Everything You Wanted To Know About Startup Building But Were Afraid To Ask

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/10/07/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-startup-building-but-were-afraid-to-ask/

by vaksel • 17 years ago

64 24 17 years ago

For those who are impatient like myself there is a video with working audio here http://vator.tv/news/show/2009-10-07-aaron-patzer-lays-bare-...

startuppal• 17 years ago

Thanks. Great stuff by a great guy.

grinich• 17 years ago

Also, check out Startup Bootcamp next week at MIT. It's free and features many founders and entrepreneurs, including some from YC.

http://startupbootcamp.mit.edu

It will likely be streamed as well. Details will get posted to HN on Monday.

fjabre• 17 years ago

Thanks. Just registered.

lunaru• 17 years ago

Everything he talks about is subject to the old YMMV rule, except the last part about entrepreneurship - there isn't a single entrepreneur who walks away from the experience of starting a company unchanged. Success or failure, you're guaranteed to be a different person afterward. It's really not a bad deal :)

krav• 17 years ago

You nailed it.

terpua4• 17 years ago

An informative video, especially the % given to cofounders/early employees but this is a very atypical startup (when they were starting up) with VC funding (early on) and seemingly everything going right. I mean they signed up Wilson Sonsini as if you just walk in, pitch and that's it. That wasn't my personal experience talking to Wilson Sonsini (via a referral).

I think most of us have a lot harder time in all departments (getting cofounders, early employees for cheap, legal, etc.).

sachinag• 17 years ago

I have never, ever, heard of a law firm turning down a new client. Now, WSGR can decline to defer expenses at their discretion, but surely anyone can engage WSGR to do the basic incorporation work for a reasonable fee.

terpua4• 17 years ago

I was referring to engagement beyond basic incorporation but investor agreements, series A docs, etc.

We were turned down (in 2000) by WSGR. We went with Orrick instead.

tptacek2• 17 years ago

My experience with WSGR in 2005 was that they were ultra-interested in helping us despite a near total lack of any credible way of paying them in the immediate future. I'm guessing Mint is not atypical in this regard.

Could it have been the Manila thing?

terpua4• 17 years ago

I was in SV at that time. Perhaps it was the sign of the times and WSGR had their pick of startups. Luckily, we were able to raise VC money but at the time, it was a bit demoralizing to have a legal firm say no to your money.

tptacek2• 17 years ago

The advice to ignore overhead during seed stage and "clean it up when you get funding" is interesting, but you should be aware that if you screw anything up with your employee's taxes, the IRS and, in particular, state governments are going to fuck with your employees. I saw it happen on an innocuous clerical error.

I'd be careful with this.

mattiss• 17 years ago

Excellent video. Must refrain from quitting job......

ntoshev• 17 years ago

Please, please edit these TechCrunch titles to make them informative.

maxklein2• 17 years ago

Don't even dream that this will be your path. This story is like reading a book on how to become an actor written by Steven Spielbergs son.

Aaron is an insider. He belongs to the club. You most likely don't. You'll have to hustle a lot more, you'll have to prove yourself first of all.

mahmud• 17 years ago

Excuses excuses.

[Edit:

Oh, so HN doesn't like me calling a spade a spade. Fine. But let's face it; even if the man is well connected, at least he is able to leverage his connection to get a decent deal for his work. His connections didn't help him build mint; he did that with his team. He went out and got a programmer who was making $1k a month! If he was so well connected, surely, he could have afforded a $200k/mo boutique J2EE crew and built something fancy.

All of us have experience, relationships, skills, and other assets that give us an insight into a particular market segments and puts us at advantage before all others. The wise ones know how to find these assets and exploit them to the fullest.]

RiderOfGiraffes• 17 years ago

I have found, in general on HN, that snide comments, even if you think they contain a grain (or nugget) or truth, with be down-mud. If you have a point, make it clearly and carefully.

My advice - you you choose to accept it - is to be clear, concise, and more complete. Snide doesn't work here, as your experience should already have shown.

Well thought-out - if negative - comments rarely get down-mud. Your original appeared to add no value.

maxklein2• 17 years ago

I'm really the last guy to believe in any excuses. I am not in any way saying what he did is bad, or that it fell into his lap, but the fact of the matter is that someone like me does not even have close to a shot at doing what he does in the same way he did. I cannot follow his path, because for me it will lead to nothing but frustration.

If I send anybody of importance an email or anything, it does not get replied. If I tried talking to anyone about funding, it will get ignored. I don't have references, I don't have people that will vouch for me, I don't have anyone that will introduce me, I don't have any name-brand colleges. He has them.

Now, if I tried to cold call the same people he gets introduced to, I will meet with failure. For me, the best path is to FIRST establish why these people would want to talk to me at all, either by profiling myself in some noticable way, or by showing them the money. That's the path that works for us normalos.

Insight into market segments are things that are learned the hard way - by work and focus. Most people will not have this, but will rather follow such paths and try to find funding, not understanding that these people are different from them.

coglethorpe2• 17 years ago

> Aaron is an insider. He belongs to the club.

How is he an insider? Because he went to Princeton? Is he related somehow to Larry, Serge, Bill, or one of the Steves?

abossy• 17 years ago

I would like to know this as well. He is clearly an insider NOW. I would imagine few successful entrepreneurs start out this way.

edw519• 17 years ago

edw519's informal rule for giving advice:

If you have suceeded once: "Here's what I did."

If you have succeeded several times: "Here's what I did, and here are the patterns that I have noticed."

If you have succeeded many times: "Here's what I found that works and may work for you too."

If you have never succeeded: You should be listening, not talking.

No advice should give the "rules" (there are none) or claim to know "everything" (you don't).

Everything You Wanted To Know About Startup Building But Were Afraid To Ask

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