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Here's what I gleamed from the message: 1. Taggar doesn't want to invest in the company. 2. He wants Graham to keep referring other companies to him. 3. He may

Here's what I gleamed from the message: 1. Taggar doesn't want to invest in the company. 2. He wants Graham to keep referring other companies to him. 3. He may want to invest in the company in the future. 4. He introduced the founder to some of his acquaintances (see 2). The writing is pretty much WYSIWYG...

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
antirez 14y ago
Yes but, what is the value added by the people they want to get involved? Why is too early to invest? Just because there are not already a zillion of users and they are not able to evaluate? Why later it could be interesting? Basically there is just boilerplate to say "no thanks" but no real information. Just a general feeling that they are not able to really evaluate.
- rrrrtttt 14y ago
  Email is prone to misunderstanding so you have to be verbose. If I would have gotten a "no thanks" that would have left me guessing "Why?". Possible reasons which are ruled out by this message: 1) I don't trust YC anymore; 2) The guy you referred to me was a jerk; 3) I'm out of the VC business; etc.
- numbsafari 14y ago
  I don't know the guy, but... consider the power dynamic. PG sends him a sales pitch and the guy pushes back. What's he supposed to do, fall all over himself and say "where do I sign"? No, he says, "yeah, maybe". Wouldn't you do the same if someone came to your door looking to sell you something?
  - derefr 14y ago
    > Wouldn't you do the same if someone came to your door looking to sell you something? My usual reaction is "what else d'ya got?"--until they run out of "else"s. This way, the situation is reframed as them not having anything I like, rather than me not being willing to accept what they have--and it's then much easier to just politely end the conversation.
dirkk0 14y ago
rather WISIWYG (what I see is what you get).
kenkam 14y ago
I tend to agree. On one level, you could say it's a satire and even a mockery to VCs in general (which I found hilarious when I found out who Tagger was). However, in real life I think this would be a polite response. It might read like bullshit but it's quite fair to see he's trying to make these points. Everything else not in the email (e.g. why does the VC not want to invest) would be speculation.
CamperBob2 14y ago
What I don't get is what's so subversive/ironic about any of this. What part of this seemingly-polite note can't be, or shouldn't be, taken at face value? He doesn't think the investment is a good fit right now but agrees that the company is worth keeping an eye on, and is appreciative that YC took the time to think of him. Not a business for introverts or borderline aspies like myself, I guess...

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

antirez 14y ago

Yes but, what is the value added by the people they want to get involved? Why is too early to invest? Just because there are not already a zillion of users and they are not able to evaluate? Why later it could be interesting? Basically there is just boilerplate to say "no thanks" but no real information. Just a general feeling that they are not able to really evaluate.

rrrrtttt 14y ago
Email is prone to misunderstanding so you have to be verbose. If I would have gotten a "no thanks" that would have left me guessing "Why?". Possible reasons which are ruled out by this message: 1) I don't trust YC anymore; 2) The guy you referred to me was a jerk; 3) I'm out of the VC business; etc.
numbsafari 14y ago
I don't know the guy, but... consider the power dynamic. PG sends him a sales pitch and the guy pushes back. What's he supposed to do, fall all over himself and say "where do I sign"? No, he says, "yeah, maybe". Wouldn't you do the same if someone came to your door looking to sell you something?
- derefr 14y ago
  > Wouldn't you do the same if someone came to your door looking to sell you something? My usual reaction is "what else d'ya got?"--until they run out of "else"s. This way, the situation is reframed as them not having anything I like, rather than me not being willing to accept what they have--and it's then much easier to just politely end the conversation.

dirkk0 14y ago

rather WISIWYG (what I see is what you get).

kenkam 14y ago

I tend to agree. On one level, you could say it's a satire and even a mockery to VCs in general (which I found hilarious when I found out who Tagger was). However, in real life I think this would be a polite response. It might read like bullshit but it's quite fair to see he's trying to make these points. Everything else not in the email (e.g. why does the VC not want to invest) would be speculation.

CamperBob2 14y ago

What I don't get is what's so subversive/ironic about any of this. What part of this seemingly-polite note can't be, or shouldn't be, taken at face value? He doesn't think the investment is a good fit right now but agrees that the company is worth keeping an eye on, and is appreciative that YC took the time to think of him. Not a business for introverts or borderline aspies like myself, I guess...