Ask HN: Am I qualified to start any startups?

Let's get crude and say you're a mere 2 out of 10 on a fictional scale of aptitude. At what level do you think you wouldn't be "beaten" by anyone else? What about developers at 7 or 8? They could just as easily feel the same way.

You need to stop looking at this as an RPG-style skills game and one of the world/market being a massive place with opportunities for all. There are so many niches that you can find something productive to do. You just need to be prepared to fail over and over until you get a success.

To "build" a start-up in to something concrete, it takes more than a geeky programmer. Don't worry about who can beat you in programming or not. As long as you show the resolve that you will make your idea in to a real company, you are in business. Keep in good contacts with all of your non-technical buddies. When the right time comes, they will be your chaperones.

Trust me, I had the same fear when I started out last year.

start here with "How To Become A Hacker" ~ http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html

    To follow the path:
    look to the master,
    follow the master,
    walk with the master,
    see through the master,
    become the master.

The way I look at it is that I come to terms with what I suck at right now and then work hard at sucking less. Eventually I get really good at what I sucked at and move onto the next thing.

And you don't need permission to start something.