The document summarizes notes from Startup School 2013. Key discussions included:
- Phil Libin of Evernote discussed lessons from starting multiple companies and the challenges of managing expectations after raising funding.
- Dan Siroker of Optimizely talked about using distribution strategies like search engine optimization and working on the Obama campaign.
- Ron Conway of SV Angel discussed investing in people over ideas and the importance of product quality and decisiveness in entrepreneurs.
- Code Combat pitched their game for learning code, and Paul Graham suggested they work with game designers.
- A startup called Give It 100 discussed challenges documenting personal challenges over 100 days via video.
- Flexport pitched a customs brokerage
The document summarizes notes from Startup School 2013. Key discussions included:
- Phil Libin of Evernote discussed lessons from starting multiple companies and the challenges of managing expectations after raising funding.
- Dan Siroker of Optimizely talked about using distribution strategies like search engine optimization and working on the Obama campaign.
- Ron Conway of SV Angel discussed investing in people over ideas and the importance of product quality and decisiveness in entrepreneurs.
- Code Combat pitched their game for learning code, and Paul Graham suggested they work with game designers.
- A startup called Give It 100 discussed challenges documenting personal challenges over 100 days via video.
- Flexport pitched a customs brokerage
The document summarizes notes from Startup School 2013. Key discussions included:
- Phil Libin of Evernote discussed lessons from starting multiple companies and the challenges of managing expectations after raising funding.
- Dan Siroker of Optimizely talked about using distribution strategies like search engine optimization and working on the Obama campaign.
- Ron Conway of SV Angel discussed investing in people over ideas and the importance of product quality and decisiveness in entrepreneurs.
- Code Combat pitched their game for learning code, and Paul Graham suggested they work with game designers.
- A startup called Give It 100 discussed challenges documenting personal challenges over 100 days via video.
- Flexport pitched a customs brokerage
The document summarizes notes from Startup School 2013. Key discussions included:
- Phil Libin of Evernote discussed lessons from starting multiple companies and the challenges of managing expectations after raising funding.
- Dan Siroker of Optimizely talked about using distribution strategies like search engine optimization and working on the Obama campaign.
- Ron Conway of SV Angel discussed investing in people over ideas and the importance of product quality and decisiveness in entrepreneurs.
- Code Combat pitched their game for learning code, and Paul Graham suggested they work with game designers.
- A startup called Give It 100 discussed challenges documenting personal challenges over 100 days via video.
- Flexport pitched a customs brokerage
http://twitter.com/ycombinatorToEdit:follow@intelliotonTwitter,DM me #startupschool youremailaddress,andIllinviteyouasacollaborator. http://www.tchat.io/rooms/startupschool http://tlk.io/startupschool(livechat) Please add your name near the bottom. DISCLAIMER Thisdocumentisaworkinprogressandmaychangecontinuously.Itsalsoanexperiment,soitmightturnouttobeutterly useless,orotherwisegohorriblywrong. ShortURL:http://bit.ly/susnotes DosharethiswithotherpeoplewhoareatStartupSchool2013. ______________________________________________________________________________ Saturday, October 19, 2013 Flint Center, De Anza College, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6577927 Pleaseaddyournamenearthebottom. Saturday,October19,2013 FlintCenter,DeAnzaCollege,21250StevensCreekBlvd.,Cupertino * https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6577927 PhilLibin/Founder,Evernote,CoreStreetBio DanSiroker/Founder,OptimizelyBio RonConway/Partner,SVAngelBio@RonConway OfficehourswithPaulGraham&SamAltman ????