Creator
Paul Graham
Founded Viaweb (sold to Yahoo, 1998) and Y Combinator (2005). Essayist whose writing shaped a generation of founders.
paulgraham.com26 resources in the archive
VideoPaul Graham on why starting with a “small, intense fire" is the key to startup growth
Paul Graham
Mar 2026 · 1 min read
Growth starts with a small, intense fire: a few users who want it badly, not many who mildly like it.
EssayFounder Mode
Paul Graham
Sep 2024 · 5 min read
Founder mode—how founders run companies—works better than manager mode, the standard advice they're given.
EssayWhen to Do What You Love
Paul Graham
Sep 2024 · 7 min read
When to pursue work you love versus work that pays well depends on your ambitions and the actual odds of success in your chosen field.
EssaySuperlinear Returns
Paul Graham
Oct 2023 · 19 min read
In most fields, small differences in performance create outsized differences in results because of exponential growth and thresholds.
EssayThe Top Idea in Your Mind
Paul Graham
Sep 2022 · 10 min read
Founders misjudge which problems matter most, but rapid focus on the vital few—measured weekly—accelerates everything.
EssayBillionaires Build
Paul Graham
Dec 2020 · 15 min read
Becoming a billionaire requires building something people genuinely want, not exploiting them.
EssayThe Risk of Discovery
Paul Graham
Jan 2017 · 1 min read
Smart people take risks that look crazy only in hindsight; Newton's work in alchemy and theology were reasonable bets in his time.
EssayLife Is Short
Paul Graham
Jan 2016 · 7 min read
Life is genuinely short, and the practical response is to eliminate bullshit and do things that matter.
EssayMean People Fail
Paul Graham
Nov 2014 · 5 min read
Meanness correlates with startup failure because it costs you talent and prevents the transcendent thinking startups require.
EssayBefore the Startup
Paul Graham
Oct 2014 · 20 min read
Why your instincts about startups will mislead you, and what to trust instead.
EssayDo Things That Don't Scale
Paul Graham
Jul 2013 · 19 min read
Why successful startups succeed by doing manually unscalable things first, like recruiting users one at a time.
EssayHow to Get Startup Ideas
Paul Graham
Nov 2012 · 32 min read
The best startup ideas come from problems you have yourself, not from trying to think of startup ideas.
EssayBlack Swan Farming
Paul Graham
Sep 2012 · 9 min read
Startup investing concentrates returns in a few massive winners, which look like bad ideas until they succeed.
EssaySchlep Blindness
Paul Graham
Jan 2012 · 4 min read
Great startup ideas fail because our unconscious mind avoids problems requiring tedious, difficult work.
EssayOrganic Startup Ideas
Paul Graham
Apr 2010 · 4 min read
The best startup ideas come from problems you encounter in your own life, not from trying to guess what others want.
EssayMaker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule
Paul Graham
Jul 2009 · 5 min read
Two incompatible ways to use time: the maker's schedule and the manager's schedule.
EssayRelentlessly Resourceful
Paul Graham
Mar 2009 · 4 min read
The defining quality of a successful startup founder is relentless resourcefulness.
EssayStartups in 13 Sentences
Paul Graham
Feb 2009 · 6 min read
Thirteen principles for building a startup, from picking cofounders to understanding your users above all else.
EssayCities and Ambition
Paul Graham
May 2008 · 16 min read
Where you live shapes your ambition more than you'd expect—each city broadcasts what to want.
EssayHow to Disagree
Paul Graham
Mar 2008 · 7 min read
Disagreement quality follows a hierarchy from name-calling to refuting central points, and moving up makes you less mean and more effective.
EssayThe Hardest Lessons for Startups to Learn
Paul Graham
Apr 2006 · 21 min read
The counterintuitive lessons startups repeatedly fail to learn: release early, keep improving, make users happy, and fear the right threats.
EssayHow to Do What You Love
Paul Graham
Jan 2006 · 21 min read
Most people are taught that work must be unpleasant, but the most successful ones have learned to do what they genuinely love.
EssayHow to Start a Startup
Paul Graham
Mar 2005 · 43 min read
Three things determine whether a startup succeeds: good people, a product customers want, and spending little money.
EssayHow to Make Wealth
Paul Graham
May 2004 · 39 min read
Starting a startup is the most reliable way to compress your earning potential by working intensely for a few years instead of a lifetime.
EssayWhy It's Safe for Founders to Be Nice
Paul Graham
Apr 2004 · 9 min read
Hackers' disobedience and rule-breaking are essential to their brilliance, not flaws to suppress.
EssayHow You Know
Paul Graham
May 2003 · 25 min read
Why startups beat incumbents in design wars: design-by-committee deliberately trades away upside to avoid downside.