8 ms·

Last minute tips for YC Interviewees

170 points by craigkerstiens 10y ago

garry 10y ago
Just jotted my quick notes on what kept coming up with the half dozen or so early interviewees I met in advance of their interviews the past few days. It was surprising how the same things kept coming up over and over again, so that's what spurred this post.
- crawfordcomeaux 10y ago
  Would you be willing to share any tips for how to get an interview with Initialized? (edited to remove my pitch after realizing its not needed to answer my questions and to remove a redundant question)
  - garry 10y ago
    I've been trying to answer emails from founders as much as possible, and have been taking a few meetings from cold emails. My schedule is booked out to December as a result, but I'm working through it.
Alex3917 10y ago
> Traction gets you in the door, the big future gets you the check Interesting. Would you say this is just a more focused way of describing what Leo Polovets has been writing about on codingvc.com, or do you think there is a practical or philosophical difference in what YC looks for? https://codingvc.com/how-to-de-risk-a-startup/ https://codingvc.com/how-to-de-risk-a-startup/
- garry 10y ago
  I think Leo nailed it with that post. I just had lunch with him actually and it's remarkable how similar our philosophies are. Not that surprising I guess, since he is also a seed investor who started as a hacker.
  - newsignup 10y ago
    > What makes people get out the checkbook is how big you can become. Drew said 1M. So, its not that necessary to over sell than what you believe, is it? Maybe now it is as YC has become a giant corp? Where is the YC of 2007 which created more value per startup than current YC (maybe i am wrong about the value per startup part but it doesn't look like, also it makes sense for YC to care about overall value than per startup value to create more impact just like big companies.. maybe ripe for disruption in few years)
    - garry 10y ago
      I'm not sure what you're saying. You've always got to put your best foot forward. What worked in 2007 is just not going to work in 2016, naturally.
      - newsignup 10y ago
        What I meant was Drew had applied with dropbox saying he would exit if someone paid 10M. But current YC seems to be to big for that kind of exit target. > You've always got to put your best foot forward. early stage startups can be very delusional about how big they can become on either side of the scale (drew quoting very less and some other startup quoting billion dollars). So, its not really up to the startup to predict how big they can become, it all depends on the interviewer. Nothing to do here for the startup i guess.
mordae 10y ago
Don't open it!
koolba 10y ago
If you're the type to get queasy nerves from public speaking, strangers, or presentations, best advice is a shot of Jameson 20 min before your interview.
- Jarwain 10y ago
  Or figure out a way to get a lot of practice. Acting classes or Toastmasters or both :D
- garry 10y ago
  I usually tell teams to really focus on specific and direct stories that are helpful to answer the three things all people in a pitch care about: Team, idea, and traction. Team is pretty straightforward. E.g. How do you know if you can do X? Well, my cofounder Amy did that for Google for 3 years. Idea tends to revolve around validating the market, e.g. We know customers want it because they already pay $10K/mo to Oracle for the same thing. Traction is the thing that usually really helps nervous folks because it doesn't change with delivery — your numbers are your numbers, so if you know how much revenue you're making and what the growth rate is the last 6 months, just say it.
  - koolba 10y ago
    All those are important from the perspective of having the answers to the questions themselves. The point of the shot isn't to suddenly give you some last minute insights about the company you've been building. Hell if you book your ticket to SF without having that figured out you might as well not fly. The point of the shot is to calm the nerves of those of us (present company not included haha) that aren't used to speaking or presenting. It's a daunting task, especially with something like YC acceptance on the line. If it helps you calm down enough to give the answers you've already prepared for then go for it.
- idlewords 10y ago
  This is actually excellent advice, and I'm not sure why it's being downvoted. It works well with public speaking and oral language proficiency tests as well. Don't have two shots. There's a local maximum where you're disinihibited but still not impaired. Find that.
alexbanks 10y ago
How about advice for the YC application? I've read the sample (from Dropbox), but I've wanted to know more about successful applications. Is brevity important? Are screenshots and things allowed? How much concrete market data should be involved vs. big picture, theoretical speak? I'd like to apply next year, but I'm concerned about a lack of usable demo/lackluster application. I've also seen people refer to YC as the "Ivy League" of VC funding, so I'm stressing about the details of each individual piece.
