

The Founder Institute – A Graduate’s Firsthand Account - shabadoozie
http://roachblog.com/2010/03/17/the-founder-institute-a-graduates-firsthand-account/

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jpatte
I was accepted in Paris FI program for this summer, however I didn't pay the
fee yet because I was also invited for an interview at YC in 10 days. I must
decide today if I enter the FI program or not, knowing that YC is clearly my
best choice but I can't wait for their answer.

I could follow the FI program until May, however if (cross fingers) I'm
accepted at YC I won't be able to follow the FI program until the end. I do
have the 800$, do you think it's worth using it for at least 2 months at FI?

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vdibart
My first question would be why you consider YC to be your best choice. No
offense intended to the host of this forum, but there's a lot of reasons that
might not be true. Clearly YC gets better press, but as with FI it's not for
everyone. A lot depends on the stage of your idea/company.

My gut reaction to the underlying question is that you should focus on
figuring out which program is better for your situation and devote yourself to
it. Having been through the FI experience I personally find the idea of using
it as a fallback or filler a bit insulting, but Institute doesn't make that
distinction.

~~~
jpatte
Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. But as you said yourself, just because I
think YC is a better choice for me does not mean it's true, and it's certainly
does not mean it is true for everyone and YC > FI. So I'm not sure why you
feel this way...

Thanks for your advices, I will consider both programs carefully. One of the
aspects which make me prefer YC so far (as an European) is the "Silicon Valley
adventure", I just don't want to miss this chance :) So again I'm not saying
YC is better than FI, I was just wondering if it's worth the money if I don't
go to the end of the program. And honestly I think it is, I just wanted to
have some input to assess my decision.

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vdibart
Not taking it personally, no worries. Just want to make sure the FI doesn't
get disrespected. Realize I might not be in the right place for that though :)

I certainly don't understand YC as well as I do FI, but I would think a lot of
it comes down to how far along you are with your company. FI might be more
valuable if you're less advanced - have a great idea, maybe a prototype but
not a ton else. YC is probably more suited for companies that are further
along. YC grads can feel free to correct me on that.

Whichever you choose I'd make sure you really, fully, totally, unequivocally
understand as much about the details of the program as you can. As others have
mentioned here and elsewhere, there are bound to be surprises no matter which
program you enter. The goal is to minimize the impact of those surprises.

~~~
pg
_YC is probably more suited for companies that are further along._

No; we've funded groups that had been launched for a year and others that
didn't even have an idea yet. Our threshold is simply whether the founders are
ready to work full time on the company.

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vdibart
Thanks for the clarification pg.

I would think that it'd be pretty uncommon to be accepted at the pre-idea
stage though, no? I mean, seed funding for literally nothing more than a good
team is pretty tough to come by. For FI that's actually pretty common (at
least in my experience).

~~~
pg
It's quite common with us. A lot of the companies we fund do something
different than they applied with.

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vdibart
I'm in the NY program, which is finishing up next week. I know a couple of
others in the NY program lurk here as well. Feel free to hit me up if you have
questions about Founder Institute.

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awolf
My background going into the program was purely technology based. I had a very
limited view of what it actually took to start a company. When the program
started I was so busy with development that the time spent in sessions seemed
like a much bigger sacrifice than the $800.00.

Looking back I can firmly say I was clueless. As a sole founder I was
constantly busy, but I wasn't focusing on what mattered. I was working in a
vacuum with blinders on. Through direct interaction with dozens of successful
CEOs I was able to start to see the forest through the trees. I'm now focusing
on 1) the business development and partnership creation that my company needs
to get off the ground 2) customer development to ensure that what I have built
is a product that user's will buy (better late than never). Coding is how I
procrastinate.

Also, the mentors are very accessible and willing to help. When I had a
question about how to handle an investor I was able to shoot a couple emails
off and get advice in less than an hour. I'm meeting two of the SD mentors for
lunch next week.

Finally, I think the long term value is camaraderie with fellow founders. It's
a great feeling to know a dozen other people you can talk to that are solving
the same problems as you. I came out of the program with at least half a dozen
super-meaningful connections. You can't put a price tag on that.

Every rose has its thorns. The institute was invaluable for me but I'd
definitely say its not for everyone. Any description of this program and who
it's for should contain a very clear statement of one fact that was NOT made
perfectly clear at the beginning:

You must incorporate as a C or S corp during the term or they will ask you to
leave the program. The pressure to incorporate starts about half way through,
leading up to the "Incorporation" session. About a third of the class dropped
out at this point either because they weren't ready or because they objected
on philosophical grounds. FI is taking steps to make this clearer to new
applicants but since this post didn't mention it I thought I'd tack it on.

There is a new session starting up in San Diego pretty soon. If you're serious
about starting a company then you should definitely consider it.

