Ask YC! What can I do to prepare myself to start a company.

I believe that my career at a big software company is coming to an end. I am still a valuable member of the team that I work in and totally not motivated by the day to day job. I have several pet and personal projects that I work on at nights and weekends to keep my startup hopes alive.

I've dreamed about starting my own company for the last 10 years and that's the only single thought I carry with me every day, day in and day out.

I've recently visited a start-up in Los Angeles (where I live) for a job opportunity and I came back with the feeling that I can do a better job than what the founders were upto.

I am technical (software architect at my company) and can work on my own thing. It's just that currently I do not have any projects that I am passionate about.

My question for you guys and for which I need advice is:

I have 3 weeks of vacation that I cannot take and travel (my wife's work cannot give her vacation).

How can I best use it to start something on my own.

1) Work on a project 2) Travel locally, meet with fellow entrepreneurs and learn. 3) Attend seminars.

What would you think would be the best way to spend my time before I quit this job and start something.

Regards, Pras

1. Network extensively. Not just with fellow tech entrepreneurs -- you should also make friends with the local small business community in general. They've done this the hard way, they've been where you'll be, and they have useful friends.

2. Scratch an itch. If you can build a product yourself, you're in better shape then most of the funded startups out there. If there's something you want to do online, the odds are that you can both a) do it right, and b) find enough people on the the internet who also think that you're doing it right to make some money.

3) Figure out how to cut your expenses to the bone, now. Ideally, and this may be tough in LA, adjust your lifestyle down to the point that you and your family can live on your wife's salary. Sock the money away somewhere you won't touch it, but that there won't be tax consequences if you do.

4) Get laid off. Ok, that's a reach, but trust me, there's nothing quite like walking out the door with your finances already in order, your vacation paid out and severance in the bank, and still qualifying for unemployment to be able to bootstrap a startup.

Go find someone who could be your co-Founder(s). It takes two to sustain a fire and a third to light them.

Advice given to me during my first startup by a very successful entrepreneur: To succeed, you have to be able to kill a puppy. Don't just think "yeah, I can kill a puppy," but imagine yourself holding a puppy underwater until it stops breathing.

The person dispensing this advice was not talking literally, of course. Starting companies that last until they succeed often means making tough decisions. The kinds of decisions that impact people's well being and future -- and not always in a positive way in the short term. It often means saying "No!" more than saying "Yes."

I was never able to imagine myself killing a puppy, but even going through that process and realizing that I couldn't do it taught me something about who I am and the kind of leader I wanted to be, which was the real purpose of the exercise.

Wise advice. Some of the things you have to do to succeed -- firing dud employees, saying no to early acquisition offers, telling girlfriends that work is more important than them -- are at least as hard as drowning a puppy.

Maybe the next round of YC interviews should have a qualifying event requiring a big tub of water and a trip to the humane society.