Never forget the critical meta-features: usability, performance, and robustness.
Get those right, even with a well-worn idea, and the world's your oyster (see the iPod, google, etc.) Fuck those up and you better already have a monopoly or the market will grind you into the ground.
I don't think it's fear so much as perceiving a particular conception of simple as bland. It would be a sign of failure to demote oneself to that, and secondly it does not jive with the concept of a long and difficult journey.
Things can be outwardly simple and have a complex underbelly, or vice versa, or some other mix. Anyway, I think this article is tied up with passion because if you lose it, fail to renew it, or actively destroy it, too much resistance develops to proceed.
i think they get too caught up in their own ideas and lose touch with the market. the eventual reality check is what they fear. so they avoid it by becoming more immersed in their ideas, hence compounding the problem.
I don't think that fear is the driving force for the added features... Not at all... Many startup founders get to the realization that they want to venture on their own because they feel that their day jobs constrain and bore them... So, when they finally start working on their own startups, all the gloves are off... they feel like they finally can utilize 100% of their potential and creativity... I believe that is the core reason for all those extra features the author has mentioned. At least it was true in my case :)
