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How to Start a Startup: Lectures (2014)

149 points by MarlonPro 11y ago

bbody 11y ago
A classic.
- L-Logic 11y ago
  There's an app that goes perfect with this course called: Visions - An Idea Log Based on Y Combinator. It's based directly on a project from this course. Check it out: http://www.getvisionsapp.com http://www.getvisionsapp.com
  - JohnSteven23 11y ago
    This is actually a great app. Reminds me of how Blake Masters took Peter Thiels notes and ended up writing a book with him.
  - antaviana 11y ago
    Does it upload your curated ideas to the cloud?
    - L-Logic 11y ago
      At the moment, there is no cloud support so all of your ideas are saved locally on your device. If you want to export your ideas out of the app, you can do that. Is there a feature you would really like in this app? Is it iCloud backup?
louprado 11y ago
Yesterday my co-founder and I attended YC’s Open Office Hours. Fortunately we had watched the “How to Start a Startup” series, so we knew in advance how to concisely introduce our company and also set an appropriate goal for the meeting. Every second counts in a 20 minute meeting with a YC-partner. In under 1 minute we defined the product, market size, and traction to date. In under 1 minute we introduced the team. It takes discipline to not promote your past successes and the degrees you earned. Instead we just stated all the founders are highly technical with a good sense for design, and we have known each other for years. We then simply proposed 3 or 4 opportunities and then kept quiet. Our target talk-to-listen ratio was 1:5. We kept the single minded goal to obtain advice on strategy and direction. At the very least this series is a kernel that should eventually produce your company’s unique culture. I hope it resonates with you as it did with our team. Thanks YC!
- sharemywin 11y ago
  How did it go? any generally applicable advice?
  - louprado 11y ago
    We expected to receive the canonical advice to focus on one opportunity. But the YC-partner felt that it was still early enough for us to explore multiple opportunities simultaneously even though they lacked synergy. Also he leaned most heavily towards an enterprise idea that we were going to exclude from our list. Furthermore, we were surprised to learn that some companies are so large that even YC can’t help much in establishing a relationship. This was really helpful to know that we should not waste resources chasing certain accounts and that just because you get into YC don’t expect everyone will suddenly return your phone call. It is worth mentioning our past 30 days revenue was flat (no growth). If a new founder isn’t careful their mood is directly related to their sales. Our sales were flat, so my personality was flat. It’s tough to break out of this and we wish we had been a little more enthusiastic during the meeting. The OP lecture series will remind you that a winning team keeps winning, so don’t stop focusing on growth and you’ll always project enthusiasm. Barring that, focus on the upside of all the opportunity.
- barbolo 11y ago
  It doesn't sound spontaneous. I don't like rules like "1 minute for this, 5 minutes for that". But if that works for you, go ahead.
  - louprado 11y ago
    Agreed. It's a gimmick, but useful since most people talk way more than they should.
callmeed 11y ago
If anyone wants to watch these on their TV, I created an Apple TV app that streams all the videos. Just search the App Store for "startup class" if you have a 4th gen Apple TV.
- grimmfang 11y ago
  I just tried it out, it's nice to have all the videos two clicks from my home screen! Thanks :)
dineshp2 11y ago
A great resource for people looking to start a startup. The lecture about accounting and legal aspects of startups cleared up a lot of doubts I had.Very consice.
- sandworm101 11y ago
  Be warned, the legal stuff there is a very high level overview. I personally would hesitate to give such a lecture for fear of people walking away with too much confidence. I've seen too many think they can get away with downloaded contracts and advice from lawyers they saw at conferences. Remember that the people giving you money have their own lawyers, good ones, to protect their interests.
sandworm101 11y ago
Having scanned through these lectures, one thing really jumps out at me. There is a serious lack of diversity here. That may seem trivial, but these guys seem to fit a very narrow range of experiences. Even their accents are nearly identical. I would suggest trying to learn from people of a wider background. There are plenty of great startups on this planet not founded by t-shirt-clad brogramers. The one exception to this pattern is lecture 18, legal and accounting. Watch that lecture. Note the accent change. Note the change of pacing, the polite pauses and lack of a constant train of thought. Legal and accounting are professional fields. These are people from a different background than the other lecturers. Aggressive modes of speech may be cool in founder land, but they do not fly in established professions. If you want to separate yourself from the crowd, if you want to be taken seriously by a wider audience, learn to speak and present as these women.
wj 11y ago
My notes from the lectures: https://leanpub.com/how_to_start_a_startup https://leanpub.com/how_to_start_a_startup (Just use $0--any proceeds go to the EFF) Like others I also really enjoyed the legal and accounting lecture. It was outside of the scope of the usual startup advice you hear (technology, sales, marketing, etc.).
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]

149 points by MarlonPro 11y ago

bbody 11y ago

A classic.

