(Usual caveats: I'm not a YC partner and I'm just generalizing based on my limited observation.) The "things the partners generally look for" seems very big VC

(Usual caveats: I'm not a YC partner and I'm just generalizing based on my limited observation.) The "things the partners generally look for" seems very big VC and doesn't actually match up with what I've seen. When YC says they prefer to back smart founders they mean it. You should either be demonstrably smart (winning-the-putnam, twice, smart), or have amazing traction, or both. Since you've probably had a lot of time to prove you're smart the best advice you can follow now is this: start hustling to build your business. (Incidentally "gets shit done" is probably the most common trait I've noticed across YC founders.) If you're thinking of quitting your job to do a startup, you should probably quit. If you don't have a cofounder, finding one should become your fulltime job. Etc. Generally find what's going wrong and work around it. YC alum are amazingly responsive and willing to help (keep in mind they're really busy). You should definitely seek them out during the process.