There are still a few details left to smooth, but I think I am very close to be able to apply to YC. I still have no idea of what my startup would do, but PG said this was not important...
Could there be something I misunderstood in PG talks ?
PS: This is all fake, of course, and ment to be humorous. There is only one thing that matters and PG was very clear on this. It is to come up with something that people will want and will be ready to pay for in some way (accept to view ads for instance). Wether you'r old, married & dad, have no technical skills in CS, etc. won't stop you from succeeding if you found a gold vein. It will just be a little bit more difficult to start, that's all... and maybe YC is not the VC to go for. ;-)
YC, like it or not, is pre-disposed to accepting certain types of founders: under 30, doing web applications, etc.
But the opinion of YC (or any other angel/VC) is not the last word on whether or not your venture succeeds.
There was another VC firm who posted a page on their web site listing the deals they rejected -- it included some huge successes, like Google -- can you imagine a VC admitting they turned down Google?
But that's the right attitude to have; and more entrepreneurs should think that way, too.
You will make mistakes, have false starts, hear a lot of "no"s from potential clients, etc. but it's all part of the process.
(Fortunately, I don't see any signs that you're actually too concerned. "Why to Not Not Start a Startup" couldn't have come from someone who's wavering!)
We should start a "Paul Graham convinced me to drop Java / C++" poll to cheer him up.
Do you think this is a good idea?
(Vote this like you would an ordinary comment)
This site was designed partly as an additional filter. It works too. When I met danielha I knew his name because he was #1 on News.YC.
While I certainly understand the concept, and I agree it's fun to get a gauge of people's reactions, I think you'll learn more reading the comments than you would with any simple poll..
There's also just that things like that are never so simple- I'm sure that pg has been one of many influences on people. I doubt very many people would go through their life, happily working at their job, read an essay, and drop everything ;)
While pg is persuasive, I would like to think (hope) that anything he writes is one factor among many.
(And again, Please- No polls like this. )
Inspired by Joel Spolsky and Paul Graham, I decided to leave University to develop a microISV product. I realized that selling microISV products is fun, but not very scalable...and it almost felt like doing a job. That's when I decided to tackle something big; a social network for geeks.
I would like to some day go back to University and study Neurology or Mathematics. But for now, pursuing my startup is much more enjoyable. Thanks Paul, Joel!
The consequence of having left University is that I am now super determined to make this successful; I have burned the ships behind me...so if our startup drowns, so will we.
My parents pestered me every weekend about my GPA until past few months. Slowly they have come to terms with the idea that I don't care much about school - and that my GPA probably sucks.
I do think the case to drop out becomes much stronger once you have an idea launched and showing potential.
Stanford is in the heart of Silicon Valley, which is a big part of why this has been so great. There are an unusual number of opportunities related to tech business because of that. The other schools in this area, like Santa Clara U. and San Jose State, also have great access to the tech industry. And even if I wasn't in school, it would have been wise just to move to this area.
At Stanford, I've also met a lot of smart and motivated people, both professors and students. I'm learning a TON in my classes, honestly they're far more interesting and useful than I would have guessed. I stumbled upon co-founders for a startup, and I've gotten the opportunity to TA for a great professor. It's all been a ton of work, and I'm honestly kinda burnt out, but nonetheless I'm really glad I'm here.
The question that is stuck in my head is "what should I do if I have an idea for a Web service, but have no technical 'know-how?'" Is it worth approaching YCombinator?
Simply put, no.
Start ups are about work, not ideas. Ideas flow freely with some people (like me) that just have about one idea per day worth implementation.
The skill to bring a product to life is the critical part.
Still, since you shouldn't drop the idea of starting a start up, you should either find someone with the technical know how (track down my email and email me for help in that) or go for an idea where you can contribute 100%.
Just my opinion, of course, though I highly doubt anyone would disagree (yes, this is a challenge).
Aur Saraf
But I'm building a web startup, and I'm not an engineer/developer. I do know a lot about the web and product development so my eyes don't roll back when the conversation turns to apache logs, SSL stamps, and server side scripts.
I would suggest documenting your concept in a simple word doc, starting with the primary result, then spell it out step by step.
After you have the core concept in place, talk to web developers about the project, if the idea is hot, and they have the right skills you could be on your way to success.
I remember reading a chapter of Hackers & Painters in which PG states that he was able to implement new features so quickly, that it seemed to his competitors as though he possessed some kind of secret weapon. Instead, he was simply using Lisp, a powerful and highly abstract language.
What he doesn't explicitly mention is that he is an expert at Lisp, having published two books on the language -- not to mention having a PhD from Harvard in Computer Science, where he probably became an expert using the language (although, admittedly, I have never been able to track down PGs graduate research work...).
This is what gave ViaWeb their competitive edge in the section of the e-commerce market and led to their success. As a startup, you're unlikely to succeed. You'll want all the advantages you can possibly attain.
Unless he's rich and hard working. Then he is of some use.
If I were to begin a start-up it would be as a co-founder. Yes, I would need to find someone with the technical know how - fortunately I'm living with a software engineer. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure he is happy with his job...but maybe I can convince him to give me 20% of his time if I develop my plan further.
Again, I appreciate your response.
Best wishes,
Clinton
SonOfLilit in gmail.
-Saurabh