problem for Silicon Valley.
Obsession with failure
You can say that Silicon Valley is a place for successful people, and it’s true. But the reality is Silicon Valley’s obsessed with failure and it is shocking. Everybody is vocal about how 80 percent businesses fail in the first five years and how only 2 out of 10 businesses enjoy success in Silicon Valley. The glorification of failure in Silicon Valley isn’t sweet, but it’s the reality here. No business should ever think of success through failures.
The image problem
If you are someone who thinks about selling the ideas of culture or social life in Valley, you should stay away from that place because it won’t easily accept you. The image problem in Silicon Valley is high. Those who belong to non-technical fields find it hard to earn respect in Valley, and those who are even doing low quality work in tech are everything. People respect others but those who have been a part of non-technical departments such as marketing, PR, and advertising know how it feels like to be in a tech-centered place.
Social life problems
Unless you’re earning well ($100k range is below average here), you can’t easily have or start a family in Silicon Valley. It’s one of the fastest growing places in the world where social life is almost dead and prices are rising fast. With an average salary, you can’t even imagine about owning/renting a place here with family. Silicon Valley is an expensive place and if you think that life is good there, think again because the cost of living here is around 50 to 60 percent higher and rents are about 200 percent higher than the other places in the country.
The people problem
The industry is trying its best to colonize Mars and finding solutions to problems that don’t even exist. But solving the problem of people in Silicon Valley has become so difficult that no one is trying to work on it. Poor planning and decisions have created several problems including housing for people, and empathy gap. Silicon Valley is the place which is built on networking and relations, it’s quite surprising that in this rapidly growing region, you can’t easily find vibrant public spaces where you can connect with diverse people.
The youth Problem
There’s a lot of attention on diversity, and with that, the business world is also focusing more on inclusion. Companies are working hard to recognize, attract, and retain talent beyond race, nationality, and gender. It is not only right but also helps enhance business by giving room for more ideas and thoughts in the company. Sadly, Silicon Valley still lacks diversity and only a certain group of people is invited to join companies and climb career ladder – the youth. There aren’t enough opportunities for the over-40 crowd. There are not enough serious mentoring opportunities in Silicon Valley, especially when the region is full of fake mentorship programs.
Problems with entrepreneurship
Many entrepreneurs, especially those who come from elite backgrounds and are working on social service-related projects, simply don’t have sustainable solutions. They don’t have (or they do not care about gaining) knowledge of what their target communities need. Their shiny offices do not have connections with locals who are working at the ground level on a regular basis. Communities sometimes feel that the solutions are being imposed on them, as a result, social entrepreneurs of Silicon Valley are not getting the reputation they desperately want.
Staff Writer; Corey Shaw
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