Ask anyone who's ever submitted a YC application (and been rejected!) if they think that the selection process is in any way trivial.
YC invests in 40-45 of the best companies of thousands that apply. Even trying to imagine a selection process that chooses 40Bn worth of YC companies makes my brain hurt.
I think that no matter how hard you tried to stand it up, it would flatten out like warm jello to "anyone who writes a few coherent sentences on the application gets some cash".
for 40B, people will get into starting up for the salary.
don't start a company to make ends meet, start it to execute a haunting vision that you can't get rid of (ever wonder why people quit their jobs, often to their financial detriment, to startup? yeah, it's a curse.)
start it to execute a haunting vision that you can't get rid of
I agree with this - only partly, because it isn't necessarily in a person's control - but a haunting vision that you can't get rid of is a real asset. It's easier to devote insane effort to something that your intellect and/or soul are deeply invested in than to something arbitrary or trivial. I wonder whether luck is more of a factor in the latter kind of project.
In any case, I am having this experience these days, quite unexpectedly as I never set out to have it and used to feel dismissive when hearing people talk about "vision". I'm grateful for it. It makes it easier to crawl over broken glass.
Comments
not really applicable, since YC invests in 40-45 companies at a time
edit: I was talking about the "one shot" comment
Ask anyone who's ever submitted a YC application (and been rejected!) if they think that the selection process is in any way trivial.
YC invests in 40-45 of the best companies of thousands that apply. Even trying to imagine a selection process that chooses 40Bn worth of YC companies makes my brain hurt.
I think that no matter how hard you tried to stand it up, it would flatten out like warm jello to "anyone who writes a few coherent sentences on the application gets some cash".
for 40B, people will get into starting up for the salary.
don't start a company to make ends meet, start it to execute a haunting vision that you can't get rid of (ever wonder why people quit their jobs, often to their financial detriment, to startup? yeah, it's a curse.)
start it to execute a haunting vision that you can't get rid of
I agree with this - only partly, because it isn't necessarily in a person's control - but a haunting vision that you can't get rid of is a real asset. It's easier to devote insane effort to something that your intellect and/or soul are deeply invested in than to something arbitrary or trivial. I wonder whether luck is more of a factor in the latter kind of project.
In any case, I am having this experience these days, quite unexpectedly as I never set out to have it and used to feel dismissive when hearing people talk about "vision". I'm grateful for it. It makes it easier to crawl over broken glass.