4 ms·

The solution may be wrong, but the idea is right. If people can just casually come into YC with no particular consequences for failure, that greatly reduced dri

The solution may be wrong, but the idea is right. If people can just casually come into YC with no particular consequences for failure, that greatly reduced drive to succeed. "I'll just go back to FAMGAN after" or "I'll be able to transition from MBA grad + YC to something high paying" I don't think is great for success drive.

baq 6y ago
you can be motivated without going hungry. not being able to afford basic things is extremely stressful and takes time away from doing whatever YC wants them to do - that time is spent making sure that food is on the table. exactly the opposite of what you intend.
- throwawayway9 6y ago
  Well said, I don't believe it is beneficial increase a person's anxiety to extreme levels just because some people think that makes them work harder.
  - _curious_ 6y ago
    For some founders & entrepreneurs, it forces them to work smarter - not necessarily harder - and that's the goal, to figure out what isn't working right and change it to reduce/eliminate the anxiety caused by an under-performing startup.
- czbond 6y ago
  Yes - but this is what every company does at founding. Get really lean, survive on whatever it can. Founders should expect company building to be a nervous and anxiety inducing endeavor for 7 years. It is incredibly painful - and not for those who see it closer to a paid sabbatical
  - forbiddenvoid 6y ago
    If that logic were true, then there would be far fewer companies built by founders who already have a successful exit. The success of a company is far more likely to be correlated by the founders not having to put their own wellbeing on the line than the other way around. I think, as a point of failure, that most would agree that a system that allows a few people a 'free sabbatical' but also provides security for those founders who would not succeed without it, but who will with it is a good thing.
  - jlokier 6y ago
    The problem isn't just nervousness and anxiety. You have to work a second full-time job that isn't the startup. Probably during the day, so you can't do daytime things with your startup. You have to borrow on credit cards to pay the rent, bills and food. You get evicted if you don't. You don't eat much so you can't think as clearly. You lose your computer when the bailiffs come to collect. You have to have a borrowing facility, and it has to not be declined all the time. If you hit a limit, you have to pause the startup and work elsewhere, probably for months. You can't go personally bankrupt otherwise your startup will be liquidated as well. You literally don't have as much time, energy and mental capacity to put into the startup. Saying that every company does this at founding is false. For those with better savings, better support buffers, they do not have the same amount of the above problems. In particular they can eat and have somewhere reliable to sleep. For those without, they literally cannot put as much time and cognition into the startup.
- site-packages1 6y ago
  Precisely! Which is why I think the intent is good, keep people driven, but the method, not giving people the basics to live, is not good.
jfengel 6y ago
I take it FAMGAN is FAANG+Microsoft? Googling failed to turn up any other usages of this term.
- nindalf 6y ago
  But in an hour Google will return this thread as a result. Be The Change You Want To See.
  - disgruntledphd2 6y ago
    I don't really understand why Netflix is in there, they seem to be a content production business funded (poorly) by debt.
    - site-packages1 6y ago
      Super high salaries + recognizable company.
    - Apocryphon 6y ago
      It's purely there because of the stock price. Blame Cramer. https://www.thestreet.com/technology/what-are-fang-stocks-and-why-does-jim-cramer-love-them-13230576 https://www.thestreet.com/technology/what-are-fang-stocks-an...
- site-packages1 6y ago
  I always hated that Microsoft wasn’t represented.
  - mrep 6y ago
    French wikipedia has GAFAM [0] which I think makes the most sense as they are the biggest by market cap. [0]: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAFAM https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAFAM
aaisola 6y ago
Agree that the lower funding amount doesn't make sense and will probably further disadvantage minority and other founders. However, the problem identified seems real where the culture seems to be shifting from attracting relentless company builders to those seeking another checkbox on their Linkedin profile. This is also why other accelerators are emerging that aim to capture the YC essence of old (OnDeck & Jeff Morriss Jr.'s new initiative)

baq 6y ago

you can be motivated without going hungry. not being able to afford basic things is extremely stressful and takes time away from doing whatever YC wants them to do - that time is spent making sure that food is on the table. exactly the opposite of what you intend.

throwawayway9 6y ago
Well said, I don't believe it is beneficial increase a person's anxiety to extreme levels just because some people think that makes them work harder.
- _curious_ 6y ago
  For some founders & entrepreneurs, it forces them to work smarter - not necessarily harder - and that's the goal, to figure out what isn't working right and change it to reduce/eliminate the anxiety caused by an under-performing startup.
czbond 6y ago
Yes - but this is what every company does at founding. Get really lean, survive on whatever it can. Founders should expect company building to be a nervous and anxiety inducing endeavor for 7 years. It is incredibly painful - and not for those who see it closer to a paid sabbatical
- forbiddenvoid 6y ago
  If that logic were true, then there would be far fewer companies built by founders who already have a successful exit. The success of a company is far more likely to be correlated by the founders not having to put their own wellbeing on the line than the other way around. I think, as a point of failure, that most would agree that a system that allows a few people a 'free sabbatical' but also provides security for those founders who would not succeed without it, but who will with it is a good thing.
- jlokier 6y ago
  The problem isn't just nervousness and anxiety. You have to work a second full-time job that isn't the startup. Probably during the day, so you can't do daytime things with your startup. You have to borrow on credit cards to pay the rent, bills and food. You get evicted if you don't. You don't eat much so you can't think as clearly. You lose your computer when the bailiffs come to collect. You have to have a borrowing facility, and it has to not be declined all the time. If you hit a limit, you have to pause the startup and work elsewhere, probably for months. You can't go personally bankrupt otherwise your startup will be liquidated as well. You literally don't have as much time, energy and mental capacity to put into the startup. Saying that every company does this at founding is false. For those with better savings, better support buffers, they do not have the same amount of the above problems. In particular they can eat and have somewhere reliable to sleep. For those without, they literally cannot put as much time and cognition into the startup.
site-packages1 6y ago
Precisely! Which is why I think the intent is good, keep people driven, but the method, not giving people the basics to live, is not good.

jfengel 6y ago

I take it FAMGAN is FAANG+Microsoft? Googling failed to turn up any other usages of this term.

nindalf 6y ago
But in an hour Google will return this thread as a result. Be The Change You Want To See.
- disgruntledphd2 6y ago
  I don't really understand why Netflix is in there, they seem to be a content production business funded (poorly) by debt.
  - site-packages1 6y ago
    Super high salaries + recognizable company.
  - Apocryphon 6y ago
    It's purely there because of the stock price. Blame Cramer. https://www.thestreet.com/technology/what-are-fang-stocks-and-why-does-jim-cramer-love-them-13230576 https://www.thestreet.com/technology/what-are-fang-stocks-an...
site-packages1 6y ago
I always hated that Microsoft wasn’t represented.
- mrep 6y ago
  French wikipedia has GAFAM [0] which I think makes the most sense as they are the biggest by market cap. [0]: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAFAM https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAFAM

aaisola 6y ago

Agree that the lower funding amount doesn't make sense and will probably further disadvantage minority and other founders. However, the problem identified seems real where the culture seems to be shifting from attracting relentless company builders to those seeking another checkbox on their Linkedin profile. This is also why other accelerators are emerging that aim to capture the YC essence of old (OnDeck & Jeff Morriss Jr.'s new initiative)