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]
- garry 10y ago
  I previously blogged here about the general application process. You should definitely apply. YC is basically one of the few places where anyone in the world can apply and have a real fair shake at having their application be read and voted upon by smart YC alums and partners. Just as the SAT helped normalize access to higher education, the YC app process is as valuable and rare and serves a similar purpose to help great teams and startups rise. Here was my article from before: http://blog.garrytan.com/last-minute-advice-for-yc-applicants-updated-for-2014 http://blog.garrytan.com/last-minute-advice-for-yc-applicant...
  - alexbanks 10y ago
    Would it be alright if I emailed/messaged you some more questions I have about the process? I've never actually communicated with anyone to have ever been involved with it before.
    - garry 10y ago
      Yep email in my profile.
logicallee 10y ago
This isn't true at all. Literally nobody doesn't have any traction. Literally nobody has no big possible future. Literally nobody doesn't understand something that other teams don't. Like, literally 100.000% of startups that are at that interview stage pass every one of these tests with flying colors. Don't believe me? Let's go through what it would take to fail any of these metrics. -------------------------------------------- 1. Let's imagine that a startup doesn't "use plain language and is concrete". Here's what it would have to sound like. I googled "computer science web service patent 2015" so that I could quote the obscure language some link uses. Here is something that isn't plain language, and isn't concrete: A top link, to here https://www.google.com/patents/US8689181 https://www.google.com/patents/US8689181 , seems good. Let's go with it. Here is their language: "A process performed on a server includes configuring the server to enable script for a Web service to be defined dynamically, where the Web service includes an application program interface (API) for enabling access by, and interaction with, a computer program executing on a device other than the server. The process also includes compiling the script to produce machine-executable code for the Web service, receiving a call from the computer program to the Web service, executing the machine-executable code in response to the call to produce an output, and sending the output to the device." This is the top link by Google. Since it's a patent, it's not written in plain language. Since it's a patent, it's not concrete. Question: CAN YOU IMAGINE ANY STARTUP WHO WAS INVITED TO A Y-COMBINATOR INTERVIEW SAYING THIS, "So, first I'd like to talk about our product. We've basically invented a process to be performed on a server, that includes configuring the server to enable script ofr a Web service to be defined dynamically, where the Web service includes an application program interface (API) for enabling access by, and interaction with, a computer program executing on a device other than the server. The process also includes compiling the script to produce machine-executable code for the Web service, receiving a call from the computer program to the Web service, executing the machine-executable code in response to the call to produce an output, and sending the output to the Device. So that's what we do." What percent of applicants will actually literally give a pitch like that? 0.0000%. A full 100.000% meet and exceed with flying colors the standard "use plain language, be concrete." -------------------------------------------- 2. ...Then zoom out, and be sure to show why that could be something much bigger Is it possible that any team whatsoever fails to zoom out, or show why it could be bigger? Well, let's imagine it. Let's say that some team has come up with something without zooming out at all from it. "We've invented a cable that can connect a new iPhone to a Macbook while also charging both. Competitors aren't making this yet, but we already are. We don't have any plans to make any other products now or in the future. We're really, really, passionate about and focused on this one. We live to make iPhone 7 to 2016 Macbook connection cable chargers, and that's it. We would never consider selling anything else, nor would our customers want us to." Even without that last part, can you imagine any such company has even been invited to a YCombinator interview? Is it possible to imagine any company not zoooming out? No. A full 100.000000% of all pitches by companies invited to interview for YCombinator exceed #2 with flying colors. -------------------------------------------- 3. Traction gets you in the door, the big future gets you the check Let's imagine that there's no bright future. Let's imagine a team that says "We're at $2,000 sales today, but within 5 years I think we could easily make it to $18,000 or even $22,000 per month in sales. If we continue to dominate our niche, we can have a solid market of literally a thousand people, if we include the Asian market. This company will be worth $700,000 as long as we are able to keep executing." It's ludicrous on its face. No company is