Paul Graham: Founders can't get back years lost to work

In December 2019, Graham published an essay on his blog titled "Having Kids," where he wrote about how he's managed his work schedule to make time for childcare.

"I've been able to adapt to working this way. Work, like love, finds a way. If there are only certain times it can happen, it happens at those times. So while I don't get as much done as before I had kids, I get enough done," he wrote.

Graham, who is married to fellow Y Combinator cofounder Jessica Livingston and shares two children with her, also wrote that while it made him uncomfortable to admit it, "having kids may make one less ambitious."

He wrote that children can become a parent's top priority, pushing projects and work further down the list. "I have some hacks for sailing close to this wind. For example, when I write essays, I think about what I'd want my kids to know. That drives me to get things right," Graham wrote.

He also questioned whether parenthood has to diminish someone's drive.

"On the other hand, what kind of wimpy ambition do you have if it won't survive having kids? Do you have so little to spare?" he added.

Graham's latest comments come as he's spending time with a new generation of YC founders. He said on X on Wednesday that he's speaking with founders from Y Combinator's 47th batch.

Y Combinator was founded in 2005 by Graham, Livingston, Robert Morris, and Trevor Blackwell.