/CodeCombathttp://codecombat.com Danceinayear??? CustomsBrokeragehttp://flexport.com/??? Lunch ChrisDixon/Partner,A16zFounder,Hunch,SiteAdvisorBio SuccessfulStartupsUsuallyStartFrom: DianeGreene/Founder,VMWareBio DianeGreeneondoingastartupImjustanotherslobtryingtodoastartup ChaseAdam/Founder,WatsiBio@ChaseAdam17 Break JackDorsey/Founder,Square twitter MarkTheZuckZuckerberg/Founder Facebook ThisisaquestionandanswersessionbetweenPaulGrahamandMark. NateBlecharczyk/Founder@nathanblecBioairbnb SamAltman NameKeywordsPhone/iMessageURL(max1linetotal,perperson) Phil Libin / Founder, Evernote, CoreStreet - Bio Youshouldn'tbefriendswithpeoplewhoyouwouldn'tstartacompanywith. Evernoteismy3rdstartup.Firstwasengine5.Wasgoingtobe5and2chickenedout. Wedidn'tknowinvestorsexisted. Doingastartupasaconsultantsucks,becauseyou'renotreallybuildinglastingvalue. Therewardsareimmediatebutnotlasting. Evernotecameoutofamerger.Itwasaveryunconventionalstart.Thiswasabig mistake.Itdoesn'tpaytobeinnovativeinyourstructure. Wehad3weeksofcashleft.EuropeanVC.Panicked. FinallygotmoneyfromarandomguyinSweden:$500kwired.>Finallyraisedbutnot fromSVinvestors. Itgotalotharderoncewewerearealcompany.ThemostfunIeverhad,theleast stressedIeverwas,wasbackwhenweweretryingtoraisemoneyandIcouldhave goneoutofbusinessanyday. Onlyonejob:raisemoneyandhaveenoughcashtomakepayroll.Totallyreadytofailat thatpoint,whichisactuallykindofliberating. AfterourBround,wehadyearsofcash.Thenextmorningaftercelebrating,itgothard. Nowpeoplearedependingonusandthereareexpectations.Nowwehavetodo something.imsolonely Itgetsbetter,butitdoesntgeteasier.Itdoesgetmorerewarding.Itsnotfundaytoday, butitisfunmonthtomonth.Gratifyingtolookoverthepast30days,butdayinandday out,itsdifficult. 5yearsago,itwouldhavebeenstupidadvicetosay:buildsomethingforyourself. Today,itsstupidnotto.im Thereare1billionpeoplewhowantwhatyoudo.Evenifyoureweird,therearestill10 millionpeoplewhowantwhatyoudo. Ifitssomethingyouwant,itsabigadvantagebecauseyouknowwhenitsgreat. "EveryinvestorinEvernoteisahugefanoftheproduct" Dan Siroker / Founder, Optimizely - Bio Thisismy6thStartupSchool,butmyfirsttimepresenting. Distributionstrategy:putGoogleinfrontofthename.Automatically100kpeopletrying theproduct. Learnedthevalueofafeedbackloop. ObamasaidhewantedtotakewhattheydoatGoogle,andbringittogovernment.Hegot mehookedonbubblesort(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nnj7r1wCD4) Wehadthemostmonitorspersquareinchofanypartofthecampaign. Believesbiggestmistakeentrepreneursmakeis,thattheyfollowalgorithminsteadof creatingtheirownpathtosuccess. Ron Conway / Partner, SV Angel - Bio - @RonConway EvanstartedanincubatorcalledObviousCorp.Odeo,inthepodcastingspace.Evfeltso badthathegavehisinvestorstheirmoneyback. 40%ofourstartupsgooutofbusiness:wedon'tgetanickelback. WetriedtosellOdeoandgetittoasoftlanding.Hefeltbadaboutit.AtSVAngel,we investinthepeoplefirst.WhentheysaidTwitter,Isaid:Idon'tcarewhatitdoes. Hesaid:youshouldgotalktoJackDorsey. Whatdoes@RonConwaythinkmakesasuccessfulentrepreneur? 1)RiflefocusonProduct&ProductQuality2)Decisiveness Ilookfordecisiveness.Hirefast,firefast. ItusedtobethatthealgorithmwasyourmostvaluableIP(likeGoogle).Now,itsusers, userdesign,anduserinterfaceIP. Neverarguewiththemetrics.You(investor)maynotunderstandwhycustomerlikeit, butgowiththemetrics Mostrewardingthing:watchingentrepreneursmatureatthespeedoflightwhenthey haveto,andhelpingthemdoit. FundraisingTips: Thebiggestmistakefoundersmakewhenfundraisingisfocusingonvaluationvs. findingtheinvestorthataddsthemostvalue Getthe1sttermsheetASAPactsasforcingfunctionforotherinvestors Onceyougetanyinklingofanagreement,sendanemailthatcommitsthe investortothatagreement. Office hours with Paul Graham & Sam Altman Thisisnewthisyear.Eachstartupgets9minutes,timed.Havenotmetbefore. Code Combat - http://codecombat.com Learnhowtocodebyplayingamultiplayergame. Writecodetokillabadguy. ItriedCodecademybutitwasntmotivatingenoughforme. Firstcompany:Wekeepusingyourproductbecauseitslikeagame.Whoa,ifwecan dothatinadvertently,thenwhatifwemadeagameintentionally? TheresnoApachehelicoptersoranythinglikethat.Youreawizard,itsfantasy Maxedoutserverat15kpeople.Dontknow,peopleweregetting404s. PostedonlytoReddit,thatsit. Aretheypeoplewhoknowhowtoprogram,orisitpeoplewhowanttolearn? Peoplewhoknowhowtoprogramsay:Iwanttohelpout,isthisonGitHub? Doyouguysknowaboutthegamingbusiness? Thereareprobablycertainbestpracticesinthegamingbusiness,whichwouldbeagood startingpoint.Whatevertheydoit,isprobablythedefaulttostartwith. Letsfindandtalkwithgamedesigners. Mostlytheyjusttelluswhenwhatwerebuiltsucks. Wejustfinishedtheleveleditor. Oneguyismanningtheserversrightnow(Scott),hopefullykeepingthemalive.Weve beenworkingtogether6years.Roommateincollege. Alotofthereasonpeoplestartstartupsisthattheydontwantjobs. Someonewhohasworkedalongtimeatabigcompany:badsign.Thebeststartup foundersprobablycantstandthat. Recruiterssayallsortsofcrazystuff. Attheendoftheofficehours,PaulGrahamtoldCodeCombatthattheywere acceptedintothenextYCbatch Qualifypeople(recruiting)beforeintroducingtoacompany. Give It 100 - GiveIt100.com InitiatedbyDanceinaYearLearnsomethingin100days. Privatebeta Needmorefeatures,SocialSharing Perhapsbemoreempirical,seehowtheplatformevolves(i.e.babywalkingforparentsto capturethosemoments) PiggybackonYouTubeasamarketingchannel,butvideoshostedbyus 100daychallenges Galleryof10secondclips. FoundedbyKarenXChenghttp://www.karenx.com/ PG:gaveadvicetonotoveroptimizetooearly,letitgrowintowhateverit'sgoingto growinto Isntthismoreforthelearners,thanforpeoplewhoarewatchingtheclips? 