You quit your job and put 10 months worth of effort into a product that succeeds or fails based on whether Paul Graham gives you $15,000?
I know this is a YC forum and all, but the cargo culting here is creepy, which is too bad because if you weed through it there are obviously some smart people posting.
Here's a tip: if you can solo jump start a fundable product, your consulting bill rate will "fund" you, YC style, in less than a month. Then, you can ignore what YC says, keep the talented developer (finding talent in this market is like finding weaponizable plutonium on the shelves at a Des Moines Wal-Mart), chuck the dead wood, and take yourself to market on your own terms.
You're right that $15,000 is easy to find. But what you don't realize is that hardly anyone here is applying to the YC program for the $15k...
I saw more VCs at the last YC demo day than I have in my entire life. And, from talking to the YC founders, I'm not alone. I'm not claiming that high VC interest predicts success. However the number of VCs interested in your startup is a good proxy for the overall interest in your startup, since VCs want to invest in what's popular.
It seems like your odds of "winning" this contest are not great, and your odds of "converting" that win to an A round are also not great. I like the YC idea and have little more specifically to say about it than that, but if you're investing 10 full time months, the quality of your execution will dominate your chances, not Paul Graham's imprimatur.
Comments
You quit your job and put 10 months worth of effort into a product that succeeds or fails based on whether Paul Graham gives you $15,000?
I know this is a YC forum and all, but the cargo culting here is creepy, which is too bad because if you weed through it there are obviously some smart people posting.
Here's a tip: if you can solo jump start a fundable product, your consulting bill rate will "fund" you, YC style, in less than a month. Then, you can ignore what YC says, keep the talented developer (finding talent in this market is like finding weaponizable plutonium on the shelves at a Des Moines Wal-Mart), chuck the dead wood, and take yourself to market on your own terms.
You're right that $15,000 is easy to find. But what you don't realize is that hardly anyone here is applying to the YC program for the $15k...
I saw more VCs at the last YC demo day than I have in my entire life. And, from talking to the YC founders, I'm not alone. I'm not claiming that high VC interest predicts success. However the number of VCs interested in your startup is a good proxy for the overall interest in your startup, since VCs want to invest in what's popular.
I agree, 15k is something my parents will give us or money i could raise selling my 350z.
The real victory is winning the prize, and the attention of VC you get.
It seems like your odds of "winning" this contest are not great, and your odds of "converting" that win to an A round are also not great. I like the YC idea and have little more specifically to say about it than that, but if you're investing 10 full time months, the quality of your execution will dominate your chances, not Paul Graham's imprimatur.