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“That’s a stupid idea. Their product will never succeed. I hope that startup dies.” - These are phrases that I commonly hear in Silicon Valley. In the world where 9 of 10 businesses deadpool, predicting failure probably is a lot easier than predicting success. In fact, being skeptical is quite helpful when discerning the good ideas from the bad ones.

However, the problem is when these comments become more destructive than constructive. I see it online, in the comments section of popular sites. I hear it in-person, often behind the entrepreneur’s back. It’s become common conversation among founders, startup employees, VCs, and pundits. I’ll be honest: I’m not any less guilty of making these remarks myself.

Every now and then though, I take a step back and remember that behind every startup is an entrepreneur who’s made great sacrifices just to make a run at their product.

It’s one...