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Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

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Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#111

Post by dragonwriter »

scrollaway wrote: post #36
raspasov wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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...

> Even in the US you can find far cheaper than Palo Alto...

Even in urban/suburban Northern California, for that matter.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#112

Post by themantalope »

good_vibes wrote: post #69
stephancoral wrote: post #66

> What I am working on will change the course of history if I even get close to succeeding. Don't tell me...an app that lets you pay for people to stand in line at Whole Foods for you?

Nope. It's rooted in computational biology.

Do you have a website or anything that discusses your general idea? I'm a medical student, and my background is in math/cs and my research is in comp bio. Just curious about what you're thinking of.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#113

Post by aliakhtar »

user5994461 wrote: post #87
chii wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They are only workers if they do not to reap the benefits of their work 100%.

Indeed, they are not workers. Workers get paid for their work. Founders don't get a paycheck.

Actually, they do. All employees of a company have to pay themselves a minimum wage, at least. Founders are employees in their own company. And they (usually) own majority stock in the company - if there is a payout for YC, founders make more money than YC does.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#114

Post by good_vibes »

themantalope wrote: post #112
good_vibes wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nope. It's rooted in computational biology.

Do you have a website or anything that discusses your general idea? I'm a medical student, and my background is in math/cs and my research is in comp bio. Just curious about what you're thinking of.

I bought the domain and have been creating a site locally. I'll upload it prior to applying. I don't want to show anyone what I have yet, as it's half-baked. I know first impressions mean a lot in this community and with science/tech in general. Trust me, I've made that mistake before and got laughed/ridiculed to the point of almost never trying again. I'll be smarter this time and remember this is not reddit, this is where supergeeks hang out.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#115

Post by dang »

ruleabidinguser wrote: post #28
sillysaurus3 wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd rather be a fool than a cynic.

Not being a romantic is not remotely the same as being a cynic dude. Its actually obnoxious of you to suggest that they are the same thing. Most functioning people are not particularly romantic in my experience. Similarly, most (and I would include myself here) are not cynics. Whatsmore, being a cynic is something that is often appropriate, particularly when dealing with wild romantics.

> Its actually obnoxious of you

Please abide by the rules here and don't be uncivil.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#116

Post by spack »

Thank you, Cindy, for the good read. Tangential, but may I ask who were the big names/VCs/Investors you met in Seattle (even if they said no)? I'm also a Seattleite I'm interested to know who the 'players' (and magnitude) are around these parts?

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#117

Post by cindywu123 »

good_vibes wrote: post #56

This is a life-changing read for me. I was debating if I should move to Seattle or Bay area to pursue my 'science project' or not. My current job is going to give me 7 weeks of severance starting in late April and I think it will be enough to at least make the leap and cross my fingers. What I am working on will change the course of history if I even get close to succeeding. I was wondering if YC or TechStars would b…

FWIW, I was very explicit with investors that we would never flip the company. Our intention is to build a company that will last forever. I also acknowledged that things change. If Denny and my opinion changed would let our investors know right away. So far it hasn't changed. If you are planning on partnering with an investor make sure they understand your values and your intention. To clarify this I put it in writing in an email and have the person confirm they understand.

I always make myself available to chat about this with scientists. Drop me a line by email.

Stay crazy.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#118

Post by cindywu123 »

personjerry wrote: post #106

How can one get connected to this network outside of applying to YC? I'm a noob engineer and I'm trying to learn more about startups. I live in SF and I'm looking on meetup.com and the startup events listed there mostly just seem like a lot of "founders" wasting time "networking" instead of building their products. It seems there is this network of people who want to look like they're building a startup, which is qui…

The best way to start is to start.

One way we got around this in Seattle is we threw rooftop parties at our apartment. I went to all the networking events in Seattle, I found the good people. Then, I invited all the people I thought were good over for drinks and bbq. If you have a good filter for good people, the good people will appreciate it.

When first getting into engineering I went to a rails meetup group twice a week. You're right that there are a lot of founders trying to recruit at these types of meetups, which is annoying. Try to go to the meetup with a specific thing you're working on and then see if someone wants to pair with you. When you're pairing it will be hard for someone who is recruiting "technical founders" to bother you. If you don't like the current meetups, start your own.

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#119

Post by cindywu123 »

levthedev wrote: post #60

Great read. I'm dissappointing that this thread has devolved to HN cliches (arguing about Kool Aid and pg's essays) and isn't focussing on the very well written and inter sting content of this piece. Also, I wish there was a way to subscribe to a writer on Bold - it seems that I can't, unlike Medium.

for this very reason i am cross posting everything i write on medium https://medium.com/@cindywu/why-y-combinator-made-all-the-di...

Re: Why Y Combinator Made All the Difference

#120

Post by cindywu123 »

tantanel wrote: post #55

It was a wonderful read, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing! This bold.co site is a bit confusing though - I can't find a place where I can subscribe to the author's posts. Does it even have such a feature?

the feature doesn't exist, but i cross post everything i write on medium
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