Lessons from 1,000+ YC startups: Resilience, tar pit ideas, pivoting, more | Dalton Caldwell (YC)

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Publicado 2024-04-18

Dalton Caldwell is Managing Director and Group Partner at Y Combinator. Prior to YC, he was the co-founder and CEO of imeem (acquired by MySpace in 2009) and the co-founder and CEO of App.net. During his time at YC, he’s advised more than 35 YC unicorns, including DoorDash, Amplitude, Webflow, and Retool, and has worked across 21 different YC batches. He’s also racked up more than 6,500 office hours with founders. In our conversation, we discuss:
• Why founders need to adopt the mindset “Just don’t die”
• The most common reason startups fail
• When to pivot, and characteristics of a good pivot
• The concept of “tar pit ideas” and examples of bad startup ideas
• Why investors say no to startups
• The importance of market size in investment decisions
• The pitfalls of founders over-delegating
• Effective ways to talk to customers
• 20 ideas Dalton is looking to fund

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Find the transcript at: www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/lessons-from-1000-yc-st…

Where to find Dalton Caldwell:
• X: twitter.com/daltonc
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/daltoncaldwell/

Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: www.lennysnewsletter.com/
• X: twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Dalton’s background
(04:41) The value of simple advice
(07:04) Dalton’s advice: “Just don’t die”
(08:39) Knowing when to stop
(11:45) Deciding to pivot
(14:26) Characteristics of a good pivot
(17:53) Knowing when to pivot
(19:03) Zip’s journey and finding a market
(21:22) Why Dalton says to “Move towards the mountains and the desert”
(23:45) Tar pit ideas
(26:49) Understanding why investors say no
(29:14) The importance of market size
(32:16) Avoiding over-delegation and hiring senior people too early
(36:43) Why startups fail
(40:30) Effectively talking to customers
(45:17) Examples of startups hustling to talk to customers
(48:01) Patterns of successful startups
(52:05) YC’s Request for Startups
(55:37) Early days of Silicon Valley
(01:05:33) Contrarian corner: growth hacking for early startups
(01:09:28) Failure corner
(01:11:15) Closing thoughts
(01:12:22) Lightning round

Production and marketing by penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email [email protected].

Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

Todos los comentarios (21)

@ycombinator hace 3 meses

That's a familiar face! Great interview Lenny. We love to see it.
@vikrambuilds hace 3 meses

I'm a simple guy, I see Dalton - I click
@EcomCarl hace 2 meses

Dalton Caldwell's focus on the essentials and his "just don't die" mantra are crucial reminders for startups navigating the complex landscape. It's a testament to the power of perseverance and adaptability in the face of challenges. 👍
@shimacharles hace 2 meses

As a bootstrapped founder who has not lost hope, I found this interview insightful. Thank you Lenny and Dalton.
@ubcVancouver2010 hace 3 meses

one of the best podcasts I have heard in a long time. Real person, real experience, real advice. Thx
@mruhaily hace 3 meses

man your show is improving significantly every episode, i can't thank you enough
@hemakagunasekera271 hace 3 meses

This episode was one of my favourite episodes so far! As an early stage founder this is priceless information which I very much find useful!
@vestaalvesta786 hace 3 meses

Watched till the end, something I rarely do. Many thanks for this authentic, down to earth advice episode. :)
@dheenadayalan5873 hace 2 meses

"Inspiring and informative, I loved it! Caldwell's reflection on his collective personal experience brings out a lot of gold nuggets for aspiring founders and product fanatics out there. Thank you, Lenny, for your deep insightful questions exploring both breadth and depth (Like always)."
@VincentFulco hace 3 meses

Thanks Lenny and Dalton, much appreciated.
@MikeeJ hace 2 meses

The columbo show was a great answer by Dalton, I’ve been studying Columbo and the way he disarms people, it’s very helpful in sales situations
@acupofwhat hace 2 meses

One of the best podcasts I ever listened to. Nailed every reason why I failed with my startup. Incredible - Thank you from Sweden
@AngelicaceBru hace 3 días

Like many others, this video is a real inspiration, thank you.🎄
@buzz1ebee hace 2 meses

Great interview! Thanks for sharing. Always great to hear from Dalton. Lots of simple but great advice in there. The pitch for Siphox sounds a lot like the pitch for Theranos, they must be fuming that those frauds caused so much reputational damage.
@IrenePruna-jh9ns hace 2 meses

I always recommend your channel to my trading friends. You really know what you're talking about!
@AnomalyHQ hace 3 meses

Always great to hear from Dalton
@lilyandemariam630 hace 3 meses

9 mins in and I’m sooooo glad I clicked on this today. Love this! ❤❤
@Asimovo-RoboDevOps1 hace 3 meses

Thanks for the insights Dalton and Lenny
@trading-university. hace 1 mes

Brilliant, love to hear from Dalton and co. Great content
@jungong hace 3 meses

if you enjoy the process and love your customers, just keep going -- yes