there with that pitch. A full 100.0000% of companies have a big future ahead of them. -------------------------------------------- 4. Know your numbers "What are your sales today?" "No idea." "Have you sold any?" "Not sure." "Well you're shipping." "We're shipping, yes." "Okay, how many?" "Dont' know." "Well, what is your cost to getting customers?" "No idea." "How many people visit your site?" "Don't know" "What is your growth rate?" "Don't know." "How many fingers am I holding up?" "Sorry not sure." it's ridiculous. Obviously 100.00000% of all companies know their numbers. This isn't even debatable. -------------------------------------------- 5. What do you understand that nobody else does? again let's imagine that there isn't something. "Oh we don't know anything special. We're just doing the same thing everyone else is. Actually our business model is from a For Dummies textbook we found from 1997, we're just following it. One thing that we can say is that the book does appear to be out of print, so we do have that going for us." Nope. Everyone understands their business better than their competition. Everyone has secret sauce. It's ridiculous to even suggest otherwise. We're not talking about florists where they happen to be the only florist in that town so far, which is why they opened it there. -------------------------------------------- Conclusion So these tips are absolutely, completely useless in every single way and will NEVER get you an investment. Here is how you ACTUALLY demonstrably get an investment. Ignore all of the above and wow them with a story. That's it. That's how checks demonstrably, actually get written. I'm not opposed to the fact that this isn't widely advertised, but to waste the writer's time writing things that aren't true, and to mislead people into wasting their time following it, is pretty misleading. I'm here to tell you it's bullshit and won't get anyone an investment, ever. - EDIT: Downvotes already, but I don't care, this is right and the article is wrong - and, worse, is wasting your time. It doesn't matter what downvoters think. If anything above were wrong, then I would edit it - I see your voting feedback and I've responded to it by making sure that I am being very precise and correct above. Downvoting won't make it right.
xrange 10y ago
Hillary bumper sticker can't hurt...
- audeyisaacs 10y ago
  Even better if you display a willingness to spam your users 'in key states'... https://medium.com/voteplz/help-your-users-vote-6ee61dcf224d#.l9us594st https://medium.com/voteplz/help-your-users-vote-6ee61dcf224d... (edit: US really really needs mandatory voting(and preferential voting, but that's another topic)).
dilemma 10y ago
Goodhart's Law: "When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure." YC is the new college degree. This attitude of "figuring our how to past the next test on the path to guaranteed success" is the opposite of entrepreneurial.
- garry 10y ago
  I would argue YC is very pragmatic about the criteria it uses to fund people. If this were an every-increasing spiral of BS to get into YC, then you'd be right. Being plain spoken is basically the opposite of BS. In the post I do note that this stuff is pretty handy for anyone explaining their business to anyone. You should be worried if it were only useful to YC interviewees.
  - tyre 10y ago
    I agree with this. The best companies and founders in our batch were those who had thoughtful, direct answers to questions. Posts from VCs can be helpful to hear the kind of questions they'll ask and why they ask them (i.e. what they are worried about.) Answer directly and honestly.
  - dilemma 10y ago
    Mine is meta commentary.
- danieltillett 10y ago
  Goodhart’ Law does not hold when you measure a wide variety of independent factors. If the measures are broad enough they are ungamable. I do agree with your general point that far too many people are worrying about “passing” the YC test than building something valuable.
  - garry 10y ago
    The ironic thing is that the YC test is mainly about trying to find something valuable.
danieltillett 10y ago
I have a more general query about the whole YC interview process. Do people get 10 minutes and that is it or is this just a prescreen for a longer interview process? I do a bit of angel investing and I could not possibly decide to invest on the basis of a 10 minute interview.
- garry 10y ago
  They literally get 10 minutes, and partners have 5 minutes after to decide. Typical day is about 18 to 22 interviews back to back for 9 hours or so, with a break for lunch.
  - danieltillett 10y ago
    Well they must be a lot better than me at deciding which startups are good or not :) I have spoken to many startups that seemed great after the first 15 minutes or so, but where I found out something critical a couple of hours in. I love talking to startups so for me it is fun rather than work to put in the time.
ajkates 10y ago
Thanks for another great post Garry. This is also perfectly relevant advice for talking about your business in general, not just for YC (investors, prospective hires, etc.).
idlewords 10y ago
"Turn around and walk right out that door!"

