How to Start a Startup Lecture 3 Notes

how-to-start-a-startup-lecture-3

don't follow intuition
trust instincts on people

2nd
don't need expertise in startups (zuckerberg)
need expertise in users
go through the motions
imitated outward forms
need to make something people want
"playing house"
trained to go through motions
can't game the system
best way to get investors: do well
no one to trick: only users
faking works to some extent with investors
gaming the system doesn't work everywhere

3rd
life consuming
doesn't get easier
easier later than earlier
universities can teach you about startups...
...but that's not what you need to know
need to know needs of users
will kill free time

founders need to make them take off
it's really hard

5th
you can't tell
confident ones aren't any better
tests are different from olds

6th
ideas don't come from thinking of ideas
airbnb good at organizing people and design

how do you know if you're doing the right thing
real problems are interesting
turned out to be useful
best ideas are ideas, not startups

nontechnical: other people help
technical: sales, bringing coffee to programmers

first employees should be peers
don't need to be managed

productivity
work on things you like
make yourself work

side project -> startup
you will know
when it takes over a lot of your life

any startup works with yc

tech spreading as a fractal stain
anything on the edge is good

meet likeminded people at midsize companies

academics is pointless
skills can be applied
opportunity cost
meet people

design is important: nest

design and programming are hard skills
bizdev is soft
finance is harder
sales: ability to sell is important, if you're selling