

Ask YC: Finding a Co-Founder - hooande

I've seen a lot of people say that they felt they weren't going to get into YC because they didn't have a co-founder. It seems like a shame that good ideas would go to waste because people don't happen to know anyone else who wants to try a startup.<p>Does anyone in the YC community have any ideas for helping people to meet co-founders? There are some websites for this purpose, but they don't seem to be working. Maybe if we come up with a solution to our problem (meeting other founders interested in ycombinator) we can then apply to it a more general audience.<p>Here are some existing co-founder websites:
http://partnerup.com
http://cofoundr.com
http://www.founderlink.com
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mxh
I'm starting a business. (Quit my job in February, in fact.) I don't have a
co-founder. Here's my cunning plan.

I build things I find interesting, and search for product ideas that other
people are willing to pay for. I talk about what I do. This seems like a good
way to meet and talk to the sort of people who are interested in making money
by doing the sort of thing I do.

There's been a lot of talk about how not having a CF is a handicap. Let's say
it is. You can get started, or not, but not getting started doesn't seem to
get you closer to your goal, make you a better CF, or bring you into contact
with people who can help you with your business.

It would be nice to have a good CF; a long-time acquaintance with a compatible
personality, complementary skill-set, rich parents, entrepreneurial bent, few
obligations, etc., but you either know someone like that or you don't. If you
don't, it will take years to change that ("long-term") and it seems silly to
wait, if you really want to do your own startup.

Sometimes, you have to make do with what you have.

~~~
wallflower
What was it like to quit your job in February? Were you ready before you
decided or did you become ready once you decided?

As soon as my apt. lease is up, I'm seriously debating about: leaving my job,
traveling to another country to maximize savings and learn Spanish, code,
code, code, put it out there..

Even though I have a good job (and with this economy, as my Mom tells me), I
have four or five ideas that I want to execute on. I'm starting to delude
myself that I'd be happier slaving away in retail or the service industry (the
economy) and coding at nights, working on projects that I am interested on.
But I know that if I execute right, that finding a job won't be a problem (it
will be a choice - job or startup)

~~~
SwellJoe
"As soon as my apt. lease is up, I'm seriously debating about: leaving my job,
traveling to another country to maximize savings and learn Spanish, code,
code, code, put it out there.."

I'm just curious...are their any hugely successful tech startups that went the
route of "maximizing savings" to the point of moving to a super cheap country
very far out of reach of the tech industry?

I can't help but think that being far out of the technology loop and away from
peers is good for literature and, maybe, art but incredibly bad for creating
an application that people want to use. There's something about Silicon Valley
that, despite the extremely high cost of living, leads to more successful tech
startups than anywhere else. Readily available funding can't be all of
it...can it?

~~~
wallflower
My definition of entrepreneur is someone who takes risks in a managed manner.
Going on this trip is more about expanding my comfort zone (unfamiliar
language) and adding more life experience to my non-work resume.

I agree that it's harder to start a successful company virtually without face
to face networking. Silicon Valley will always be Valhalla. There are a
handful of people on News.YC who are already living abroad and managing to
code to support themselves.

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dcurtis
I really like this analogy I heard on one of these threads a long time ago
here:

"You don't 'find' a cofounder, just like you don't 'find' a wife. It's a
relationship with someone else that evolves over time and then someday,
someone pops the question."

~~~
kirubakaran
Carrying the anology a little further and throwing in some metaphors
liberally:

1\. You could get a potential cofouder pregnant with your idea.

2\. The hornier you are with your idea, the sooner you'll find a cofounder.

3\. Work hard in the gym of coding so that a hot, I mean, skilled cofounder
will find you and want you to screw her brains off until acquisition.

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hooande
Here is my idea: We should make an app to list simple, web based problems to
be solved.

Examples: integrating yc into twitter, being alerted about yc post by a
certain user, organizing and displaying multiple startup school meetups from
different websites

People can sign up to form teams to solve each problem. The idea is that
people will be able to work together to do something small before they try to
work on something bigger. This way people can get to know each other better
through a shared experience.

It doesn't matter what the projects are, though simple ones sound like they'll
work better. People who don't code can do research or come up with marketing
ideas. The website will just serve as a listing and all the details can be
coordinated however the people working on it choose.