170 points by craigkerstiens 10y ago

garry 10y ago

Just jotted my quick notes on what kept coming up with the half dozen or so early interviewees I met in advance of their interviews the past few days. It was surprising how the same things kept coming up over and over again, so that's what spurred this post.

crawfordcomeaux 10y ago
Would you be willing to share any tips for how to get an interview with Initialized? (edited to remove my pitch after realizing its not needed to answer my questions and to remove a redundant question)
- garry 10y ago
  I've been trying to answer emails from founders as much as possible, and have been taking a few meetings from cold emails. My schedule is booked out to December as a result, but I'm working through it.

Alex3917 10y ago

> Traction gets you in the door, the big future gets you the check Interesting. Would you say this is just a more focused way of describing what Leo Polovets has been writing about on codingvc.com, or do you think there is a practical or philosophical difference in what YC looks for? https://codingvc.com/how-to-de-risk-a-startup/ https://codingvc.com/how-to-de-risk-a-startup/

garry 10y ago
I think Leo nailed it with that post. I just had lunch with him actually and it's remarkable how similar our philosophies are. Not that surprising I guess, since he is also a seed investor who started as a hacker.
- newsignup 10y ago
  > What makes people get out the checkbook is how big you can become. Drew said 1M. So, its not that necessary to over sell than what you believe, is it? Maybe now it is as YC has become a giant corp? Where is the YC of 2007 which created more value per startup than current YC (maybe i am wrong about the value per startup part but it doesn't look like, also it makes sense for YC to care about overall value than per startup value to create more impact just like big companies.. maybe ripe for disruption in few years)
  - garry 10y ago
    I'm not sure what you're saying. You've always got to put your best foot forward. What worked in 2007 is just not going to work in 2016, naturally.
    - newsignup 10y ago
      What I meant was Drew had applied with dropbox saying he would exit if someone paid 10M. But current YC seems to be to big for that kind of exit target. > You've always got to put your best foot forward. early stage startups can be very delusional about how big they can become on either side of the scale (drew quoting very less and some other startup quoting billion dollars). So, its not really up to the startup to predict how big they can become, it all depends on the interviewer. Nothing to do here for the startup i guess.

mordae 10y ago

Don't open it!

koolba 10y ago

If you're the type to get queasy nerves from public speaking, strangers, or presentations, best advice is a shot of Jameson 20 min before your interview.

Jarwain 10y ago
Or figure out a way to get a lot of practice. Acting classes or Toastmasters or both :D
garry 10y ago
I usually tell teams to really focus on specific and direct stories that are helpful to answer the three things all people in a pitch care about: Team, idea, and traction. Team is pretty straightforward. E.g. How do you know if you can do X? Well, my cofounder Amy did that for Google for 3 years. Idea tends to revolve around validating the market, e.g. We know customers want it because they already pay $10K/mo to Oracle for the same thing. Traction is the thing that usually really helps nervous folks because it doesn't change with delivery — your numbers are your numbers, so if you know how much revenue you're making and what the growth rate is the last 6 months, just say it.
- koolba 10y ago
  All those are important from the perspective of having the answers to the questions themselves. The point of the shot isn't to suddenly give you some last minute insights about the company you've been building. Hell if you book your ticket to SF without having that figured out you might as well not fly. The point of the shot is to calm the nerves of those of us (present company not included haha) that aren't used to speaking or presenting. It's a daunting task, especially with something like YC acceptance on the line. If it helps you calm down enough to give the answers you've already prepared for then go for it.
idlewords 10y ago
This is actually excellent advice, and I'm not sure why it's being downvoted. It works well with public speaking and oral language proficiency tests as well. Don't have two shots. There's a local maximum where you're disinihibited but still not impaired. Find that.

alexbanks 10y ago

How about advice for the YC application? I've read the sample (from Dropbox), but I've wanted to know more about successful applications. Is brevity important? Are screenshots and things allowed? How much concrete market data should be involved vs. big picture, theoretical speak? I'd like to apply next year, but I'm concerned about a lack of usable demo/lackluster application. I've also seen people refer to YC as the "Ivy League" of VC funding, so I'm stressing about the details of each individual piece.

deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
garry 10y ago
I previously blogged here about the general application process. You should definitely apply. YC is basically one of the few places where anyone in the world can apply and have a real fair shake at having their application be read and voted upon by smart YC alums and partners. Just as the SAT helped normalize access to higher education, the YC app process is as valuable and rare and serves a similar purpose to help great teams and startups rise. Here was my article from before: http://blog.garrytan.com/last-minute-advice-for-yc-applicants-updated-for-2014 http://blog.garrytan.com/last-minute-advice-for-yc-applicant...
- alexbanks 10y ago
  Would it be alright if I emailed/messaged you some more questions I have about the process? I've never actually communicated with anyone to have ever been involved with it before.
  - garry 10y ago
    Yep email in my profile.

logicallee 10y ago

This isn't true at all. Literally nobody doesn't have any traction. Literally nobody has no big possible future. Literally nobody doesn't understand something that other teams don't. Like, literally 100.000% of startups that are at that interview stage pass every one of these tests with flying colors. Don't believe me? Let's go through what it would take to fail any of these metrics. -------------------------------------------- 1. Let's imagine that a startup doesn't "use plain language and is concrete". Here's what it would have to sound like. I googled "computer science web service patent 2015" so that I could quote the obscure language some link uses. Here is something that isn't plain language, and isn't concrete: A top link, to here https://www.google.com/patents/US8689181 https://www.google.com/patents/US8689181 , seems good. Let's go with it. Here is their language: "A process performed on a server includes configuring the server to enable script for a Web service to be defined dynamically, where the Web service includes an application program interface (API) for enabling access by, and interaction with, a computer program executing on a device other than the server. The process also includes compiling the script to produce machine-executable code for the Web service, receiving a call from the computer program to the Web service, executing the machine-executable code in response to the call to produce an output, and sending the output to the device." This is the top link by Google. Since it's a patent, it's not written in plain language. Since it's a patent, it's not concrete. Question: CAN YOU IMAGINE ANY STARTUP WHO WAS INVITED TO A Y-COMBINATOR INTERVIEW SAYING THIS, "So, first I'd like to talk about our product. We've basically invented a process to be performed on a server, that includes configuring the server to enable script ofr a Web service to be defined dynamically, where the Web service includes an application program interface (API) for enabling access by, and interaction with, a computer program executing on a device other than the server. The process also includes compiling the script to produce machine-executable code for the Web service, receiving a call from the computer program to the Web service, executing the machine-executable code in response to the call to produce an output, and sending the output to the Device. So that's what we do." What percent of applicants will actually literally give a pitch like that? 0.0000%. A full 100.000% meet and exceed with flying colors the standard "use plain language, be concrete." -------------------------------------------- 2. ...Then zoom out, and be sure to show why that could be something much bigger Is it possible that any team whatsoever fails to zoom out, or show why it could be bigger? Well, let's imagine it. Let's say that some team has come up with something without zooming out at all from it. "We've invented a cable that can connect a new iPhone to a Macbook while also charging both. Competitors aren't making this yet, but we already are. We don't have any plans to make any other products now or in the future. We're really, really, passionate about and focused on this one. We live to make iPhone 7 to 2016 Macbook connection cable chargers, and that's it. We would never consider selling anything else, nor would our customers want us to." Even without that last part, can you imagine any such company has even been invited to a YCombinator interview? Is it possible to imagine any company not zoooming out? No. A full 100.000000% of all pitches by companies invited to interview for YCombinator exceed #2 with flying colors. -------------------------------------------- 3. Traction gets you in the door, the big future gets you the check Let's imagine that there's no bright future. Let's imagine a team that says "We're at $2,000 sales today, but within 5 years I think we could easily make it to $18,000 or even $22,000 per month in sales. If we continue to dominate our niche, we can have a solid market of literally a thousand people, if we include the Asian market. This company will be worth $700,000 as long as we are able to keep executing." It's ludicrous on its face. No company is there with that pitch. A full 100.0000% of companies have a big future ahead of them. -------------------------------------------- 4. Know your numbers "What are your sales today?" "No idea." "Have you sold any?" "Not sure." "Well you're shipping." "We're shipping, yes." "Okay, how many?" "Dont' know." "Well, what is your cost to getting customers?" "No idea." "How many people visit your site?" "Don't know" "What is your growth rate?" "Don't know." "How many fingers am I holding up?" "Sorry not sure." it's ridiculous. Obviously 100.00000% of all companies know their numbers. This isn't even debatable. -------------------------------------------- 5. What do you understand that nobody else does? again let's imagine that there isn't something. "Oh we don't know anything special. We're just doing the same thing everyone else is. Actually our business model is from a For Dummies textbook we found from 1997, we're just following it. One thing that we can say is that the book does appear to be out of print, so we do have that going for us." Nope. Everyone understands their business better than their competition. Everyone has secret sauce. It's ridiculous to even suggest otherwise. We're not talking about florists where they happen to be the only florist in that town so far, which is why they opened it there. -------------------------------------------- Conclusion So these tips are absolutely, completely useless in every single way and will NEVER get you an investment. Here is how you ACTUALLY demonstrably get an investment. Ignore all of the above and wow them with a story. That's it. That's how checks demonstrably, actually get written. I'm not opposed to the fact that this isn't widely advertised, but to waste the writer's time writing things that aren't true, and to mislead people into wasting their time following it, is pretty misleading. I'm here to tell you it's bullshit and won't get anyone an investment, ever. - EDIT: Downvotes already, but I don't care, this is right and the article is wrong - and, worse, is wasting your time. It doesn't matter what downvoters think. If anything above were wrong, then I would edit it - I see your voting feedback and I've responded to it by making sure that I am being very precise and correct above. Downvoting won't make it right.

