> Why would they promote hard work if hard work didn't matter?
Hard work matters. But it isn't enough. Luck is needed to transform hard work into wealth. Line cooks work very hard.
Incidentally, YC's business model positions it extremely well vs. other VCs to take advantage of this calculus. Fund 1000s of startups full of maniacally hard working kids, and you can expect a few to also get lucky just by sheer volume. Whereas if you're only funding a few startups they may work equally as hard and never run into the luck required to succeed.
Hard work matters. But it isn't enough. Luck is needed to transform hard work into wealth. Line cooks work very hard.
Incidentally, YC's business model positions it extremely well vs. other VCs to take advantage of this calculus. Fund 1000s of startups full of maniacally hard working kids, and you can expect a few to also get lucky just by sheer volume. Whereas if you're only funding a few startups they may work equally as hard and never run into the luck required to succeed.