
Despite Y Combinator Growth, Paul Graham Still Coding - churp
http://www.forbes.com/sites/tomiogeron/2011/08/25/despite-y-combinator-growth-paul-graham-still-coding/
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warwick
I really don't like the bias in the headline. It seems to imply that coding
isn't something you'd do _after_ you got growth.

Why not "How Coding Helps Y Combinator Manage Growth" or "Paul Graham Keeps
Coding to Help Y Combinator Keep Growing"?

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philwelch
I think the implication is that pg would be too busy running YC to code. Even
if it doesn't happen to him, it happens to a lot of founders.

~~~
wheels
I think there are a lot of founders who don't code on their company's product
anymore (though it's apparently not a pure factor of size – Gates and
Zuckerberg are known for actually writing code many years in), but it'd be
weird if they didn't write code _at all_. It would imply that writing code is
never the most efficient way to accomplish a task that they want solved. Even
with infinite resources at your beck and call, it's often faster to write a
quick script than to explain to someone else what that script should do (and
to continue to do so through whatever iterations seem appropriate).

I'm tempted to say that those who don't continue to hack were never really
hackers in the first place. For a hacker, writing code is just one of the
normal ways to interact with a computer.

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kinkora
Sorry to sound blunt but why is it a given that if a person is successful, it
is surprising that he/she is doing "lesser" things? I never understood that
notion.

If I was successful/rich/etc, I will still be coding on my free time. Heck, I
will be washing my own dishes, buying my own groceries, driving myself and so
on. And I know many other "rich/successful/etc" people who are exactly like
that.

~~~
lionhearted
> Sorry to sound blunt but why is it a given that if a person is successful,
> it is surprising that he/she is doing "lesser" things?

If a top scientist/inventor/entrepreneur is doing routine tasks that he
doesn't enjoy, he's losing time that could either be spent creating new
amazing things _or_ relaxing/recharging and enjoying his life.

If you enjoy any particular activity - driving or cooking - by all means keep
doing it. But if you're capable of improving the lives of thousands or even
millions of people, then hire a car and driver and work in the backseat of
your Rolls Royce or whatever. The world will be net better for it.

(Though, coding doesn't fall into that routine task category - it being a
creative action that sharpens the mind. Doing laundry does though, except on
the off chance it's really relaxing and enjoyable for you.)

~~~
dwiel
I'll take the bait. It seems possible to me that there could also be value in
doing some routine tasks that you don't enjoy. Even for the top
scientist/inventor/entrepreneur. I've tried to come up with a list of some
reasons why, but I think they all eventually come down grounding. If you
always have someone else performing a certain class of tasks for you, like
unenjoyable routine tasks, you'll be disconnecting certain feedback loops and
avoiding learning certain lessons.

I'll take for example cleaning up your house/apartment/room on your own. I've
noticed that when my apartment gets messy it is usually an indicator of my
internal mind state. It is a helpful indicator that there is something
bothering me or something that needs to be dealt with. If I always had someone
cleaning up for me, I might miss these types of indicators, and the whole of
my performance might degrade (to the new loss of the world as you put it).

I also understand that people in the past have probably said this about all
kinds of things that we now have machines or human specialization doing for
us. So maybe what is more important is to make sure that while you are in your
prime, or getting to your prime, you learn about which of these routine tasks
are actually helping you, which you depend on for your mental well being, and
better understanding the trade-offs if the decision to never have to do them
again comes up. Maybe you don't need your entire house to be the canary in the
coal mine - maybe a few house plants that you make sure to water yourself
would do the job well enough ...

~~~
lionhearted
Good comment. I agree, especially in the case of people who have never had to
do routine tasks.

Eventually though, you come face to face with the fact that you've only got 24
hours per day, every day, and it is possible to get maxed out. So for someone
who has internalized the lessons of hard work, cleanliness, order, structure,
whatever - then moving to more broadly expansive planes of action (or just
relaxing/recharging/enjoying) seems a good tradeoff. I reckon there's other
"canary" indicators - how much you've written lately if you're a writer, how
much you've coded lately if you're a programmer, how the financial statements
look if you're an investor, and so on.

But yeah, I agree. Good perspective, good discussing here.

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scythe
In the terminology of Paul Erdos, people who had stopped doing math had died.
People whose blood had stopped flowing had simply left.

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molecule
Despite Forbes Article, PG Still Reading, Commenting On Hacker News

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michaeldhopkins
It's true that one of the most productive things to do during a large meeting
is program.

~~~
larsberg
Often, the most productive thing to do is leave.

The day in my management career that I learned to walk in to a large meeting,
say, "<Direct report R> will be making this decision for my team" and then
walk out was the day I reclaimed my work life. It may sound sad to IC types,
but particularly in large companies managers end up invited to meetings just
because some random person wants to ensure official buy-in/approval.

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staunch
Essay Request PG: How to Present Your Startup. I'd _love_ to know what advice
you give to all the YC companies about presenting in front of press and
investors.

~~~
pg
<http://paulgraham.com/investors.html>

~~~
staunch
That wast fast! I thought it usually took you longer to write these :-)

(Kidding of course, thanks for pointing it out. I'm sure I read it at the time
but forgot about it.)

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katem
Is there a list of common problems Y founders make?

~~~
pg
There's a general list of common mistakes here:

<http://paulgraham.com/startupmistakes.html>

~~~
ccollins
From Mistake 10: "People interested in local events (that one is a perennial
tarpit)". Would you please give an example or elaborate a little bit more on
that?

I fear I may heading for the tarpit...

~~~
pg
This is one of those ideas that people think of, notice that no one is already
doing it, and decide that there is therefore an opportunity. But the reason no
one is already doing it is not that no one has thought of it. It's one of the
most common startup ideas. The reason no one is doing it is (I believe) that
users don't want it.

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onan_barbarian
This article makes me wonder:

status-of-arc-p?

~~~
pg
I hack a fair amount in it, less on it. I'd hoped to release a new version of
News soon, and thus also a new version of Arc. But I am pretty busy with YC.

~~~
spenrose
Feature request: readable URLs. /title-of-story, /title-of-
story/comment/username, etc.

~~~
SamReidHughes
You should just get better at memorizing item id's.

~~~
jpr
Not sure if serious or just mildly autistic...

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PhilipG
This should come as no surprise. Writing code is a medium of expression like
writing english or drawing or using a piece of software via a GUI.

Like most of us I imagine Paul would do all of these on a daily basis.

~~~
georgieporgie
That's a really interesting thought. Is there any correlation between
programming and writing abilities? (not that you were saying that) They're
superficially dissimilar, but each is a creative endeavor that deals with
formulating ideas and organizing them into a particular flow... It does seem
that a number of great programmers are gifted writers, as well, but this could
be blogger selection bias.

~~~
saraid216
In my experience, a good coder is also a good writer and, if they get over the
visceral fear of public speaking, a good speaker.

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sayemm
Love this quote: ”That’s how we deal with scale,” Graham says. “We write more
software and hire people.”

Also true for startups.

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jamesladd
I think it is good and very telling that PG still codes. I wonder if he uses
arc?

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johnx123-up
Long live hacker spirit, long live PG

~~~
johnx123-up
Why downvoting? (Will help newbies like me)

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uuseer
I find funny the related post in forbes.com

Repelling Mosquitos After The Hurricane: DEET vs. Dengue Fever

