Shebat: Most Y Combinator startups fail because they get complacent post-graduation
Mike Shebat · Keith Rabois & Mike Shebat: Creating an Olympian Mindset to Work Ethic| E1087 · 20VC with Harry Stebbings · Nov 27, 2023 · at 32:28
Mike Shebat is the CEO and co-founder of Traba. He discusses why early startup milestones can lead to failure if teams lose momentum.
0:00 / 0:08exact quote · 8.7s
▶ Watch the full episode on YouTube → 720p mp4 · rendered on demand · StarZero watermark
“Why most Y Combinator startups that graduate Y Combinator end up not making it. And it's because they get complacent and they lose momentum.”
quote is from the automated transcript, cleaned for reading: filler sounds and stutters are removed, nothing is rephrased. names can be misheard (the analysis reads context, assessments check outside sources). how →
More from Mike Shebat
Shebat: Traba requires 12-hour in-office workdays Monday through Thursday
“So what it means in practice at Trava is we're all committed to at least 12 hour days, Monday through Thursday. Friday, we're working late, but people do tend to go out on, on Friday night. But it's an in-office culture”
Shebat: Late-night team presence compounds startup execution speed
“The reason why I wanted to change the mindset is because if you know that not only you, but all your colleagues are also going to be there at eight PM, you're not even thinking about pushing it out the next day. You're doing it that night. And then at scale, l…”
Shebat: Workers should approach joining startups like joining Olympic sports teams
“I do believe strongly that everyone should be joining a company, more like an Olympic sports team. You need that level of commitment, you need that level of being all in.”
Shebat: Candidates overly focused on job titles are an immediate red flag
“If they're way too focused on title, it's an immediate red flag.”
Shebat: Candidates prioritizing cash over equity present a yellow flag
“People that are way too focused on cash. Versus the equity. I do think that's more of a yellow flag.”
Rabois: Founders should operate like Navy SEALs, not the Army
“He actually did give a metaphor of like, I'm operating more like the army where the army is like very much like operational efficient across everything. No, no mistakes. Whereas what I should be doing as a founder is being more like a Navy seal, like going all…”