[DilipJ]

ouch. this is why it's dangerous to read a pg essay on entrepreneurship when you're in college. He makes it look easy, and some kids just follow their dreams without building a support base first. Remember that for every guy like pg, there are 9 others just like him who went bankrupt. Coming out of college, you should always try to find a stable, legit job and try to build up a capital base. Get paid by someone else and develop a level of professional competency, build up your credit score and take out a loan and do something on the side, and only go solo once who you have some stable revenue. This is the way to do it, unless you come from money or are lucky.

So here's my steps to you for changing things around:

1) Completely revamp your resume, and to stop referring to yourself as unemployed. You were self-employed.

2) write down a list of all the competitors your startup had that are located nearby. Find out the phone numbers/emails to the higher ups in those companies through web searching.

3) phone or email those guys, and say that you are writing a freelance article about the industry. Say you want to interview them for their expertise (all guys love to have their ego's stroked: that's the way to get that introduction you want).

4) during the interview (preferably in person, or by phone), ask them some general questions about the industry, and mention that you had attempted to do a startup in the field but failed. Try to ask questions related to how their business succeeded, in order to compare and contrast with your own experiences. Ask them to give you advice on whether to pursue another startup in this field (even though you may have no intention of doing so) or look for a job in the industry.

Now at this point, it can go 1 of 2 ways. If you're lucky, the other person may see your interest for the field, and ask to see some of your work. If it's good, you will probably move to the top of the pile when a new hire is needed. If that doesn't happen, then repeat as necessary with every other company.

That's a better bet than anything else out there, don't waste your time with the craigslist blackhole

[pg]

I make starting a startup look easy?

"Imagine the stress of working for the Post Office for fifty years. In a startup you compress all this stress into three or four years. You do tend to get a certain bulk discount if you buy the economy-size pain, but you can't evade the fundamental conservation law. If starting a startup were easy, everyone would do it."

http://paulgraham.com/wealth.html

"So I'll tell you now: bad shit is coming. It always is in a startup."

http://paulgraham.com/die.html

"As you go into a startup, you'll be thinking "everyone says it's really extreme." Your next thought will probably be "but I can't believe it will be that bad." If you want to avoid being surprised, the next thought after that should be: "and the reason I can't believe it will be that bad is that my model of work is a job.""

http://paulgraham.com/really.html

[danshapiro]

You're very direct and straightforward about the process you went through, which makes the process look approachable. You've made it easier for companies to get started via YC, and people don't realize that "easier" is relative, and it's still really hard. You talk about how to solve nearly every problem an entrepreneur might find, which makes people think that their problems are all fundamentally solvable. And it's a natural outgrowth of what you do that you spend more time talking about the successes than the failures, even though in reality the latter probably outnumber the former.

You're doing your job well, and a natural byproduct is that it looks easy. Watching Michael Jordan makes it look like it's not that hard to dunk. Doesn't matter how many times you disclaim otherwise.

Not sure why you got downvoted, though.

[nir]

I wouldn't say easy, but there seems to be an underlying message that it is a deterministic, repeatable process - if you're willing to endure the stress, are smart and hard working you'll succeed - when in reality luck plays a pretty big part, especially in built to flip startups.

[pg]

"Actually the best model would be to say that the outcome is the product of skill, determination, and luck. No matter how much skill and determination you have, if you roll a zero for luck, the outcome is zero."

http://paulgraham.com/really.html

"There is a large random factor in the success of any company. So the guys you end up reading about in the papers are the ones who are very smart, totally dedicated, and win the lottery."

http://paulgraham.com/wealth.html

[DilipJ]

Granted, but sometimes the impression that comes off to a young kid may be akin to that of Lebron/Kobe telling innercity kids that they should study and go to college because not everyone can make it to the NBA. Stuff like that falls on deaf ears, because the only thing that the kids take away is "this guy with a high school degree gets millions for dribbling a ball and that means I can too".

Perhaps YC should focus more on attracting guys in their 30's or 40's? You'll end up with candidates who are more grounded and who will have a better idea of the risks they are entering into. They might also come up with better business and consumer solutions than the youths that typically apply. It might be worth trying out, even just as an experiment,to have one of your funding rounds be set aside exclusively for those who are 30+

[nir]

The NBA example is exactly what I meant.

I'm not really referring to PG or YC specifically, more to the general attitude in the startup community: it's becoming increasingly becoming Hollywood-like, with founder profiles in Vanity Fair and NY Magazine (and startups like Quora that follow the Hollywood club model of celebrity hype + watered down drinks), but while most people know that success in Hollywood is largely random, few realize how much this applies to exit-strategy startups.

[rphlx]

But older people have more commitments, more balanced lives, a higher price tag, and often less energy. Early/mid 20s male fanatics are the workhorses of the engineering world and surely the best bet from an investment POV. They will break their backs for you(r capital). Just pair them with 1 or 2 older guys for guidance/experience.

[endlessvoid94]

Sorry, but fuck that. It's totally possible to do this without a job. Live from savings, or do consulting, or something. There's no need to get a full time job.

I couch surfed and therefore didn't need to pay rent for about a month. Met a ton of people through HN, some school contacts, and misc. friends. The network isn't enormous but it's definitely big enough to not require a full time job to get started.

[DilipJ]

Where does a fresh college grad get savings from? Who is going to hire him to consult?

The reality is, most college grads are coming out with 5 or 6 figure student loan debt. Repayment starts within 6 months. You NEED to find a job to start repaying that. If you decide to go the full entrepreneurial route and end up missing even one payment, then you can go into immediate default and fines will be added, and your credit score will be impacted. If and when your entrepreneurial venture fizzles (as most do), you will have a tough time finding a job outside the startup community, because your low credit score and possible wage garnishment issues is a red flag to the pinheads in Human Resources.

This is reality, and I think kids in their 20's who go the startup route straight from college should be made aware of the risks.

[jmtame]

those college loans are split up, you pay them off in monthly increments like $100 or $200 a month, which is basically a car payment. you could consult for companies with technical skills on roughly the same amount an engineer would get in salary (probably higher if you can negotiate that you're not taking benefits, equity, etc). that's at least $5k per month if you're smart, determined, and enjoyable to work with. i know friends consulting with funded startups on a contractual basis; it's sometimes easier on the startup because they don't have to offer benefits and there may be tax advantages with contracting vs full-time hires.

my guess is his antisocial personality isn't helping his odds, but even that is a controllable factor. from talking to a lot of founders and asking what they look for in hiring, they almost all say "personality" first; if the guy comes across the wrong way (antisocial) that might hurt his chances, although not saying that explains why he hasn't had luck.

[gazrogers]

Where do savings come from if not from a job?

[unemployedinSF]

I completely agree. Part of the reason I wrote this was as a cautionary tale to other entrepreneurs. Thanks for the detailed advice.

[DilipJ]

Good luck! I know things are rough now, but it will get better. It can be tough feeling like the whole world is succeeding but yourself, but dont let the FUD associated with that get you down.

And if you do start another venture in the future, this experience can be an asset, and one day you will look back on this as a trial you had to go through

[jmtame]

for every guy like pg, there are 9 others just like him who went bankrupt

where did you pull this number from?

[bdr]

"He makes it look easy" -- How?