I'm willing to code and host it if there is enough interest, unless someone
else wants to.

~~~
sanswork
Sounds like a great idea. If you want any help with developing it let me know.

As far as FounderLink itself is concerned my feeling is that it is still very
early days and there is a lot more that needs to be done before it is truly
useful in finding a partner, I also need to open it up more and make it a lot
more accessible(which is coming). Then there is the always large issue of
getting users. :)

On a more general note though people just need to get out there and network
more with people in different interest groups. It's very easy to pick a
group(hackers, business, marketing, sales) and stick to that group of people.
If you're a business/sales/marketing person head down to your local ruby user
group/beer night and shoot the shit. If your a coder try one of the business
conventions/meetups. Just get out there and meet people outside of your norm.
Learn a bit about what they do and I see what they do. Make friends and get
introductions.

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lyime
I think there is a common misconception in the startup culture that if you
cant convince a friend/buddy etc.. to become a co-founder/partner, your idea
is not very good or you are not very good at pitching the idea.

I cant seem to find a co-founder, I am 22. I have many friends who are in
tech, many in the bay area. Most of them are just not interested in doing
startups right now. Some of them just want a stable job, they are getting paid
well. Some of them are just not really into web2.0, someone of them don't have
the passion/not driven.

So it is possible that your idea is great and it just so happens that you are
unable to find a partner. I am in that boat and I think if there was a tool to
find co-founders. There is definitely a good chance of having success in your
idea, especially since there are many other people like me with the same
dilemma.

~~~
noel_gomez
I agree 100%. I have had several ideas and some people even like them, but in
the end I have not been able to find others who share my passion. I am not a
developer, but I have some development background and I am a tech geek so I
follow trends and have been able to see things coming, but having the business
acumen is not enough. Woz needed Jobs and Jobs needed Woz.

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davidw
I think it's a catch 22. The type of cofounders they seem to be looking for,
and that work out best, are people who have been friends for a while. That
means that you can't just go out and find people, unless you're planning for
4-5 years ahead of time when you'll actually have some history together.

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cperciva
Posts like this remind me of the old line that "the only common factor in all
your failed relationships is you".

Yes, it's possible that you'd be a great co-founder, and that you have a great
idea -- but if you're looking and can't find anyone willing to sign onto your
idea, stop for a moment to ask yourself if it's remotely possible that either
(a) you're not very attractive as a co-founder, or (b) your fantastic idea
isn't actually quite so fantastic as you thought.

Being enthusiastic is good, but sometimes realism is also good.

~~~
astine
Or perhaps all of your friends are married, or liberal arts majors who have
absolutely no interest in starting a startup?

Not all of us run in the right circles.

~~~
dgabriel
This can be a problem, but there's an excellent solution. You should start
attending user groups, be they Python, or Lisp, or whatever. If you can't find
a local user group, start one. Give presentations, ask questions, get
strangers excited about your idea.

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danielrhodes
I think you should forget about all that stuff and go out and try to meet
people who have similar ideas, skills, and backgrounds as you do. There are
many meet ups for tech people if you live in a populated area. Either that or
get together with people at work/school.

The problem with searching for a co-founder whom you don't know beforehand is
that you don't know much about the person and so you don't know what to
expect. From experience, you can get yourself into all types of trouble that
way. What I'm trying to get at is that it's better to go out and look for
friends who could later become partners.

~~~
xenoterracide
I haven't found anyone who has what I'm really looking for.

But I agree with you.

~~~
lyime
What are you looking for/working on?

~~~
xenoterracide
I am working on building an online pencil and paper rpg play system. It would
support a character database, dice rollers, major P&P systems, the usual
forums, npc character search, all sort's of toy's for players/ST's,GM's,DM's,
and a chat system. And eventually support for a subscription service for the
books. Much like O'Reilly's Safari.

at least that's my primary idea atm. I have many others.

The problem is that most of the people I know wouldn't want to leave there
security blanket of a comfortable job. Aren't technically adept enough, or
generally aren't smart enough. I only can think of one person I would really,
really consider. But he is part of the first problem, and working on a
drinking addiction :(.

The rest of the people who I might consider I wouldn't get along with and
don't share their style of visions.

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niels
Personally I enjoy not having a co founder. It makes everything a lot easier.
I just get done with things. No dicussions or waiting for other people. I Work
when I want and have 100% ownership. I quit my job four months ago, and live
off some freelance work and subletting some rooms in my apartment. I have a
shared office with cool startup people, so I don't get too lonely, but often
work from home. The biggest problem I've encountered so far, is that
freelancing can take to much time away from your startup project.

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superkarn
I agree that good ideas shouldn't die just because people can't find co-
founders.

...But then again, some people don't want or are better off without partners.

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astine
Thank you for the links. The only reason I didn't apply this round was because
I didn't have a co-founder. Basically, all of my friends are married or
something similar.

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xenoterracide
hehe.

I might have been able to find one if I hadn't only had a week to apply.

thanks for the links. The last looks the most promising.

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edw519
Perhaps the best way to find a cofounder is to keep working without one. Build
that app, proof of concept, prototype, whatever. Then show it to others. It'll
be a lot easier to have a meeting of the minds reviewing your app than talking
about your idea.

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LPTS
Sounds like a great idea for a Y-combinator start-up, if only you could find a
partner to help implement it.

