"Leaving it open-ended with a "just keep trying" approach only gives you the impression that if you just hang on, maybe next month will be that special one ... or the next month ... or the next one ... how then do you know it's not next year? Or the one after that? Or next decade? There are plenty of entrepreneurs whose idea was a decade ahead of its time. What happens to them after they maxed out 50 credit cards and mortgaged their homes?"
I don't think YC encourages people to keep trying with an idea that doesn't work. Rather, they encourage them to drop the idea and find another one. Many YC startups have switched their idea even during the initial 3 months.
It's fairly common for a failing idea to still be a failing idea 10 years later. It's fairly uncommon for an entrepreneur to come up with 40 failing ideas in a row. Usually by the 4th or 5th, you've stumbled onto something decent.
>> I don't think YC encourages people to keep trying with an idea that doesn't work. Rather, they encourage them to drop the idea and find another one. Many YC startups have switched their idea even during the initial 3 months.
But you imply that if you keep switching ideas, it's guaranteed that soon you'll come up with the right one. What if you don't? How then do you account for the time? Where do you get the money that you spent back? There needs to be a clear line - if young kids are dropping everything and moving to Boston, that situation can only be maintained for so long. How do you determine when that is before that becomes personally ruinous. I see that a note is left that YC funded hundreds of startups. Great. how many went anywhere? What happens to the rest? Are they still in Boston? Did they move back? Can they still attend YC dinners? Does Paul still take their calls if they don't make it? Or are they in some weird limbo where they need to go back to "real life" but have to account for lost time and opportunities? Paul is not your father nor is he the father of any of these young people trying this. If you make it, great! But if you don't ... (sounds of crickets). Well let's just say I doubt he'll offer you room and board until you find the next thing or get back on your feet.
>> It's fairly common for a failing idea to still be a failing idea 10 years later.
Yes it is. It's also fairly common for a failing idea to become a huge hit on the 11th year because something in society changed. Entrepreneurs are usually a bit more right-brain oriented and can see patterns in social dynamics which is why they are more likely than others to predict how to profit from emerging patters. But predicting a change and timing it exactly are two different things, as anyone on Wall Street will tell you.
>> Many YC startups have switched their idea even during the initial 3 months.
That's my point exactly. How do you determine if you're wasting time or just one idea switch away? What if by the time you hit your idea the market is in the course of moving away from it? Do you get invested in continuously to keep trying? Who's paying your personal bills during this time? Does Paul write a letter explaining what you've been up to for 6 months if you go back to school? Are there companies in Boston that will hire you if you don't make it so you can stay around while you think of the next YC idea?
I don't think YC encourages people to keep trying with an idea that doesn't work. Rather, they encourage them to drop the idea and find another one. Many YC startups have switched their idea even during the initial 3 months.
It's fairly common for a failing idea to still be a failing idea 10 years later. It's fairly uncommon for an entrepreneur to come up with 40 failing ideas in a row. Usually by the 4th or 5th, you've stumbled onto something decent.