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I posted a craigslist ad looking for a technical cofounder in 2008. Found a guy, started a company, sold it for a few million five years later, and are working

I posted a craigslist ad looking for a technical cofounder in 2008. Found a guy, started a company, sold it for a few million five years later, and are working on our second company together. We’re not AirBnB huge, but our collaborations have exceeded all my expectations. It happens!

gradyj 9y ago
Were there any traits that you were looking for in your cofounder?
- yeeeeeeeeee 9y ago
  Everything you're good at they shouldn't be and everything they're good at you shouldn't be. Startups are an exercise in risk mitigation and cofounders mitigate your intrinsic/personal risk. (Every human has flaws.) VCs and angels often talk about team risk and how its better to have multiple (but not too many) founders. This is because every individual has flaws and founders offset each others. The team risk is the sum total of the founders intrinsic risk. To give yourself the best shot, find someone who will hold you while bombs are going off in the trenches but isn't totally like you. (Same reason why "diversity" is important) That said culture is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING so you definitely have to be compatible. Your wife is not like you, but you still love her. Find someone who is different but you can love through the hard times.
DanielBMarkham 9y ago
craigslist for which city? Remember anything about how you worded the ad?
- mikekij 9y ago
  I can't find the original post email, but it was something like: "University of Pennsylvania physicist looking for programming partner to develop software for use in radiation oncology." Pretty short. I was a grad student at the time, so I leveraged that in the post. I think it was in the "gigs" section. Total fluke that it worked.
chad_strategic 9y ago
What on craigslist section? I have been thinking about posting here as more people would be in my target audience?
- mikekij 9y ago
  Had HN existed (or been on my radar) in 2008 I think that would have worked better!

gradyj 9y ago

Were there any traits that you were looking for in your cofounder?

yeeeeeeeeee 9y ago
Everything you're good at they shouldn't be and everything they're good at you shouldn't be. Startups are an exercise in risk mitigation and cofounders mitigate your intrinsic/personal risk. (Every human has flaws.) VCs and angels often talk about team risk and how its better to have multiple (but not too many) founders. This is because every individual has flaws and founders offset each others. The team risk is the sum total of the founders intrinsic risk. To give yourself the best shot, find someone who will hold you while bombs are going off in the trenches but isn't totally like you. (Same reason why "diversity" is important) That said culture is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING so you definitely have to be compatible. Your wife is not like you, but you still love her. Find someone who is different but you can love through the hard times.

DanielBMarkham 9y ago

craigslist for which city? Remember anything about how you worded the ad?

mikekij 9y ago
I can't find the original post email, but it was something like: "University of Pennsylvania physicist looking for programming partner to develop software for use in radiation oncology." Pretty short. I was a grad student at the time, so I leveraged that in the post. I think it was in the "gigs" section. Total fluke that it worked.

chad_strategic 9y ago

What on craigslist section? I have been thinking about posting here as more people would be in my target audience?

mikekij 9y ago
Had HN existed (or been on my radar) in 2008 I think that would have worked better!