85daysbeatboxing Isthecommunityencouragingpeopletostickwithit?{yes.theydescribedanexample} Customs Brokerage - http://flexport.com/ Isitoneofthesethingswheredealingwiththegovernmentissoawfulthatyouneedspecialized, heavilylicensedpeoplejusttodothis? Yes.FBIbackgroundchecktoo. Therecouldbe125formsyouhavetofillout.Thereareexistingcustomsbrokers,butyourean exampleofsoftwareeatingtheworld. Howareyoudifferent? Wedontuseafaxmachine. Onlinedashboardtoorganizedocuments,understandwhichdocumentsareneeded. Teleporterforproducts,insteadofpeople. 30millionshipmentsentertheUSusingacustomsbroker. Iveimported1,000containersandgottenthemthroughcustoms.Iknowhowtodothismyself. Whyhasnoonedonethisbefore? Customsbrokerconvention:hasntchangedin40years. Highlyregulated,hardtogetlicense. Untilrecently,itwasntpossibletoclearshipmentexceptatyourlocalport(PortofOakland). Unlessyouhadanofficeateveryport. Weareacustomsbroker.Wedotheclearance. ItsnotlikeUber.Yeah,Ididntquitegetthatanalogy,tobehonest. WehaveeveryimporterinAmericainadatabase. Wow,thatsveryconvenient. Howfaralongareyou? Itsawebapp,youcansignupforit.Nottakingnewusersrightnow. Thegovernmentshutdownfurloughedourguy.Wecouldntclearourfirstshipment.Nowhes backsoweputinourforms.Wantedtogetonstageandsayweclearedourfirstshipment,but notyet. Grossmargin75%anddoesnttakealotoftime. Wellcharge$100. FDAextrapaperwork. Theywillpaymoreintaxestothegovernment.Tothebroker,itsstilljustoneform. Currentones:theychargemore.Brokerageisjustthewaytoenteramuchlargerlogistics space.NowIknowyoursupplychain.Freight,etc. Othersdontlookatthisasawaytomakemoney.Itsnottheirlossleader. Howmuchcanyoumake? Logisticsisa$2.3trillionindustry.Ijustliketosaytrillion. Ifthenumberistoobig,investorsjustdontbelieveit. $30Mprofittaking1%ofthecustomsbrokerbusiness.$23k/yearpercustomer. $30Mis1%.Basedon#ofshipmentscleared,etc.notexactnumbers. Armyofsalesguysinmylastcompanywasntthatfun. Tryingtodoitbetterthanlasttimesothatitsmorefun. Lunch Chris Dixon / Partner, A16z; Founder, Hunch, SiteAdvisor - Bio RecommendsPeterThielsBlakeMastersnotes Knowasecret: Knowtheproblembetterthananyoneelse Knowthetoolsbetterthananyoneelse BeforeDropbox,therewere100cloudstoragecompanies,halfofwhichwereVCfunded. ButDropboxknewtheproblembetterthananyoneelse,focusedonmakingtheactual useofspaceeasier,anddisruptedtheexistingsolutionswhoweremerelytryingto competeoneconomy(offermorespaceand/orchargeless) Kickstarter:10yearstryingtoraisemoney PerryChenFounder/CEOartisticcommunity 2004wastheworstyearonthewebintermsofsecurityproblems:popupads,internet explorer,phishingeverywhere,itwasamess. TherewasMcAfeeSiteAdvisor. Whydidn'tSymantecdoanythingaboutit?Theysawitasbeingtechnicalproblems:OS exploit,etc. However,mostproblemsweresocialengineeringproblems.Thetechnicalfeatures operatedproperly,butusersweretrickedintodoingthings.Theirsolutionwastoputout whitepapers,sayingthingslikeUsersshouldbesmarteraboutdownloadingsoftware. Weapproacheditfromtheconsumerinternetperspective.Letsjustcreateabetteruser experience,usingwhatevermeansnecessary.(samethingDropboxdid) LikeSkype.Biggestconcern:Mostpeopledidnthavemicrophonesyet.Microphone adoptionisthekeyissue.WouldtheybewillingtodrivetoBestBuyandgetone? Lowquality.Lowbandwidth.Narrowband.Willbroadbandevergetadopted? HeadofMcKinsey:Nobodywilleveradoptbroadband.(lol) FunQuote:VinodKhosla:Don'teverlistentoanyonefromMcKinsey"(link) Successful Startups Usually Start From: Unbundlingfunctionsdonebyothers. Example:Newspaperscollectionoffunctions(brand,curation,classifieds,distribution) DisruptedbyplatformslikeFlipboard Hobbies HomebrewBlogsWebOpenSource... Bitcoin,3dprinting,drones,bigdata Thingsthataredismissedastoys.Whentechisatthelowpoint,itlookslikeatoytoalotof people. Ifyoureintosomething,chancesarethereare100millionpeoplewhoareintoitto.Unless yourereallyweird,inwhichcasetheresmaybe10,000peopleintothat.