akharris

21 ms·

181.
by akharris 10y ago
If someone on the admissions team happened to look at your earlier application, sure, but that doesn't get considered. We just look at finished applications when making decisions.
182.
by akharris 10y ago
This is a great question. We take companies at all different stages, from ideas through those who are already in market with customers. The "right stage" is more a question of how long you've been working than an absolute sta
183.
by akharris 10y ago
Great to hear that you've made more progress! Just describe it clearly and talk about anything new you've learned.
184.
by akharris 10y ago
It won't work against you. Did you change what you do, or just how you describe it?
185.
by akharris 10y ago
Nope. There's no good or bad when it comes to the number of founders so long as there's a reason for it.
186.
by akharris 10y ago
Hi! I still remember how nervous I was submitting my YC application 6 years ago. Now that I get to read them, happy to answer any last minute questions you have. AMA!
187.
by akharris 10y ago
I understand the cynical take, but having worked with a lot of investors, I don't think it's the dominant reason. If at all possible, investors would rather own a smaller piece of something huge than an ever increasing share of so
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by akharris 10y ago
Agree that much of this is partner dependent, but I've seen the dynamic play out happen with senior partners who have great track records and with younger partners out to prove themselves. In each case, I think the motivations differ s
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by akharris 10y ago
Author here - curious if you've seen this happen.
190.
by akharris 10y ago
In a word: yes. Creating a product, starting a company, and finding users/customers doesn't actually prepare you for raising money. That's a whole other set of skills, and it's one in which founders are at an inherent di
191.
by akharris 10y ago
While the examples I use come from early rounds, the message applies to just about any round.
192.
by akharris 10y ago
While it's not something you could sustain indefinitely, it's doable over shorter time frames. For instance, I've seen a number of companies do it during YC and for some time after that.
193.
by akharris 10y ago
Sadly, this is our last episode of the show for a little while. We learned a huge amount putting it together - about making good radio, asking good questions, and how some of our favorite companies got started. We hit a point, though, where
194.
End of Cycle?(blog.eladgil.com)
163 points by akharris 10y ago|99 comments
195.
by akharris 10y ago
Thanks. That's an increasingly important group, but I don't think of people who pre-order as investors. Even though those people provide the capital to build your business, they are customers, not investors, and should be thought
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by akharris 10y ago
That's an important point. Time horizons can substantially alter how investors view their investments. For the most part, though, early stage companies are raising from investors who should be planning on long holding periods.
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by akharris 10y ago
I hadn't even thought about it from the perspective of how the developed world relates to the developing across other problem spaces. That's a great way to think about it.
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by akharris 11y ago
Didn't realize it was paywalled. Just changed it. Thanks!
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by akharris 11y ago
I agree with you that it is fair to be concerned. It's also nearly impossible not to notice. I think the difference is what you do with the information and how it influences your decisions.
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by akharris 11y ago
Sounds like it is time for the three of you to have an honest conversation about what you each want and whether or not you should be working together on a startup. Hopefully like you've been friends long enough to get through the pain
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by akharris 11y ago
I'm not one of your target users but...When you start a company, the optimal launch order is usually the one that gets you actual users. You can figure out the rest later.
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by akharris 11y ago
I think you either need to grow the user base significantly or figure out how to increase revenue. Based on what you said, it sounds like you need to do the first now, because you've tried all the revenue paths.
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by akharris 11y ago
Sounds like you did answer it yourself, which is awesome. I actually like your approach of aggregating and sending it out to the suppliers. You could send it to all of them and tell them they have a limited time to respond, and then creatin
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by akharris 11y ago
Cool - feel free to ask your question :).
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by akharris 11y ago
Cool. Is your transaction volume growing at the same rate?
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by akharris 11y ago
Did they also sign a paying contract with you? That's the best of all :). I agree with you that you can't just break things when you're working with financial firms. That doesn't mean you have to artificially constrain g
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by akharris 11y ago
Have you grown to other states?
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by akharris 11y ago
If you have a lot of demand, you should be able to go to parts listers and say "Hey! I've got money for you! Come get money by listing." Ok...not quite that simple, but that's a great carrot to use. If that's not en
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by akharris 11y ago
Got it. You might need to think about the size of the market that you're targeting. When I think about what makes a company or product interesting as a startup, I try to think about markets that will expand over time because of what th
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by akharris 11y ago
Do you have a bigger problem with finding demand for parts, or with listed supply?

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