~~~
vdibart
With regards to incorporation, I would only say the word "pressure" (at least
in NY) might be too strong. They put it out there and make it clear -
incorporate or clear out of the way. But in no way do they force you to do
something you don't think you're ready for.

As for awolf's statement that it wasn't clear that it was a requirement, it's
obviously meaningless to refute that subjectively. I will say that there's an
entire section in the Founder's Guide (which you have access to once you're
accepted) covering incorporation. The very first line is:

"Forming a company before the end of the semester and issuing the Bonus Pool
Warrant is required to graduate."

Granted, that section might have been edited mid-year, but I remember
understanding the point clearly before entering, mostly because I had an LLC
and knew I'd have to convert it. It might suffer a bit from being right after
the "Fundraising" section, which I'll assume most founders fast-forward to and
reread over and over :)

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awolf
The main complaint many of my classmates had was that the guide said "before
the end of the semester" yet we were told we needed to be incorporated one
week after the Incorporation session (half way through) or we would have to
step aside.

FI has been iterating their process as they go along. I'm glad to hear there
wasn't confusion in the New York session.

~~~
vdibart
I hear you. I'm also glad to hear they're tweaking the formula. I think we can
agree it's not only fair but important to set the incorporation requirement a
little earlier in the session.

From the Institute's perspective, there are some (although not many) who saw
the program as an easy means to gain access to mentors and investors for
little or no commitment on their part. As such, they have no intention of
graduating. Forcing them to decide sooner weeds them out.

From the founder's perspective, those not planning on graduating detract from
the overall experience because they're not contributing positively. In some
cases they're actually they're making it difficult for others. In NY I found
the program started to become more relevant to me as the less-committed and
less-advanced founders started dropping out.

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vdibart
btw, my take on FI:

[http://www.nodroidsallowed.com/2010/03/02/tips-for-those-
app...](http://www.nodroidsallowed.com/2010/03/02/tips-for-those-applying-to-
founders-institute/)

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rdl
I did the Bay Area Winter 2009 program (although I dropped out halfway through
for dayjob emergency; I may go back for Summer 2010).

FI is great for several reasons: 1) It focuses more on developing
entrepreneurs, vs. necessarily companies. The requirement that you incorporate
to graduate is kind of at odds with this, but definitely the curriculum for
the first half of the program is compatible with coming up with an idea and
launching it within the program. 2) It's compatible with having a day job
during the program -- if you have good time management skills, you can keep
the day job while attending FI, launching your company, and thus not have to
worry about funding. This is a major differentiator vs. YC. 3) Some of the
mentors (IMO Aaron Patzer, Jon Betts-Croix, Ram from A9, and some others) were
fucking AMAZING. It's worth $600 just to see their sessions. 4) You have some
chance of meeting great cofounders in the program -- I actually met a few
people I'd be happy to work with, and have gone down the road to doing a
startup with someone from the program.

For the ideal training to do a startup (other than JFDI), I'd do an
entrepreneurship program in undergrad (e.g. MIT E-Club, 100k contest), then
something like YC to build a product, and Founder Institute to learn about the
nuts and bolts of running a company, possibly interspersed with time spent
working at either startups or funded former-startups.

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eande
As a Founder Institute 2009 inaugural graduate I share the same opinion as it
was written here. With my strong technical background the training added most
valuable information on how to build and run a start-up, which I thought I
knew, but I had to learn that I actually missed a lot.

I agree that the course might not be for everyone depending on the business
and strategy you try to establish. But anyone who intends to found a company
and knows he needs to add on more knowledge in certain areas the training can
help tremendously. You also gain a strong network.

But it does not come for free and the 4 months are a lot of work. Listening to
these mentors and CEO’s and understanding the stories why they were so
successful helps you to use this information and apply on your own. On top you
can get short advice from the mentor’s which can be also highly valuable.

What I enjoy now most is the network of the other founders from our course.
Founder Institute program was awesome.

