You know what's harder than getting motivated, and networking with successful entrepreneurs? Everything else about running a company.
With the caveat that you shouldn't really give a shit about what I think, my objection to this process is that it turns starting a company into yet another "thing you apply to", like college and grad school and a job at Google. Starting up is simultaneously much easier than YC can make it sounds like, and much harder.
I get your point from a sister thread. "Don't waste time on your application - build your product"
But I disagree. Here is why: expressing your idea is one form of product development.
Writing down your idea in a way that other people understand is absolutely essential. Similarly, practicing for demo day means getting the exact phrasing of a 7 minute talk absolutely perfect. That might seem like a waste of time, until you realize that you'll be able to pitch at the drop of a hat for the life of the company as a result.
>Similarly, practicing for demo day means getting the exact phrasing of a 7 minute talk absolutely perfect.
When I was a student of Toastmasters, I came across the treasure chest of dot-com era (2001) VC pitches from SpringBoard Enterprises ("Women-Capital-Connections").
I feel that many of the video clips of pitches in their Learning Center's Video Archive demonstrate the power of a confident, polished, professional, articulated pitch.
I'm happy to have found them again on Google. RealPlayer streams (Use Real Alternative instead of Real Player)
People spend a lot of time trying to sound slick for investors. You may find that customers are more forgiving of your rough edges. Either way, real investors are going to be a lot more convinced by your traction than your talk.
With the caveat that you shouldn't really give a shit about what I think, my objection to this process is that it turns starting a company into yet another "thing you apply to", like college and grad school and a job at Google. Starting up is simultaneously much easier than YC can make it sounds like, and much harder.