~paraphrased ChallengingSocialNorms PeoplewereweirdedoutatfirstbyplatformslikeAirbnbandeBay,nowtheyrebilliondollar companies,becausetherewerewillingtochallengesocialnorms Todevelopstartupideas: 1. Bestideascomefromdirectexperience 2. Theabstractlikeanalystreports,trends,analogies 3. Theabstract,bydefinitioncomesfromconventionalwisdom Inshort:startupsecretsare"drawnfromdirectexperience",are"dismissedashobby"and "challengesocialnorms".(via:@rlacombe) Diane Greene / Founder, VMWare - Bio Startups are one lucky break after another Diane Greene on doing a startup - Im just another slob trying to do a startup VMWare:hersecondstartup.Shescurrentlyworkingonher3rdstartup. Createdvirtualizationindustrystarting1998.Fakesoutoperatingsystemtothinkits runningonhardware[seeVMWareonWikipedia] YoYGrowthof54%.6kpeopleinofficesaroundtheworld,steadilygrowing Bigvision:facilitateconstraintsbyfreeingupinnovation. Startagiantvisionbymakingasmallgoalthatyoucanworktowardswhatsmallthings couldwedo? OnVMWare Didntwanttorelyonspecifichardware(Microsoft,etc) Firstmilestone:platform/hardwareagnostic TakeittomarketasLinuxtool PeoplewantedtoworkinLinuxbutwererequiredtouseMicrosoftTools(runfixed WindowssoftwareunderLinux) ThreeLinuxcompaniescametousandtriedtobuyus MichaelDellthoughtallLinuxcompanieshadzerochanceofsucceeding,buthe supportedthembecausehewantedtoseeLinuxsurvive. FunFact:CheckoutthemarketcapstodayofDELLvs.VMW... Launchedwithfreebeta/30daydemo,$299forcommercialuse Spreadingthewordofthecompanybyattendingastartupdemoday. ManagedtogetonSlashdot,anddecidedtospend$0onmarketing,focusedonPR PickedupbyWallStreetJournal Duetoallthishitstheyranoutofbandwidth,arandomstudentatCornelltookitupon himselftomirrorthesite(wasregardedasveryfriendly) TIP:thisCornellstudentgothimselfaninternshipoutofthis WhenyousitbetweenMicrosoftandIntel,youwanttoprotectyourIP(intellectual property). Werentterriblyconcernedwithpatents/IPbutacquiredsaidpatents Microsoftboughtacompetitor/similarproductwewerentgoingtosuethembecause weknewwewouldbeatthem. Intheendshedoesntthinkherpatentshelpedhercompanyatall Ifyoucanthinkofagoodreasonforsomeonetohelpyou(besidesthefactthattheyre rich,etcetera)theywillusuallyhelpyou GotameetingwithLarrySonsini,heendedupjoiningtheboardasanadvisor Foundawaytohelphardwarevendorsmakemoney. Triedtalkingtoanalysts,flewovernighttoForresteroffice,endeduptalkingtoanauto industryanalyst.[signthatthemainstreamindustrywasbehindthetimesandVMWare wasinonsomethingearly] LawyersfoundoutLinuxsoftwarewasintheproduct,didntwantalltheirstufftoendup opensourcedduetoGPL Resellerswereabletosellthesoftwarewithoutrunningintothatissue Bring something to market that people absolutely love Balaji Srinivasan / Founder, Counsyl; Lecturer, Stanford - Bio Topic:SiliconValleysUltimateExit:IstheUSAthemicrosoftofnations?(sessionsheet,via: @aley) LarryandSergeywantedchange:whattheyhadtodowasexit Voice:changesystemfromwithin Exit:creatinganewsystem Voicevsexitinopensource:respectivelypatchvsfork TheUSisshapedbybothvoiceandexitsoisSiliconValley. HelpfulFact:NoncompetesarenotenforceableinCA. exitamplifiesvoice voicegainsmoreattentionwhenpeopleleaveindroves exitisametaconceptaboutalternativesthechoicetopeacefullyoptout reducetheimportanceofdecisionsmadeinDC(withoutlobbying,etc) SiliconValleyvsThePaperBelt SiliconValleyisreinventingeveryindustryandseriouslythreateninggovtpower USgovtcantbanthingsitwantstobananymore Paperjam WeneedtoactivelyrepudiatethatSVisthecauseoftheeconomyfault Technology is about reducing prices Govtraisesthem respondviavoice,reducesprice WhatwouldasocietyrunbySiliconValleylooklike? LarryPagewantstosetasideapartoftheworldforexperimentation.# Buildanoptinsocietyrunbytechnology/innovation,totallyseparatefromtheUS NotsayingtakeawayUSlawsjustmakinganexit YoudontactuallyhavetobuyyourownislandParticipatinginonlinecommunities(goingon Reddit/HN,etc)isanexitinasense Takingcontrolofyourownmedicinethroughquantifiedself Rejecttraditionalcurrency(UseBitcoin) Telepresencerobots. Chase Adam / Founder, Watsi - Bio - @ChaseAdam17 Sometimes you give people something that helps them the first time, but ends up hurting them on day 365 Thosewomenaresellingriceat1/100ththepricetheyshouldnormallyget.Whenevertheres ahumanitariandisaster,charitiessendfreeorheavilysubsidizedricetoHaiti.Thatput allofthelocalfarmersoutofbusiness. EveryTuesdaynight,weworkedonWatsi. Isaid,Fucknonprofits.ThelastthingIwantedtodowasstartalargenonprofit.Ithoughtitwas cool,fun,andwewantedtobuildthenonprofitthatweourselveswouldwanttodonateto.Being smallmeantwewerebeholdentonoone.Wecouldtakerisksanddothingsthatnononprofit woulddo. WatsisCoreValues: RadicallyTransparent:wewouldbethemosttransparentnonprofitintheworld.Well takescreenshotsofeachbanktransferandpostthemonline. 