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Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

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Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#31

Post by notahacker »

ovi256 wrote: post #15
koolba wrote: post #5

> We convinced our friends in the current Y Combinator batch to let us stay in a closet at their East Palo Alto home office for $600 per month. If we spent $1,000 a month we would have 25 months of runway, which seems infinite. I'm all for frugality and cost controls, but this is ridiculous. It's things like this that brainwash a generation of fools into throwing their lives away at nonsensical ideas. I'm not saying…

I see what you mean by overbetting on one idea, but please stop selling this point that they're throwing their lives away. That's unnecessary hyperbole. Even if nothing works at all, which is rarely the case, because the BATNA is networking with YC alumni and getting a safety job at GooAmaBook, they've wasted 6 months to a year for the YC program.

Yeah, people survive for longer on less at universities in the hope it will lead to something bigger, and aiming for 25 months' runway to see whether a product's getting anywhere is probably less of a gamble than betting on getting investment in six months time.

Though the fact they found it necessary to move to one of the most expensive places on the planet to subsist on that $25k even though they didn't expect to be accepted into YC and weren't selling to other startups or needing to hire developers with niche skillsets at short notice speaks volumes though.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#32

Post by sillysaurus3 »

ruleabidinguser wrote: post #30
sillysaurus3 wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who cares what's normal or acceptable, short of illegal? Why not be crazy in your youth? It's your youth! Spend it however you want. Spend it in ways that you look back and don't regret having taken a safe path. I don't think anyone is lying about anything. Everyone is extremely quick to point out that living in a closet isn't normal. But it's awesome . They actually had the courage to do that. And that is wonderful,…

You're certainly missing my point here.

I added a bit to the end of my comment. It sounds like you're worried that people are lying to others, or are somehow acting in ways that are malicious. But all that's happening here is cheering for founders.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#33

Post by elmar »

koolba wrote: post #5

> We convinced our friends in the current Y Combinator batch to let us stay in a closet at their East Palo Alto home office for $600 per month. If we spent $1,000 a month we would have 25 months of runway, which seems infinite. I'm all for frugality and cost controls, but this is ridiculous. It's things like this that brainwash a generation of fools into throwing their lives away at nonsensical ideas. I'm not saying…

koolba, and what about getting scurvy because of malnutrition while trying to bootstrap your startup? what you think!

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#34

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Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#35

Post by ruleabidinguser »

sillysaurus3 wrote: post #32
ruleabidinguser wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're certainly missing my point here.

I added a bit to the end of my comment. It sounds like you're worried that people are lying to others, or are somehow acting in ways that are malicious. But all that's happening here is cheering for founders.

From personal experience its very possible to believe you are obliged to sacrifice your own well being, and you are obliged to be passionate about something. This is my motivation here.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#36

Post by scrollaway »

raspasov wrote: post #16
koolba wrote: post #5

> We convinced our friends in the current Y Combinator batch to let us stay in a closet at their East Palo Alto home office for $600 per month. If we spent $1,000 a month we would have 25 months of runway, which seems infinite. I'm all for frugality and cost controls, but this is ridiculous. It's things like this that brainwash a generation of fools into throwing their lives away at nonsensical ideas. I'm not saying…

Have you ever gone as frugal as this to speak about it? And what would you suggest the "generation of fools" do otherwise? Get a 50k job at a big company and live happily ever after? Too much hate in that comment. (edit for grammar/typo)

"As frugal as this"? $600/month on rent? It's $100 more than I was spending back in Leicester on a two-bedroom flat. And six times the price of a 1-bedroom in Athens.

If you want runway, try not living in California for a while. Even in the US you can find far cheaper than Palo Alto...

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#37

Post by sillysaurus3 »

ruleabidinguser wrote: post #35
sillysaurus3 wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I added a bit to the end of my comment. It sounds like you're worried that people are lying to others, or are somehow acting in ways that are malicious. But all that's happening here is cheering for founders.

From personal experience its very possible to believe you are obliged to sacrifice your own well being, and you are obliged to be passionate about something. This is my motivation here.

Ah. Yeah, I can see that.

If the pressures are aligned too strongly in the other direction, and someone is feeling squeezed, they should focus on themselves and act accordingly. As you say, it's easy to forget that.

Can we see eye to eye that my stance is the same thing, but from the opposite direction? It's very possible to believe you're obliged to do the safe thing, to worry about whether you're supporting yourself or living up to your parents' expectations, and to think that you should suppress your dreams to appease others.

It's the path that society pushes you into by default, which is why it's worth being keenly aware of it and triple checking that you're ok with choosing it. Because you only get to make that choice once or at most a few times, often when you don't know any better.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#38

Post by ruleabidinguser »

sillysaurus3 wrote: post #37
ruleabidinguser wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From personal experience its very possible to believe you are obliged to sacrifice your own well being, and you are obliged to be passionate about something. This is my motivation here.

Ah. Yeah, I can see that. If the pressures are aligned too strongly in the other direction, and someone is feeling squeezed, they should focus on themselves and act accordingly. As you say, it's easy to forget that. Can we see eye to eye that my stance is the same thing, but from the opposite direction? It's very possible to believe you're obliged to do the safe thing, to worry about whether you're supporting yoursel…

Sure I can see that I guess.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#39

Post by hyperpallium »

sillysaurus3 wrote: post #14
koolba wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Are you kidding? I would do it in a heartbeat. I'm not joking. Who wouldn't want to work on something awesome with all their heart with their friends in East Palo Alto for a couple years? Working on something awesome with friends should not, and in most cases does not, require living in a closet. In most cases it doesn't require being in the same room, city, state, or even country. > Why not? What an incredible, am…

Haha. Looks like the punch bowl is empty. Somebody make another round of kool-aid! You know, I've heard this type of irritating comment so many times over the years. I've been on HN since day two of its public launch, back when it was called Startup News. It was a magical time, mostly because everyone was universally supportive. This isn't a rose-tinted view of the past, or selective memory. It was the reason I was b…

Whenever there is adventure, there is a threshold guardian warning of the dangers. We would do well to remember that without the threshold guardian, there could be no adventure.

It's a pity they're on the adventurers' website though, while the adventurers have moved on...

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#40

Post by koolba »

elmar wrote: post #33
koolba wrote: post #5

> We convinced our friends in the current Y Combinator batch to let us stay in a closet at their East Palo Alto home office for $600 per month. If we spent $1,000 a month we would have 25 months of runway, which seems infinite. I'm all for frugality and cost controls, but this is ridiculous. It's things like this that brainwash a generation of fools into throwing their lives away at nonsensical ideas. I'm not saying…

koolba, and what about getting scurvy because of malnutrition while trying to bootstrap your startup? what you think!

I'm assuming you're referring to the classic tale of sama: http://www.businessinsider.com/sam-altman-gave-himself-scurv...

Moving fast and breaking things should not require sacrificing your health. Living a healthy lifestyle and putting it front and center in your plans, for whatever you're doing, will more than pay for themselves down the road.

To phrase it a bit more poetically, it's hard to type on a laptop with an IV line going into your arm :D

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