Everything Paul Graham has said about startup advice
Graham argues that startups run on one non-negotiable rule — make something people want — and that most of what founders instinctively do (chasing growth hacks, polishing a private vision, delaying launch, building scalable machinery too early) is exactly what they must unlearn. His prescription: talk to users, do things that don't scale, and ship the moment one person is glad you exist.
6 points · 3 appearances · 2009–2019
How the view evolved
Make something people want → Growth hacks are bullshit; make something loved
In 2008 Graham told founders not to worry about the business model or money at the start — make something great and behave almost like a nonprofit. By the 2014 Stanford lecture the yardstick had hardened into growth: the way to convince investors is 'a startup that's actually doing well, meaning growing fast' — reflecting the reframing of his 2012 essay 'Startup = Growth.'
Up next
6 points · 4 appearances · 2015–2026 · changed view
“It turns out it's not that important to be smart; it's much, much more important to be determined. If you imagine this hypothetical person who's like a hundred out of a hundred for smart and a hundred out of a hundred for determination, and then you start taking away determination, it doesn't take very long before you have this sort of ineffectual but brilliant person. Whereas if you take someone who's super, super determined and you start taking away smartness bit by bit, eventually you get to some guy who owns a lot of taxi medallions — but he's still rich. Or like a trash hauling business or something like that.”
8 points · 7 appearances · 2019–2025 · changed view
“Wealth is the thing that you really want. Wealth is assets that earn while you sleep. Wealth is the factory that with the robots as cranking out things. Wealth is the computer program that's running at night that's serving other customers. Wealth is even money in the bank that is being reinvested into other assets and into other businesses. Even a house can be a form of wealth, because you can rent it out — although that's probably a lower use of productivity — but land and actually doing some commercial enterprise. So my definition of wealth is much more businesses and assets that can earn while you sleep.”
5 points · 5 appearances · 2024–2026 · changed view
“The observation is that don't die is the most played game by everyone all over the world every day. You and I breathe every few seconds, we look both ways before we cross the street, we all play don't die. So it's played more than capitalism, it's played more than any religion. It's the most played game in the world.”
6 points · 4 appearances · 2007–2020 · changed view
“Well, you can say everybody knows that. Well, I think I've been in the top 5% of my age cohort all my life in understanding the power of incentives, and all my life I've underestimated it. And never a year passes but I get some surprise that pushes my limit a little farther.”