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I& #39;ve been interested in the idea of Founder Schools -- institutions that help founders pick startup ideas, find co-founders, & take the leap.
These have been looked down upon, but IMO that& #39;s b/c of their execution, not b/c the concept isn& #39;t valuable. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1234247946088005632?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
These have been looked down upon, but IMO that& #39;s b/c of their execution, not b/c the concept isn& #39;t valuable. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1234247946088005632?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Why does the world benefit from Founder Schools?
Because the world benefits from more founders.
Why? Aren& #39;t there too many founders?
No IMO. More good founders likely means more overall innovation https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1243744901088460800?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Because the world benefits from more founders.
Why? Aren& #39;t there too many founders?
No IMO. More good founders likely means more overall innovation https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1243744901088460800?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
We need more investors too while we& #39;re at it.
Why? Aren& #39;t there too many investors? isn& #39;t there too much capital?
No IMO. Maybe it hurts the average investor, or has some negative side effects, but it also leads to more founders which is net positive: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1243744901088460800?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Why? Aren& #39;t there too many investors? isn& #39;t there too much capital?
No IMO. Maybe it hurts the average investor, or has some negative side effects, but it also leads to more founders which is net positive: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1243744901088460800?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Why would founder schools work when they didn& #39;t before?
Well, YC worked. It was a specific type of education for a specific type of founder.
Now that it& #39;s easier for non-technical founders to build products, more people can more easily be founders. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1208230807044640768?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Well, YC worked. It was a specific type of education for a specific type of founder.
Now that it& #39;s easier for non-technical founders to build products, more people can more easily be founders. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1208230807044640768?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Wait: Isn& #39;t it a bad idea to match co-founders? Shouldn& #39;t they be people they& #39;ve known since college or worked with before?
That would be great, but that constrains the pool significantly, and many co-founder teams don& #39;t fit that bill. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1242285049229094913?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
That would be great, but that constrains the pool significantly, and many co-founder teams don& #39;t fit that bill. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1242285049229094913?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Wait: Isn& #39;t it a bad idea for founders to soberly evaluate startup ideas, as opposed to seized in the middle of the night by a eureka moment?
It& #39;s great when solving their own problem and/or they& #39;ve been thinking about it for years, but doesn& #39;t have to. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1217943689797881856?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
It& #39;s great when solving their own problem and/or they& #39;ve been thinking about it for years, but doesn& #39;t have to. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1217943689797881856?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Wait: Isn& #39;t it adverse selection for any founder to go through such a program? Aren& #39;t the best founders total rebels? Can entrepreneurship even be learned anyway?
There might be some truth there, but they prove too much in their conclusion.
More here: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1217633004576804864?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
There might be some truth there, but they prove too much in their conclusion.
More here: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1217633004576804864?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Wait: if people need to be encouraged to go to a founder school to be a founder, do we really want them anyway?
Shouldn& #39;t founders just be the "true believers"?
Not if you believe startups are good for the world, then you want more.
Military does OK: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1217522720868462592?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Shouldn& #39;t founders just be the "true believers"?
Not if you believe startups are good for the world, then you want more.
Military does OK: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1217522720868462592?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Note: One bad rap schools (deservingly) get is they become gatekeepers in order to entrench their importance
I& #39;m not talking about building a licensing institution. No founder should be looked down upon for not going through such a program.
But the ones who want should get it.
I& #39;m not talking about building a licensing institution. No founder should be looked down upon for not going through such a program.
But the ones who want should get it.
Another bad rap is they become excuses to actually build.
There& #39;s no substitute for actual founding
If such a program prevents people from building, or makes them feel they need the program as permission, it& #39;s a failure.
Success is correlated w/ spurring new companies.
There& #39;s no substitute for actual founding
If such a program prevents people from building, or makes them feel they need the program as permission, it& #39;s a failure.
Success is correlated w/ spurring new companies.
VCs have been skeptical for the above reasons, but also b/c they want to be the educators. The more capable founders are, the less they& #39;ll need VCs
But they& #39;ll always need $, so they should view it as a complement
Startup education has been democratized https://twitter.com/david__booth/status/1217627573074530305?s=20">https://twitter.com/david__bo...
But they& #39;ll always need $, so they should view it as a complement
Startup education has been democratized https://twitter.com/david__booth/status/1217627573074530305?s=20">https://twitter.com/david__bo...
Would love to a focus on removing other bottlenecks preventing people from starting companies, structural ones that have nothing to do with ideas, co-founders, or motivations. https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1209013576347709440?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
@beondeck (among others) is building a founder school for ppl who want to be founders in the future
Excited to see more pop up: the skills gained by such a program (& more so by actually founding) are helpful no matter what you do
https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1249792962084495360?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren... https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1248667025947295744?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
Excited to see more pop up: the skills gained by such a program (& more so by actually founding) are helpful no matter what you do
https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1249792962084495360?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren... https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1248667025947295744?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
One major goal of any founder school is to help turn founding a company from an opaque job to a clear job: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg/status/1234635419523796992?s=20">https://twitter.com/eriktoren...
