[W7] On Carousell

It was really interesting having Carousell in class today. Personally, I haven't used it because I haven't had a need to sell something, but hearing him speak got me nodding several times in agreement.

This is my gut feeling about Carousell - they have a great team, and they are doing things right. 

He shared a lot of tips from paulgraham.com and I can only say that I have a new-found respect for this person. I have heard of Y Combinator before, but in my mind, I was already of the opinion that it is probably another accelerator that funds many project, and bank on a few successful ones generating high returns to make up for the rest. 

The tips I hear today resonate with me in a positive manner. Startup = growth. I think Carousell made a good decision focusing their effort on growth instead of trying to reap the benefits now by paying themselves. 

You will be surprised, I have read many stories about entrepreneurs who got comfortable and stopped growing after getting venture capital funding, thinking that they "have made it". I can understand that the temptation to start giving you and your team paychecks is high, especially after slogging it out for a few years, even though your company isn't really earning that much. For this, I am impressed that the presenter (forgot his name..) said with such conviction that he isn't earning a single cent and putting all into growth. That's some great discipline and stewardship there. I can't say I will do the same if I were in the same situation.

I am rooting for Carousell and will be following its development over the next few years. I sure hope it will develop into another homegrown app that we can all be proud of!