YC
Joel Spolsky at Startup School 2012
@ Y Combinator
10/25/13
Takeaways
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
I started Fog Creek Software because I couldn't find a cool place to work as a programmer, so I decided to build my own workplace.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
In the late 90s, there was unlimited demand for anyone who could create HTML, allowing us to charge high consulting rates and bootstrap our business.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
We started selling Fog Bugs, our bug tracking software, and within the first few months, we were making around $5,000 a month, which was enough to sustain us.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
Stack Exchange is a 'get big fast' business, while Fog Creek Software is an organic growth company, which means they have different growth strategies.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
A 'get big fast' business aims to capture unclaimed market territory quickly, while an organic growth business competes against many established players.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
Network effects increase the value of a platform as more users join, making it difficult for users to leave once they are invested in the network.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
In an organic growth company, you don't need to focus on grabbing market share quickly; instead, you should aim for long-term value creation.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
It took us 10 years to build FogBugz into a respectable business because there are many competitors in the bug tracking space.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
To survive in an organic growth business, you need to break even quickly, often by consulting or generating revenue from clients from day one.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
The ideal product for organic growth is one that provides value to the first user, ensuring that even a single customer finds it beneficial.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
In a fast-growth business, mistakes are often overlooked, but in an organic growth business, they can be fatal, so you must be cautious.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
At Fog Creek, we were always concerned about running out of money, which made us very careful in our business decisions.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
The chances of a startup becoming a $10 billion business are very slim, especially if you start with the goal of rapid growth.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
Most successful entrepreneurs are driven by solving a problem rather than the desire to make a lot of money.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
If you focus on organic growth and avoid major mistakes, you can build a sustainable business that generates significant revenue over time.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
There are millions of businesses that achieve around a million dollars in revenue, which is a more realistic goal than aiming for rapid growth.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
The decision to bootstrap or seek venture capital is crucial; most entrepreneurs do not rely on VC funding.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
Organic growth companies are far more common than those that grow rapidly, and the latter are often outnumbered in the startup ecosystem.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
You must decide whether to pursue slow growth or rapid expansion, as straddling both can lead to challenges.
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Joel Spolsky
10/25/13
@ Y Combinator
My experience with Juno Online Services taught me the importance of committing to a growth strategy, as indecision can lead to failure.