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This tweet is saying that YC interviewers don't read balance sheets; he's not saying that all balance sheets are useless. (You need a balance sheet to file your
by dfabulich 5y ago
This tweet is saying that YC interviewers don't read balance sheets; he's not saying that all balance sheets are useless. (You need a balance sheet to file your taxes, for one thing!)
As for business plans, the saying goes that "plans are useless, but planning is indispensable."
Business plans are a particularly poor tool for having funding conversations; they're both less persuasive than a pitch deck and less helpful in helping funders decide whether to invest than simply interviewing the founders.
But just because PG won't read your plan doesn't mean your startup shouldn't have/make a plan!
- inglor_cz 5y agoThis is a good take. Plans in war (and in business) tend not to survive first contact with the enemy, but planning is still useful.
- nouveaux 5y ago"But just because PG won't read your plan doesn't mean your startup shouldn't have/make a plan!" This is true not just for startups and its great advice for life in general. However, I believe YC would actively discourage founders from writing a traditional business plan. They would rather have their startups talk to users and building products. To put it another way, I think YC would say that you cannot possibly write a realistic business plan without a solid customer base and a good product. Anything else and you're just making things up. By the time you have customers and a good product, you don't need a business plan to raise funding. * This is what I've gathered from their startup school materials without having raised a dime from YC or talked to any of the partners, so take this with a big dash of salt.