Hi All,
I just reviewed the YC funding application for Summer 2011. I can answer all the questions thoroughly, except the obvious ones relating to my previous experience with programming/startups/IT projects. I have no experience, I just have ideas and an insane work ethic to make things happen.<p>I know ideas alone are worthless. Everyone has ideas. But, right now all my close peers/family are advising me to get involved in Startups, because I've been generating great ideas regularly only to do a Google search and find them already funded and being implemented. This has happened at least 7 times in the past year, with unique ideas that have received $1M+ in initial funding.<p>Now I have an amazing new idea that I know will be a big hit. If I don't do it, someone else will very soon.<p>I'm 27, I've been doing medical sales since I graduated college, but I left the corporate world last year primarily to venture out on my own. I have a house, housemates that cover my expenses, and I have savings. I mention this, because I'm not just a daydreamer. I'm a daydreamer with great ideas and successful track record of accomplishments since I was a kid.<p>Every time I read about a Startup's success, I can see myself in that same position. I just need to better understand how I can get involved in the network.<p>Given that I do not know how to program, I am considering outsourcing all of the work to get this website running. It's not my preferred method, but it's better than nothing.<p>If I can get the work outsourced, get the site running, establish a GREAT revenue-producing model, prove the substantial NEED in the WORLD for this service (it's currently being serviced indirectly), then what is the quickest way for me to tap into a network of Angel Investors / VCs that can take this business to the next level?<p>If you were in my position, what would you recommend for a guy like me to get a Startup running and funded?<p>I'll do anything (legally, ethically, morally) to make this work. The world is waiting for this service. I've even seen websites that ALMOST (about 40%) similar to my idea and they've had tremendous success.<p>Please help a newbie out with any advice on taking action and getting in front of the right crowd that will hear out this idea.<p>Thanks for reading.
Candidly speaking, "my family thinks I come up with good ideas" does not appear high on the list of things I see on resumes of people who build successful businesses. Most of them have a history of having built stuff. Even if they cannot themselves build stuff, then they can Jedi mind-trick a builder into building their stuff and that guy will thank them for the opportunity.<p>You're good at selling stuff, right? Sell <i>one person</i> the notion that this is the project that is going to change their life for the better. Have that guy build it.<p>You're not nearly done at that point, but one guy who has actually built things plus one guy who has the magic snake charmer reality distortion field thing down is a powerful combination. Besides, after you have a prototype, its Achievement Unlocked: Not A Bozo, and then you can sell, sell, sell to customers/investors to your heart's content.
If your idea involves any significant amount of programming at all, start learning to program now, even if it's not realistic that the code you produce make it into the final product.<p>By all means apply to YCombinator. The chances for you are much lower (since you don't program and afaict you are a single founder), but you can always apply again in future rounds.<p>I'm applying this round myself and have basically taught myself to program over the last 6 months. I have about ~6500 lines of code written so far and the technical co-founder that joined me says that it's on par with code he has seen from people working 4-5 years in the market.<p>If you are smart, clever, capable and determined, there is no reason that you can't achieve the same by the time the next class comes around. If you are serious about learning to program, look around on HN and if you need any specific advice, feel free to ping me.<p>What you don't want to do is end up asking this same question again in 6 months time.<p>Even if you were to really impress the YCombinator partners and get an interview and pass the interview, you will still need to recruit technical talent. Being able to program even as an amateur can only help.
Learn to code. Even if you aren't able to code well enough to build your own thing, if you have not built an application and launched it, you will never be able to manage a team to do it. Much less be able to do with with an outsource provider.<p>Why not apply to development companies as a programming intern. Explain you're a business guy, teaching yourself coding, you know you'll never be great, but you need to learn.<p>At my consulting company, we've got a guy who is quitting his job at a VC and working as an intern with us for three months. We do pair programming, so he'll rotate through projects and be on the development team. We won't bill him out to clients obviously. Our developers get to learn about his business experience, and he learns how to code, and probably run a development team.<p>I tell clients who have an idea and have never built a website to go get a job at a startup. If you're a not a developer, don't do a startup without having worked in one.
Become a techie. You don't have to be a programmer to be a techie, just stay up to date with tech news. YCombinator wants the companies in their incubators to employ a wide range of techies so I don't think you should be looking to YCombinator for funding.<p>Also just having a "good idea" isn't enough anymore. Venture Forums see hundreds if not thousands of business plans a year and spend about 30 seconds looking over 95% of them.<p>It is also difficult to find an god outsourced coder, not to say that they aren't out there, it is just really difficult to weed out the bad one's.<p>Do you have an executive summary? I would start by sending out the executive summary to local Venture Forums in your area and gauge their reactions. Angelsoft.net is a good place to submit your business proposal to. You can only submit to 3 companies at a time though so chose wisely.
Is your idea medical related? I was in that world on the sales/strategy end for a few years. I'm applying today at YC for a non-medical related startup, that I programmed.<p>If you want to bounce around some thoughts, shoot me an email.
Feel free to ping me if you want someone to look over your idea (don't if it's in any of these spaces which I'm involved in: recruitment, marketing analytics, advertising)