The path of a startup founder is often long and winding. Those who hack the system are able to find a wormhole to shorten the path - will wins. We have to hack the system, or as my friend says, "If they won't let us in by the entrance, we'll go in by the exit.

You can be a hacker not only in programming, but also in marketing, sales, hiring employees, and finding partners.

The essence of "hacking" is that you stop following the usual paths in areas that are critical to your startup. You start looking for ways to "hack the system" - find a workaround, a back door, climb through a window. That is, do something unexpected to get the same result - but in less time, with less effort and less money.

When you think about it, this is fundamentally important. Now, look - there are usually a lot of competitors doing the same thing as you. You don't think their founders are dumber than you, do you? And if many equally smart people are moving along the same path toward the same goal, who will win this race?

Even the starting time is not of fundamental importance - unless you started when the others had already finished. Anything that is visible - the features of a product, for example - can be quickly copied and used to catch up with the leaders.

Whoever finds a shortcut wins!

Typically, the least compelling slides in startup presentations focus on competitive advantages. This is because these slides are not about competitive advantages - they are about some obvious features of the product that are easy to copy.

But it should be different-about ways to take shortcuts in critical areas that are invisible to the outside eye.

That's why Y Combinator's questionnaire includes two or three questions about "hacking the system" not just in a startup, but in life!