"they aren’t that much better than many of the great coders I’ve worked with. They’re just bolder."<p>Interesting way to put it. Sounds like an critical ingredient for success.
3. We focused entirely on product/market fit.<p>I'm curious. In what way did you focus on product market fit? What signs did you look for to point you towards it? Seems to be a very important aspect of success (besides boldness).
It's unfortunate, but a polished presentation making a strong case for a large market share is more likely to get you angel funding than a working product with relatively few users. I say this after seeing a bunch of angel forums / VC workshops in the bay area. Many of the "ideal" presentations had no product, no engineers but a "strong management team," a large market, and a path to bigness. You are unlikely to get funded without a grand slam story.
From the article: I'd rather own 94% of a watermelon than 100% of a grape.<p>That's a very good metaphor and a very good explanation of why you'd want funding.
would love to see a bit more depth here, most points seemed rather surface - "we focused entirely on product/mark fit" - how?, what are some methods you found effective? maybe best left for a follow up post but after reading it I wanted more on their successful/unsuccessful tactics.
RscueTime seems like one of the more credible YC startups, with an actual value proposition and a pretty killer initial user experience.<p>After all the YC help, weekly dinners, and demo day, this article says they're still looking for seed funding. Not an A-round; just seed money.