100%ofyourdonationfundsmedicalcare.Wellnevertakeacut,nomatterwhat. MinimalFundraising.Operationalfundraisingkillsnonprofitsbecauseitssucha distraction.Nonprofitsgetfocusedonannualgalas! CircularStructure:Nohierarchy.Nofounder/cofounder.Watsiisinaperpetualstateof beingfounded.EachnewpersonchangesWatsiandtakesitinanewdirection,sowere constantlygettingfounded. GoldenRule.Treatourpatientsthewaywedwanttobetreated. Launched:August23,2012at9AM.Immediatelysentemailtoournetwork,thinking Okay,itllgocrazynow.15minuteslater,nobody. Mymomdonated.Gracesmomdonated.Jessesmomdonated.Friendsandfamily.2 hourslater,thatwasit. DecideditshouldbepostedtoHackerNews.Ifitgotupvotes,Idtelltheteam.Ifnot,Id justdeleteitandpretenditneverhappened.Bylunchtimethepostwas#1whichresulted in16kuniquevisitors.Spendtheentiredayparticipatinginthecommentsection. Fundedeverymedicaltreatmentinourpipelinealmostinstantly.Hundredsofemails, Facebookposts,tweets,emails.Atthetime,IwasworkinginfinanceItoldmybossthat Ineedthedayoff.. NBCwroteitup GoogleALERT:TechCrunchwroteaboutWatsi.Ihadnoideatheywould,orthatthey evenknewwhatWatsiwas. I asked my girlfriend, Do you think all the startups that TechCrunch writes about are secretly as crappy as we are? Youcantevendonateanymorebecausewerecompletelyoutofpatients. Wethoughtwehad6monthsofpatients,andtheywerefundedinafewhours.Inourwildest dreamswedidntthinkthiswouldhappen. IquitmyjobandknewIhadtodoitfulltime. Wehadtofundraisebecausewehadnomoney.Ourfirstattemptwasatotaldisaster.Nobody tellsyouNo. EntireemailfromPaulGraham:AreyouintheBayArea?Ifso,Idliketomeet.*cannedlaughter* WatsigotthreemajorpointsoutofYC 1. focus:onlyfocusononemetric(likeAirbnbdid)inourcase,weeklydonations 2. network:advisors,entrepreneurs 3. stampofapproval:nobodywilltakeabetonanonprofit,YCdidandshowedtotheworld itwas/isworthit Find something to work on that you care more about than yourself. ItsliterallyimpossibleforWatsitofailbecauseallwehavetodoisfundonemorepatient. (tearsduetoWatsiitsmissionORbecauseweareaheadofschedule) Break
Jack Dorsey / Founder, Square
twitter HEREWEGO,BRACEYOURSELVES Insteadofdoingapresentation,JackDorseywillprovideuswithexcerptsfrombookshe recommendsandhasfoundvaluablelessonsin. Dorseysbookrecommendations: 1. TheArtSpirit,RobertHenri a. Artistsworkinanymedium. b. Theworkandthecraftarejustasimportantastheendproduct. c. Entrepreneursare,foralongtime,alonetherearecoststobeingan entrepreneur.Indoingsomethingmeaningful,youllhavetopayforpartofthe work,butyoullalsoenjoyitforalongtimeafter. d. Wearenotheretodowhathasalreadybeendone. e. Beamasterofyourowntools.Constantpractice f. Whatreallymattersistheworkthatimplementstheideas g. Dontworryabouttherejections. h. Weworksohardtotrytogetsomesortofpositivefeedback.Whenwelookat othersitseemssofast.Butittakesyearsandyearsandsomepatience. i. Essayswillbeshorterinwords,andlongerinmeaning. j. Wemustpaintonlywhatisimportanttous.Wemustnotrespondtooutside demands,theyknownotwhatwehavetogive. k. Youarebuildingwhatyouwanttoseeintheworld.Andyouarebettingotherswill wanttoseethatintheworldtoo.Sometimesyouwin,sometimesyoulose. 2. TheScoreTakesCareOfItselfBillWalsh a. Startfirstwithanidea,aphilosophy,apurpose,amission,andyoufindpeopleto helpyou.Bookprovidesaseriesoflistsofwhattodoandwhatnottodo b. Recommendtopeoplewhowanttobealeaderorleadateam c. Teachconnectionandextensions. d. Ifyoureacttotheoutside,youarebuildingsomeoneelsesroadmap e. TwelveHabitsofBeingaLeader i. Beyourself ii. Becommittedtoexcellence iii. Bepositive(thisisthehardestpart) iv. Beprepared v. Bedetailoriented(buildanorganizationthatcaresaboutitselfandraises thebar) vi. Beorganized vii. Beaccountable viii. Bebothnearsightedandfarsighted ix. Befair x. Befirm xi. Beflexible xii. Believeinyourself xiii. Bealeader.Leadbyexample. f. WhatNottoDo(missing3points) i. [missing] ii. [missing] iii. [missing] iv. Spendexcessiveamountsoftimesocializingwithsuperiors/subordinates v. Becomebestbuddieswithcertainemployees vi. KissingassTenuredstaffmembers vii. Trustotherstocarryoutyourfundamentalduties viii. Findwaystogetoutfromresponsibilitiesofyourposition ix. Promoteanorganizationthatisfun,lightheartedness,tensionfree. Youneedbalance g. GeneralPatton i. Praiseismoreimpactfulthancriticism ii. Tellpeoplewhatsexpectedofthem iii. Disciplineisbasedonprideintheposition iv. Officersmustassertthemselvesbyexampleandbyvoice v. Generalofficersmustbeseeninthefrontlineduringaction