xrange 10y ago

Hillary bumper sticker can't hurt...

audeyisaacs 10y ago
Even better if you display a willingness to spam your users 'in key states'... https://medium.com/voteplz/help-your-users-vote-6ee61dcf224d#.l9us594st https://medium.com/voteplz/help-your-users-vote-6ee61dcf224d... (edit: US really really needs mandatory voting(and preferential voting, but that's another topic)).

dilemma 10y ago

Goodhart's Law: "When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure." YC is the new college degree. This attitude of "figuring our how to past the next test on the path to guaranteed success" is the opposite of entrepreneurial.

garry 10y ago
I would argue YC is very pragmatic about the criteria it uses to fund people. If this were an every-increasing spiral of BS to get into YC, then you'd be right. Being plain spoken is basically the opposite of BS. In the post I do note that this stuff is pretty handy for anyone explaining their business to anyone. You should be worried if it were only useful to YC interviewees.
- tyre 10y ago
  I agree with this. The best companies and founders in our batch were those who had thoughtful, direct answers to questions. Posts from VCs can be helpful to hear the kind of questions they'll ask and why they ask them (i.e. what they are worried about.) Answer directly and honestly.
- dilemma 10y ago
  Mine is meta commentary.
danieltillett 10y ago
Goodhart’ Law does not hold when you measure a wide variety of independent factors. If the measures are broad enough they are ungamable. I do agree with your general point that far too many people are worrying about “passing” the YC test than building something valuable.
- garry 10y ago
  The ironic thing is that the YC test is mainly about trying to find something valuable.

danieltillett 10y ago

I have a more general query about the whole YC interview process. Do people get 10 minutes and that is it or is this just a prescreen for a longer interview process? I do a bit of angel investing and I could not possibly decide to invest on the basis of a 10 minute interview.

garry 10y ago
They literally get 10 minutes, and partners have 5 minutes after to decide. Typical day is about 18 to 22 interviews back to back for 9 hours or so, with a break for lunch.
- danieltillett 10y ago
  Well they must be a lot better than me at deciding which startups are good or not :) I have spoken to many startups that seemed great after the first 15 minutes or so, but where I found out something critical a couple of hours in. I love talking to startups so for me it is fun rather than work to put in the time.

ajkates 10y ago

Thanks for another great post Garry. This is also perfectly relevant advice for talking about your business in general, not just for YC (investors, prospective hires, etc.).

idlewords 10y ago

"Turn around and walk right out that door!"