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I got into YC after applying 6 times. Here's my advice for YC applicants
- jijoy 16y agoWhy do everyone thinks that , if you got into YC , your company gonna be a sure bet ?
- pg 16y agoI don't think many people actually think that. We've said publicly many times that we'd be pleasantly surprised if the success rate was as high as 50%.
- jijoy 16y agohmm. Then that's really contradicts this post.
- robryan 16y agoI think that for the average startup your chance of success would improve in a statistically significant way but this would be really hard to quantify as if you get into YC you were probably already more likely to succeed on your own anyway. It also depends a lot on how success is defined, in the return on investment for investors or in how it effects/improves the founders/employees lives. Getting a talent acquisition and working on something awesome at Facebook or similar could be a big success for the founders even though there is little there for the investors.
- pr0zac 16y agoI don't really think that the post implies that belief at all. This line in particular demonstrates the number of people already IN YC who are still rather unsure about things: "one of us remarked that looking at everyone else in the batch, they're still in disbelief that they got in at all, and a bunch of us starred the comment in agreement, even those batch mates that I think are amazing"
- ryannielsen 16y agoI'm curious: how did you extrapolate from Wil's points on how to be a successful YC applicant that he also thought all YC companies are going to be successful? These are qualities for successful founders, not successful companies. There are a myriad of reasons why a startup might fail. Having founders with the traits outlined in this essay helps prevent the founders from being one of those reasons. That's why YC looks for these traits. Since YC screens applicants, they can select the ones they feel are best suited for success. Based on past experience, those with the traits in this essay are the most successful. Minimizing the founders as the source of failure means YC might have more successes, on average. As pg said, even YC would be surprised if their "success" rate is more than 50%. Being accepted into YC doesn't guarantee success... Creating a successful company is hard!
- cperciva 16y agoYou may be pleased by a 50% success rate, but how many of the 50% who don't succeed will be pleased? (Not just being facetious -- I've heard stories about YCers whose companies failed being hired by other YC companies or otherwise finding good positions as a result of their YC experience, but a few anecdotes is no substitute for data.)
- abstractbill 16y agoI've heard stories about YCers whose companies failed being hired by other YC companies I've heard successful YC companies referred to as being like piranhas (or something like that). Any time another YC company shows signs of failing, the others tend to wonder about hiring opportunities.
- xentronium 16y agoIs it a bad thing? In worst case you'll be working with other people with similar mindset to yours which is not bad at all.
- abstractbill 16y agoNo, it's not a bad thing at all - I've only heard people say it that way as a joke.
- malandrew 16y agoNope, it's being a good entrepreneur. Because if you don't ambulance chase, you may be end up being the next one chased.
- webwright 16y agoMost of them. Those who don't succeed have a big pile of successful startups who know them well and will hire them (if they stil have the startup bug). They've gotten a guided tour of the valley-style startup path-- next time will be easier. It'd be an interesting experiment to track down all of the YC companies that have fully failed to date and ask them, "knowing what you know now, do you wish you'd chosen a different path?" My guess is that 90%+ would do YC again in a heartbeat (though perhaps with a different co-founder or different market/idea).
- iamwil 16y agoNot at all. Plenty of YC companies fail. The founders go on to do another startup, work at facebook/google/etc, work for another startup, or raise a family. And also, there are plenty of non-YC companies that succeed. I've not asserted otherwise. This is advice for you only if you're already convinced of the value of YC. If you aren't yet, there's other blog posts to cover that.
- jijoy 16y agoPersonally , I am big fan of YC. However if the idea is good and execution is great , with or without YC , you will succeed .
- kristiandupont 16y agoYes but the whole idea is that YC can help you execute better.
- jasonlynes 16y agohaha, i like that raising a family is a good option for when your startup fails
- lionheart 16y agoI don't think that at all. I think that if I got into YC it would be an amazing experience, I would learn an incredible amount, and I would meet and hopefully become friends with a great number of very interesting people. That's why I want to do it. But I don't think for a second that YC will make my company a sure bet. Just how I don't think for a second that I can't be successful without YC.
- johnyqi 16y agoAs far I can see, by being accepted from YC you get your chances up from 1% to 50%. Still not 100% guaranty but it's 50x better than before.
- kovar 16y agoI disagree - my chances of success are far higher than 1% without YC, and I think most other applicants feel the same way.
- DanielRibeiro 16y agoPeople that do get in do not seem to think this way. As the yc backed founder rmorrison said[1]: If you think you need YC to succeed, then you won't (and shouldn't) be accepted [1]http://blog.rmorrison.org/advice-for-yc-applicants-on-the-fe.. http://blog.rmorrison.org/advice-for-yc-applicants-on-the-fe....
- dave1619 16y agoWell-written article. Thanks for sharing!
- flipside 16y agoAwesome write-up, gonna review our application one more time to make sure we hit all those points. Thanks!
- callmeed 16y agoOne of the better posts on the subject. So ... wanna review my app? :)
- iamwil 16y agoEverything I could tell you about your application, I've written in the post. :) The only other than I'd add is to write less. Get to the point. Clear language is indicative of clear thinking (something I'm still learning myself). It's easy to slide into formal writing because that's what we're all use to in college, but it'll kill you here. Use short easy words. Use simple sentences. Cut out words that don't get to the point. You don't have to explain everything. Just explain the crux and the core. I know, easier said than done. I'm a bit sheepish that my post was so long, but I cut as much as I could in the time that I had.
- nicholasjbs 16y ago"I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time." - Pascal Most of the time you spend writing your YC application should be on making it clearer and removing unnecessary words.
- lionheart 16y agoAs a single founder who just submitted their application this article makes me happy. If this kind of attitude and traction is what they're looking for then I think I do have a pretty good shot. Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing what comes out of it.