vi. Tendencyforthechainofcommandtooverloadjuniorofficersby excessiverequirements h. SuccessDiseasewhathappenswhenyoustartwinning? i. Formallycelebratevictoryandmakeeveryonefeelapartofit ii. Allowpatsonthebackforalimitedtime iii. Beapprehensiveaboutapplause iv. Developaplantogetyourteamworkingagain v. Addressspecificsituationsandfocusonthingsthatwere lessthanspectacular vi. Developaplanforyourstaffstoproducesuccessinthefirstplace vii. Usethetimeaftersuccesstomakeharddecisions viii. Neverfallpreytothebeliefthatgettingtothetopmakeseverythingeasier 3. Music:AngoisseAlainGoraguer(SergeGainsbourg)(listenonYoutube) Hehasnotesforeverysinglethingheisdoingandforeverypersoninhiscompanytokeep thingsorganized.Averyhandymemorydevice.Makedo/dontslists.Noteallthethingsyou neverwanttodoagain toomanyitems,toomanylists.andthemusiciskindofawkward.whatisdorseydoing?(its hardtobeBEFOREZucky) DorseysDailyList(thisisanexamplegivenofthememorydevice) Do Dont Staypresent Drinkhardliquororbeer(onweekdays) Drinkonlylemonwaterandredwine Avoideyecontact Standupstraight Belate Sayhellotoeveryone Setexpectationsforsomeoneandnotableto meetit Standupstraight Meditateonthislist Videojournaleverysingleday 7hoursofsleep 6setspushups/squats/planks.Run3miles Mark The Zuck Zuckerberg / Founder Facebook This is a question and answer session between Paul Graham and Mark. PG:WhatdidyoutesttoseeifFacebookworked? MZ:Idontknowwhatthefirstpieceofcodewas.Ibuiltstuffformyself.WhenIgottocollege,I wantedtobuildthingstoconnectwiththepeoplearoundme.IbuiltthefirstversionofFacebook duringthereadingperiod PG:WhenyoufirstlaunchedFacebook,whatdidFBhavethatcompetitorsdidnt? MZ:Itwasthefocusonrealidentityandtheconnectionsbetweenpeople.Thatinformationisnt justindexedoutthere,youhavetobuildtoolsthatgivepeoplethepowertosharethat themselves,andthosetoolsdidntexist.Interactionwasmostlyanonymousitwasscarytoput yourrealidentityonline.Noneofthecompetitorshadaconceptofconnections(relations betweenpeople).Friendingisimportantbecauseyoucouldputsomeoneonyourprofileandbe connected,thiswasrevolutionary. __ DontonlyuseFacebookconnect.Twitterisfinetoo,butusetwo. TheonlythingIgotoutofFacemashwasmywife PG:Hypotheticalquestion:ifyouhadntstartedFacebooktherewouldprobablybe somethinglikeFacebooknow.Wouldithavebeensomethingwhichstartedoutasa networkforcollegestudentsorwouldhaveMySpacegrownfurthertothatposition? MZ: PG:Howmanyschoolsdidyouhavebeforeyourealizethiswasit?Youstillthought somebigcompanycouldovertakeFacebook? MZ:Ispendabunchoftimeanalyzinghowwewereabletodoitallreasonsuggeststhatwe werentabletodoit.Allreportssuggestthatwedidnthavetheresources(servers,time employees).Weendedupbecomingthebiggestbecausewecaredmorethananyoneelse.It feltinourgut.Skeptics:theycouldntbecomeabusiness.Companieswouldntinvestbecause therewasntamodel.Someoneelsecandoit.Thebigemphasisisinternet.org(???) Our mission isnt to get 1/7 people in the world - our goal is to connect everyone PG:Isthereanythingthatyoufeelmakesyouuniquelyqualifiedtobethepersonto found/runFacebook? MZ:Iactuallythinkdeterminationisprobablythebiggestpiece.Somanythingsgowrong,and peopleaskaboutmistakes.Dontevenbothertryingtoavoidmistakes,justlearnfrommistakes. Somanythingscouldandwouldhavekilledus,butyoujustbouncebackandyoulearn.Nothing isimpossible.PGsummarizes:Sothebiggestmistakeisthemetamistakehmm(*canned laughter*) MZ:IknewnothingwhenIgotstarted(19yearsold). PG:Howdidyoulearn? MZ:Ionlyknewsolittleatthetime.PeterThieldemandedeveryonebeonvestingschedulesI didntevenknowwhatavestingschedule???was.Ohshit,nowwhatdowedo?That mistakeprobablycostmebillionsofdollars,butyoulearn! PG:Youstartoutasa19yearold,youhavethiswebsite,andyouhavetolearnhowtobea manager,tocreatethisorganization.Howdidyoulearnhowtomanagepeople? MZ:Keypoint:makemistakes,trialanderror. Nooneisgoodathiringpeople,outofthebox.Imabsolutelynot[amanagementexpert].Ihave developedafewheuristicsovertimethattheorganizationcouldunderstand. Wouldyouworkforthepersonyourehiring? Hirepeoplethatyoulearnfrom. IusedtobereallyterrifiedofpublicspeakingOvercamethisbythrowinghimselfintopublic speechwithoutpreparinganything. PG:Doyoulikemanagingpeople? MZsirrelevantanswer:Mostsmartpeoplelikelearning.Ifyoucansetupateamdynamicwhere youreconstantlylearningfromthepeoplearoundyou,ittendstowork. (haveyoueverseensuchanunorganizedquestionanswersession itislikequestion:completelyirrelevantanswer){yes,everypoliticaldebateever} MZonthebestwaytomakehire/nohiredecision:Answerthequestion,"Wouldyouworkforthis person?" MZ:Ineverhadagoalofstartingastartup.Mygoalwastogetittobeagoodcompanyas