- Focus is crucial for startups as it allows them to compete with larger companies
- Startups should concentrate all their resources on one point to have an advantage
- Google's success in search was due to their early focus on it, unlike other companies trying to be portals
- Frugality is important for startups to achieve more with less
- Many startups fail to make the most of their resources and end up wasting money without results

We asked Paul Buchheit, creator of Gmail and YC Partner, what traits startups needed to succeed. 

Learn how to set your startup up for success, from experts and YC partners by signing up for Startup School at https://startupschool.org.

I think focus is 1 of the most important things, because as a startup, it's actually, I think, your most powerful weapon.

The reason that you're able to take on these big companies or whatever, is because they're doing a thousand different things.

And so the only way you can win is if you take everything you have and you focus it at 1 point.

Because you are underpowered in every way versus these other companies.

So the 1 thing you do have that they don't have is you can be absolutely 100% focused on the thing that you're doing.

That was part of the reason that we won at Search.

And you became the best in the world at it.

Versus everyone else is like, oh, we want to be a portal, right?

Frugality, I think, is also really essential.

I think like 1 of the best indicators of if you're doing it right is essentially your input to output ratio.

Unfortunately, most startups do less with more.

So like you give them money and they just burn it up and there's like no result.

So like being able to to produce a lot of outputs with a minimum amount of time and money.


Speaker 0: I think focus is 1 of the most important things, because as a startup, it's actually, I think, your most powerful weapon. The reason that you're able to take on these big companies or whatever, is because they're doing a thousand different things. And so the only way you can win is if you take everything you have and you focus it at 1 point. Because you are underpowered in every way versus these other companies. So the 1 thing you do have that they don't have is you can be absolutely 100% focused on the thing that you're doing.

And that was like with Google. That was part of the reason that we won at Search. All we were focused on early on. And you became the best in the world at it. Versus everyone else is like, oh, we want to be a portal, right?

We need all this other shit. So like that's really key. Frugality, I think, is also really essential. I think like 1 of the best indicators of if you're doing it right is essentially your input to output ratio. So you want to do more with less.

Unfortunately, most startups do less with more. So like you give them money and they just burn it up and there's like no result. So like being able to to produce a lot of outputs with a minimum amount of time and money.

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Paul Buchheit: What traits do startups need to succeed?