Had an implicit cushion of parents who supported me and eventually lent me 10k. However, also minimized rent by moving into our closet/study for 500 bucks a month (which in sf is unheard of) and now I've moved into the living room and pay 150 a month, have a free parking space in my house and free office space provided by Wilson sonsini. So essentially I can get by on very little and sill lead a fairly comfortable life. I also found odd ways to make money, from 400 dollar an hour usability testing to airbnbing my room during the outside lands festival and sleeping on my roommates floor.