quicklyaspossibleandgetoutofriskystartupphase(buzzwords). PG:WereyouinfluencedbyPeterThiel,SeanParker,etal? MZ:IpaidalotofattentiontoMicrosoft(MZ:3.1and95wereunbelievablethings//PG:ina sensetheyreallywere(*cannedlaughter*)) PG:WasmakingFacebookaplatformagoalallalong? MZ:TurningFacebookintothatplatformcamelater,butIalwaysfeltthattherewould/shouldbe asocialplatform.Corething:Sharingisreallycoretohumanpsychology. (ps.IamhavingmorefuncollaboratingthanIwillprobablyeverhavereadingallofthisstuffagain 2aminmylocaltimezone)!!! PG:Canyourememberaparticularstrategicinsightfromearlyon? MZ:PeterThielwasreallyfocusedonnetworkeffects.Iagreewiththemodelthatasthe companygrows,thingscouldgoinamilliondirectionsandyouneedtopicktheoneortwothat actuallymatter.WhenIstartedsurroundingmyselfwithpeople,Ihadtolearntofocusonwhat mattersandtuneoutthenoise. PG:Whenyousayconnectingpeople,youdontnecessarilymeanalotmoresignups(?) MZ:Webuiltalotoftoolstohelppeopledowhattheyalreadywantedtodo.Ourjobwasto removeasmuchfrictionaspossible.Ourstrategywastobranchout,fromHarvard,toother schoolsthatwouldhavedensesocialconnectionstotheexistingnetworkandgrowthenetwork inameaningfulway. 2005collegefacebook(clone) strategy:theywantedtostartinplaceswewerent(coastsdiversity,race) dustintookitverypersonal Lockdownconcept Lockingeveryoneintheofficewhencompetitorgetsaheaduntilyouregainthelead Russia:cloneoffacebook,hardtocompetewith(notbeenabletobeat),hostsillegalfile downloads(warez) We try not to break the law Maybethoselockdownswereunnecessary PG:ignorecompetitors? Somecompaniesclonecompaniesthathavebeendevelopedinotherplacesandbringthemto europetogetaheadstartonthenetworkeffectinEurope. PG:Itseemslikethemostsuccessfulfoundersarealittlebitobsessed.Whatisitthatyoucare toomuchabout? MZ:Connectingeveryone.*enthousiastic*No,seriously!ThisaestheticsenseoftheworldIhaveisthat communitiesofpeoplecanchanneltheirenergytodogreatthings.Andwhentherewasallthis uncertainty,wealwayspushedonbecausewejustcaredmore.Andyoucouldsayitwasa startupthing,butwerestilldoingit.Nowwerehereandweconnectmorethanabillionpeople, butwerepouringtonsofmoneyandresourcesintoconnectingpeoplewhodontevenhave internetaccess!Becausewethinkitstherightthingtodo. PG:Soitsamovement,andFacebookthecompanyissortofa subsetofit. Female:Mark,yourelikeafinewine,yougetbettereveryyear.Oohlala. Nate Blecharczyk / Founder @nathanblec - Bio airbnb Everyoneexpectstopullahockeystick. Hopefully,year2comesalone,stillhockeysticky3,y4,andifyou'rereallylucky,y5andyou stillhavethathockeystick. 4yearstoservicefirst4millionguests.Inthelastninemonths?anotherfivemillion. 73xgrowth Anygivennight,150kpeoplestayingduetoAirbnb The startup journey is like going to the Olympics Youregonnafailmoretimesthanyoullsucceed,youneedtopersevere. Everyexperienceshouldbeadditive,youshouldalwaysbelearning. Joinedastartup:learnedeverythingnottodo Youcanchangeyouridea,pivot,butyoucantchangeyourpartnerswithoutstartingover. Givethisalotofthought. Goal:threeclickstobookit(greatUXprinciple) Thereisalotofstresswhenyouarestartingacompanyandnooneisgettingpaid Yougottoberealisticaboutwhatyoucanaccomplish TroughofSorrows:whereyouworkreallyhard,andnothingyoudomatters (wasittheirpitchordidtheyobserveit?didntgetthat)Oneoftheinvestorstheypitched walkedoutmidsmoothie(bets/heregretsthat) Beforeyouquit,youhavetogiveita100% GoesinforYC,interviewgoesofftherails.convincePGoftheircharacter Youneedpeoplewhonevergiveup RamenProfitabilityestimatedat$1000aweek(makejustenoughtopaythefounders' livingexpenses) You can change your idea, pivot, but you cant change your partners without starting over. PG:Ithoughtyouguyswerecockroaches PG:Surestroutetosuccessistobethecockroachesofthecorporateworld. "It'sbetter,initially,tomakeasmallnumberofusersreallyloveyouthanalargenumber kindoflikeyou.PaulBuchheit(creatorofGmail) Dothingsthatdontscale(likemeeteveryuser,all40ofthem*cannedlaughter*)change theirprofilepagesandpricing,takeprofessionalphotosimprovetheoverallqualityofthe placelistings Perseveranceiswhatmattersthemost Ifyoucanpaceyourselfsoyoudontquittooearly,youcandoamazingthings. Investors dont want Ms, they want Bs baby - Sam Altman IfanyonewantstohearthestoryofAirbnbastoldbyJoeGebbia(anothercofounder):hetellsitwell AtAge14:Gotpaid$1000foraprogramminggigincreasedconfidence PGs lifecycle of a startup You need that confidence Youre going to fail more times than youll succeed. Attendance Name - Keywords - Phone / iMessage - URL (max 1 line total, per person) 