7 ms·

Meh, just sign the NDA.

fnordfnordfnord 13y ago
Signing randomly sourced contracts seems like a bad idea. If he really wanted to work with people who like NDA's, maybe he should have his own lawyer draft a general purpose one for him to use in these situations.
- beat 13y ago
  It's easier, faster, and less expensive to simply not work with people who insist on NDAs. Frees up time for those who trust and respect him.
michaelt 13y ago
There's no point in me having you sign an NDA if I don't plan to sue you should you violate it. I'm asking you to sign a document so I can sue you later. What do you get in return? This guy says he's giving out free advice to strangers, expecting nothing in return. There's very little upside for him. So why should he take the risk, how would it benefit him?
- billb2112 13y ago
  I think your interpretation of "sign a document so I can sue you later" is pretty inaccurate. Someone is disclosing an idea and wants to protect themselves in case you decide their idea is worth implementing. I don't think it's an unrealistic request. Furthermore, most NDAs I've seen don't really protect much of anything. The downside of saying 'no' is that you will never (or rarely) have them as a potential client. Maybe you have clients throwing themselves at you, but in my neck of the woods, clients aren't exactly a dime a dozen. I'm not going to sign anything that I feel would put me or my business at unreasonable risk, but no NDA I've ever signed has been worded that unrealistically. To make a blanket statement that I'll never sign your NDA and NDAs are a dumb waste of time sounds like a difficult person to deal with right off the bat.
  - jusben1369 13y ago
    It's called a "non disclosure" agreement not a non compete agreement. What you're signing up for is "I won't disclose your content to a third party" So it's fraught with risk. You have to take that conversation and bottle it away and not mention it for 3-5 years to anyone else in case they think it's a good idea and pivot or start a company to go do that. You sign that agreement, have one coffee, never hear from the guy again. Two years later you join on as an advisor to a company that does something similar to that startup and they're claiming you must be disclosing what you learned from them to this new startup! Far fetched but if you sign 20 - 30 NDA's a year because you're actively helping people you will get bit on the butt but some neurotic founder at some point.
  - macspoofing 13y ago
    >To make a blanket statement that I'll never sign your NDA ... Maybe you should actually read what the author wrote. He didn't make a blanket statement. The author refuses to sign an NDA when he is approached for advice about some idea somebody may have. This is perfectly reasonable. Why should he open himself up to liability for giving (free) advice and guidance over coffee? On the other hand, if he is approached in a more formal setting, such as when he is hired or contracted out by the party, then it would be unreasonable for him to refuse an NDA.
  - karamazov 13y ago
    Did you read the article? The author is talking about NDA's from people who want to discuss startup ideas with him, not NDA's from clients or potential clients.
    - billb2112 13y ago
      Wow, so someone would sign an NDA for the purpose of having a free consult and nothing further? How is this some sort of bold statement that is making it to the front page of hacker news? "I won't incur risk for nothing in return". So brave. Many relationships start with potential clients shopping around. They get a free consult. If that's not what this guy is referring to, then my mistake. I wouldn't sign the NDA either, but I could just as easily named this article "I won't stab myself in the eye".
6d0debc071 13y ago
Why? What's in it for me?
crusso 13y ago
People who "just sign the NDA" typically value ideas over implementation.

Signing randomly sourced contracts seems like a bad idea. If he really wanted to work with people who like NDA's, maybe he should have his own lawyer draft a general purpose one for him to use in these situations.

beat 13y ago
It's easier, faster, and less expensive to simply not work with people who insist on NDAs. Frees up time for those who trust and respect him.

michaelt 13y ago

There's no point in me having you sign an NDA if I don't plan to sue you should you violate it. I'm asking you to sign a document so I can sue you later. What do you get in return? This guy says he's giving out free advice to strangers, expecting nothing in return. There's very little upside for him. So why should he take the risk, how would it benefit him?

billb2112 13y ago
I think your interpretation of "sign a document so I can sue you later" is pretty inaccurate. Someone is disclosing an idea and wants to protect themselves in case you decide their idea is worth implementing. I don't think it's an unrealistic request. Furthermore, most NDAs I've seen don't really protect much of anything. The downside of saying 'no' is that you will never (or rarely) have them as a potential client. Maybe you have clients throwing themselves at you, but in my neck of the woods, clients aren't exactly a dime a dozen. I'm not going to sign anything that I feel would put me or my business at unreasonable risk, but no NDA I've ever signed has been worded that unrealistically. To make a blanket statement that I'll never sign your NDA and NDAs are a dumb waste of time sounds like a difficult person to deal with right off the bat.
- jusben1369 13y ago
  It's called a "non disclosure" agreement not a non compete agreement. What you're signing up for is "I won't disclose your content to a third party" So it's fraught with risk. You have to take that conversation and bottle it away and not mention it for 3-5 years to anyone else in case they think it's a good idea and pivot or start a company to go do that. You sign that agreement, have one coffee, never hear from the guy again. Two years later you join on as an advisor to a company that does something similar to that startup and they're claiming you must be disclosing what you learned from them to this new startup! Far fetched but if you sign 20 - 30 NDA's a year because you're actively helping people you will get bit on the butt but some neurotic founder at some point.
- macspoofing 13y ago
  >To make a blanket statement that I'll never sign your NDA ... Maybe you should actually read what the author wrote. He didn't make a blanket statement. The author refuses to sign an NDA when he is approached for advice about some idea somebody may have. This is perfectly reasonable. Why should he open himself up to liability for giving (free) advice and guidance over coffee? On the other hand, if he is approached in a more formal setting, such as when he is hired or contracted out by the party, then it would be unreasonable for him to refuse an NDA.
- karamazov 13y ago
  Did you read the article? The author is talking about NDA's from people who want to discuss startup ideas with him, not NDA's from clients or potential clients.
  - billb2112 13y ago
    Wow, so someone would sign an NDA for the purpose of having a free consult and nothing further? How is this some sort of bold statement that is making it to the front page of hacker news? "I won't incur risk for nothing in return". So brave. Many relationships start with potential clients shopping around. They get a free consult. If that's not what this guy is referring to, then my mistake. I wouldn't sign the NDA either, but I could just as easily named this article "I won't stab myself in the eye".

6d0debc071 13y ago

Why? What's in it for me?

crusso 13y ago

People who "just sign the NDA" typically value ideas over implementation.