

Feedback vs. Feedback - jonathan

Hi everyone. For obvious reasons, YC does not give any feedback after rejection; this is completely understandable considering the large number of applicants. But I think there is a difference between feedback (what lacks in your application) and feedback (you concept is cool but not a viable business and there is nothing you can do about it). These are 2 different things and I think people should know about the latest so that they don't waste their time pursuing it and focus on another idea. 
The adventure continues...

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brk
Only you can decide if your concept is worth pursuing. At the end of the day
YC is only a tiny group of people that know about a few things (relative to
the world, or even the VC world at large). Their opinion of your idea or
application is by no means the end of the road.

Many many founders who have gone through a more traditional funding cycle will
tell you about 1 VC that completely degraded their pitch, and another that ate
it up and delivered money in wheelbarrows.

It might also be simply that your idea is highly viable, but just not AS
VIABLE as some of the other applicants. Common Angels, for example, might see
your pitch and want to buy in.

Look at some of the opportunities Guy Kawasaki has passed on (Yahoo, Google),
and what those companies have become.

If you believe in your idea, keep at it. If you're only validated by someone
else's opinion, seek traditional employment.

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jonathan
I couldn't agree more, but:

1) You can't just ignore YC's decision regarding your project, especially when
you believe that your webapp will revolutionize the Web in some ways. These
people are highly experienced profesionals:if you haven't caught their
attention, get back to work because something key is missing.

2) YC is not like any other funding cycles... we are talking about mentorship
here as opposed to financial back-up. Of course there are plenty of ways to
raise money, but very few to get strong expertise.

~~~
german
I believe it's not just about mentorship, the best experience is knowing
people like you and sharing knowledge and ideas.

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gscott
I believe feedback is a never ending loop. I give you some feedback, you make
changes and present them to me, I give you more feedback, you make more
changes, come back to me. It never ends. Since Y Combinator has so few spots
they can afford to go with the ideas that are best formed and they like best.

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brlewis
It would have to work like this:

(1) You send a $100.00 deposit in advance of your application.

(2) YC ticks off boxes next to a stock set of sentences that describe their
impressions based on your application.

(3) If 3 months go by and you haven't contacted them to argue about it, you
get your deposit back.

Otherwise they would have no way of dealing with the torrent of two-way
conversations that would ensue. They're evaluating hundreds of applications;
they can't deliberate over each one like a jury.