1. Elliot@intelliotadnetworkwebiOSmultiplayergamesPHPObjC2138634775 2. ZacAltmanfoodtravelObjCJavascriptiOSaustraliazac@basind.com http://www.loungebuddy.com/ 3. KatherineYipTechConferenceProducer,UIDesign,BizDev katherine.yip21@gmail.comhttp://www.linkedin.com/in/katherineyip 4. HiteshParasharPython,Django,ObjectiveChitesh@appcircles.com www.linkedin.com/in/hitesh/ 5. MitchellKarchemskyroboticsdesignjavapythonmitch.karchemsky@gmail.com http://www.linkedin.com/pub/mitchellkarchemsky/78/346/613 6. YixiZhangPython,Ruby,JavaScriptyixi.zhang.max@gmail.comangel.co/yixizhang 7. BillnguyenPYTHON,nodejsbil.nguyen@gmail.com@bilnguyen 8. NicolasDUCDODONExperienceDesignernicolas.ducdodon@gmail.com 9. RomainArandelMScinFinancegraduateromain.arandel@gmail.com 10. ChrisBuckleyComm./BrandingConsultantchrstphr_|chrisdotbuckley@gmail.com 11. VikasLalwaniBusinessDevelopmentandMarketinglalwani.vikas20@gmail.com 12. ColinHeilbutBusinessDevelopment&PRcolinheilbut@gmail.com 13. JoelGarciaBizDevforCleantechinMexicojoelgarciagalan@gmail.com 14. AnthonyChenwww.thebalanceddesigner.comac.chen1@gmail.com 15. JonathanLuDesigner/mobiledeveloperinHongKonghttp://jonathan.lu awesome@jonathan.lu 16. BrandonQuachStudentbrandon.quach@gmail.com 17. JohnnyChangUIUCjohnny@johnnychang.com 18. DuncanSmithDesigner(UX/UI/Web)/FullStackDeveloperhttp://duncanmsmith.com hello@duncanmsmith.com256.682.6570 19. ErikLinde,http://notezilla.io 20. AdamSimmonsC++,UX/UI,psychology,founderajeansimmons@gmail.com @princeofcodehttp://awesomium.com 21. MikeTung,CEOofDiffbot,anAPIforextractingdatafromwebpageshttp://diffbot.com 22. kufreInyangElectricalElectronicEngineering(Bsc.)@isjustku 23. RaedMarjiPredictiveAnalytics,RecomendationEnginesCTOJoGeeks.com @hla3mi 24. JonathanChizickBusinessDev&Marketinghttp://jonathanchizick.com@JCinSV 25. TineRavnikarPartyhikerTeam 26. DanGaileyhttp://techendo.co/Ruby/PHP/ObjC/etcdan@techendo.co 27. LaurensSeghersStudent,FutureEntrepreneurrale.com 28. MikeGlombaRubyonRailsandJava,scalablewebappshttp://www.codedose.com mglomba@codedose.com 29. RicardoSanchezSoftwareEngineering(fullstack)@rickyCoFounderof TheTechMaphttp://www.thetechmap.com [Addyourselftothislistbyaddinganewlineabove] Meta Addyourcomments,questions,andcriticismsofthisdocumentrighthere. FirstandforemostIthinkIspeakforalluswhenIsaythatIamimpressedwithhowthismany peopleareabletofrictionlesslycollaboratewithoutoutsidecommunication.+1 Q:WatchingtheLivestreambutdidntgetthechancetoattendwonderingifIshould/couldput myselfonthelistabove? A:Yes,Definitely! Q:WatchingthelivestreamhereinAccra,Ghanaandamnotreallyhavingasmoothwatching experienceduetomyslowbroadband,Ihopetherewillbelinkstothe#startupschoolvideos later? A:Theyhavevideosforthe2012sessionssoIassumetherewillberecordedvideosforthis year,too.See:https://www.youtube.com/user/StartupSchool12 Q:Whyareyouguyssoawesome? A:Yearsoftraining,participation,andreflection. Q.Isthepointofthisdocumenttoprovideatranscriptoftheentireevent,ordistillthetalking pointsofspeakersintoactionableinformation? A.Mymissionistoconnectpeopletogetherbyenablingthemtocollaborateinrealtime.Myfirst attemptisWhiteboard,anappIfirstreleasedin2009andtodayhasabout300kMAU.Butthat wasmerelythefirststep.Ihaveahypothesis:ImprovingNotesandtextbasedcollaborationwill enablepeopletocommunicatemorebroadly,deeply,andaccomplishmore.Thisdocisthusan experimenttotestthishypothesis.Ifthissoundsinterestingtoyou,letschat.Elliot(creatorof thisdoc) Therearesomanyofthesekindofappsbutnoonedoesthejob.Keepdoingwhatyou dotobecometheonethatrulesthemall.:p Q.Anyoneinhereworkingonanystartupsrightnow?Andifso,areyouhiring? A.Yes. Well,Iamofftobed.ItwasafunrideandIwillseewhetherthisdocumentkeepsgetting updates.Thankseverybodyforhavingapleasantnightandmaybewewillevermeetagain.Bye, bye!:) PS.Elliot,ifyoueverreadthisyouareatthefrontpageofHNandpeakedataround50 GoogleDocsisaprettyremarkabletool. Amen. Somestuffworksflawless(likethecollaboration)butotherthingslikesimplyputtinginimagesin documentsisahellofajob. Hahayeahthatwasprettyrough. HowaboutGoogleKeep?Itisstillnotavailableinmycountry.LookslikeagreatUIforonthego use. >ItisverylimitedinfunctionalitycomparedtoGoogleDocs.Youonlygetsimpleformatting,to dolists,imagesandsuch.Youarerestrictedtowhatyoucandoandamuncertainwhetherit hasDocsesquecollaboratingfunctionality.Ithinkitisintendedasalightweightnoteappfor mobile. DefinitelythemostfunIvehadataremoteevent(thisistheonlyremoteeventIveattendedbut still). ~Cosigned 3 . Agenda: ShamelessEasterEgg:#500Stronghttp://youtu.be/cKVScfsmQo http://youtu.be/cKVScfsmQo?t=2m26s