- dotcoma 16y agohere's my advice: don't ever accept "no" as an answer.
- johnyqi 16y agoExactly, just do it again and again, over and over... eventually things will fit together and you will get it right. The spirit of not giving up and to keep learning from mistakes is the only that counts in the end.
- jetaries 16y agoVery much enjoyed reading this. It is certainly one of the best posts in this topic. Good job.
- jetaries 16y agoWant to add a point. I think the common trait you mentioned in the post that you find in all our current batch mates is passion. I can just sense how everyone is so passionate in their own ways. People who are passionate are more likely to stick it out to the end. It is something I think that's pretty hard to fake.
- endlessvoid94 16y agoAs someone who knows a significant number of YC folks, I have to say the most inspiring thing about the entire organization is how normal everyone is. There's this expectation that there's "something different" that separates successful startup founders from "common folk". And it just doesn't exist. I think the barrier of intimidation is one of the biggest things most people aren't fortunate enough to experience. Like I said, I know more than a few YC folks, I've interviewed (and was rejected) once from YC, and every person I've met struck me as utterly normal in most ways. They merely possessed a bit more experience and in general know a tad more than the average person. There's no reason you can't do a startup right this instant. Do not let YC's rejection/acceptance dictate your path.
- DarrenLyman 16y agoI would agree - "Do not let YC's rejection/acceptance dictate your path." I am only applying once. This session.
- freshfunk 16y agoAgree and disagree. I don't think everyone is Superman but I have the impression that while they all seem normal, the applicants must be very competitive. By that, I mean many must show something impressive that separates them from the others. This doesn't mean they can shoot lasers from their eyes but they must show some entrepreneurial spirit or have accomplished something great/interesting/cool beforehand. As someone who didn't get into YC, I do agree with your final statement. No reason you can't do a startup. And, after reading this, I'm reminded I should re-apply. :)
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- grishick 16y agoGreat article! Thanks!
- anacrolix 16y agoWhat the FUCK is YC?
- Estragon 16y agohttp://ycombinator.com/ http://ycombinator.com/ P.S.: What are you doing on HN, if you don't know this? :-)
- tokenadult 16y agoYC leading to http://ycombinator.com/ http://ycombinator.com/ is one of the top two Google results, at least as Google customizes its results for me. Any time I see a puzzling abbreviation or acronym or new vocabulary word or foreign word or phrase online, I just Google it.
- wh-uws 16y agoPlease don't feed the trolls. Look at this account's comment's http://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=anacrolix http://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=anacrolix All negative and troll like
- johnyqi 16y agoThis was extremely useful, thank you. We applied few days ago for this batch and I JUST KNOW that we are IN! :-)
- atirip 16y agoI don't know, for me it is a weird story of someone desperately seeking acceptance of his fetish named Paul Graham (in the text he mentions PG sixteen(!) times by name) and now his suffering is come to an end. Sincere congratulations, though, Wilhelm, I hope now you can start living the life again.
- iamwil 16y agoHaha. The love quote at the end is tongue-in-cheek. Well, it's not so much a fetish for PG as it is a fetish for his writings. And I'll have you know that it only gets harder from here on out. :)
- nostrademons 16y agoIt's pretty natural to mention the people you work with a lot, and YC startups work with PG a lot. I'd mention my coworkers a bunch too in my comments, except that they're not public figures like PG is, and I want to protect their privacy.
- arvinjoar 16y agoDo you think a PG altar startup would be accepted to YC? Also, Paul and Jessica dolls.
- aneth 16y agoGreat post that hopefully makes some people feel less need to get into YC. A great founder can be helped by YC, but would be successful with or without it. If you think you need to get into YC to succeed, you're not who they are looking for.
- pdenya 16y agoIf nothing else this was a great tour of interesting pg essays. Thanks for writing.
- plamb 16y agoWanted to thank you for this post; some of your quotes about co-founders describe the trials and tribulations we've already been through in the 6 months we've been working full time on our startup. Great read!
- jagtesh 16y ago+1 for finally getting in. From what you write, it seems to me that you got into YC at a point when knew the game quite well. The learning was in getting in. So what's your take away from all of it? Is it the YC network and the resourcefulness of YC founders, or is there more to it? PS: I strongly believe in the adage, "if you want to be smart, surround yourself with smart people". From that POV, I understand that being connected to YC founders itself gives you tools that would otherwise be inaccessible to you. Still I wanna hear that from you, since you're in a better position to ascertain that.
- swankpot 16y agoFounders are more savvy now, and no longer ask questions like, "So when we get money from investors, when do we have to pay them back?" So if you do get $$ from investors, when do you have to pay them back?
- A1kmm 16y agoIf it is a convertible bond, that isn't really as silly a question as the article makes it out to be, and is very relevant given Yuri Milner's convertible bond offer - in which case I believe the answer is "1 year, unless Yuri decides to exercise the option to convert".
- speedmax 16y agoI have been rejected twice previously (1st poorly prepared, 2nd late) as a single founder. Given PG's selection is based on startup founder's likelihood of success. YC's harsh selection process have really shaped my vision of my product to attack the problem domain from a different angle. I think they will train better founders. Now, I am applying YC this session (S11), - Finally i find a cofounder that i have know for 2 years that have perfect match in value and skill sets. - I spend much more time preparing the application - Also exponential more time working on the real business assets (design, code, project plan) I should Thank them for the harshness, it makes you becomes a stronger, better fighter !
- kovar 16y agoI think my major take home from the process is that I don't need YC to succeed. I still have an application in, and will certainly appreciate the opportunity should we be accepted, but being accepted is far from make or break.