L-Logic 11y ago
There's an app that goes perfect with this course called: Visions - An Idea Log Based on Y Combinator. It's based directly on a project from this course. Check it out: http://www.getvisionsapp.com http://www.getvisionsapp.com
- JohnSteven23 11y ago
  This is actually a great app. Reminds me of how Blake Masters took Peter Thiels notes and ended up writing a book with him.
- antaviana 11y ago
  Does it upload your curated ideas to the cloud?
  - L-Logic 11y ago
    At the moment, there is no cloud support so all of your ideas are saved locally on your device. If you want to export your ideas out of the app, you can do that. Is there a feature you would really like in this app? Is it iCloud backup?

louprado 11y ago

Yesterday my co-founder and I attended YC’s Open Office Hours. Fortunately we had watched the “How to Start a Startup” series, so we knew in advance how to concisely introduce our company and also set an appropriate goal for the meeting. Every second counts in a 20 minute meeting with a YC-partner. In under 1 minute we defined the product, market size, and traction to date. In under 1 minute we introduced the team. It takes discipline to not promote your past successes and the degrees you earned. Instead we just stated all the founders are highly technical with a good sense for design, and we have known each other for years. We then simply proposed 3 or 4 opportunities and then kept quiet. Our target talk-to-listen ratio was 1:5. We kept the single minded goal to obtain advice on strategy and direction. At the very least this series is a kernel that should eventually produce your company’s unique culture. I hope it resonates with you as it did with our team. Thanks YC!

sharemywin 11y ago
How did it go? any generally applicable advice?
- louprado 11y ago
  We expected to receive the canonical advice to focus on one opportunity. But the YC-partner felt that it was still early enough for us to explore multiple opportunities simultaneously even though they lacked synergy. Also he leaned most heavily towards an enterprise idea that we were going to exclude from our list. Furthermore, we were surprised to learn that some companies are so large that even YC can’t help much in establishing a relationship. This was really helpful to know that we should not waste resources chasing certain accounts and that just because you get into YC don’t expect everyone will suddenly return your phone call. It is worth mentioning our past 30 days revenue was flat (no growth). If a new founder isn’t careful their mood is directly related to their sales. Our sales were flat, so my personality was flat. It’s tough to break out of this and we wish we had been a little more enthusiastic during the meeting. The OP lecture series will remind you that a winning team keeps winning, so don’t stop focusing on growth and you’ll always project enthusiasm. Barring that, focus on the upside of all the opportunity.
barbolo 11y ago
It doesn't sound spontaneous. I don't like rules like "1 minute for this, 5 minutes for that". But if that works for you, go ahead.
- louprado 11y ago
  Agreed. It's a gimmick, but useful since most people talk way more than they should.

callmeed 11y ago

If anyone wants to watch these on their TV, I created an Apple TV app that streams all the videos. Just search the App Store for "startup class" if you have a 4th gen Apple TV.

grimmfang 11y ago
I just tried it out, it's nice to have all the videos two clicks from my home screen! Thanks :)

dineshp2 11y ago

A great resource for people looking to start a startup. The lecture about accounting and legal aspects of startups cleared up a lot of doubts I had.Very consice.

sandworm101 11y ago
Be warned, the legal stuff there is a very high level overview. I personally would hesitate to give such a lecture for fear of people walking away with too much confidence. I've seen too many think they can get away with downloaded contracts and advice from lawyers they saw at conferences. Remember that the people giving you money have their own lawyers, good ones, to protect their interests.

sandworm101 11y ago

Having scanned through these lectures, one thing really jumps out at me. There is a serious lack of diversity here. That may seem trivial, but these guys seem to fit a very narrow range of experiences. Even their accents are nearly identical. I would suggest trying to learn from people of a wider background. There are plenty of great startups on this planet not founded by t-shirt-clad brogramers. The one exception to this pattern is lecture 18, legal and accounting. Watch that lecture. Note the accent change. Note the change of pacing, the polite pauses and lack of a constant train of thought. Legal and accounting are professional fields. These are people from a different background than the other lecturers. Aggressive modes of speech may be cool in founder land, but they do not fly in established professions. If you want to separate yourself from the crowd, if you want to be taken seriously by a wider audience, learn to speak and present as these women.

wj 11y ago

My notes from the lectures: https://leanpub.com/how_to_start_a_startup https://leanpub.com/how_to_start_a_startup (Just use $0--any proceeds go to the EFF) Like others I also really enjoyed the legal and accounting lecture. It was outside of the scope of the usual startup advice you hear (technology, sales, marketing, etc.).

deleted 11y ago
[deleted]