This depends on your definition of "startup". Paul Graham's definition - "a company built to grow fast", while not 100% incompatible with a bootstrapped company, certainly is in tension with the idea of not taking on outside investment.
If the goal of your company is to grow as fast as possible, then the VC rocket ship approach seems like a no-brainer.
I like Steve Blanks description that a startup is (paraphrasing) .. a temporary organization to find a repeatable and scalable business model.
Many startup factories forget that the goal of a startup is to quit existing and become a business.
Depending on the type of product and market you're in funding can help.
For the first, or second time entrepreneur, there is a far more valuable lesson to learn than getting external validation in the form of investment: Learning to add value, and learning to build something of value at a small scale, as well as the associated business skills, before doing it at presumably a larger scale.
The VC rocketship can create as many distractions from finding something people want. I'm not against it, but glad I hesitated taking investment in my 20's, I'm a much more well rounded entrepreneur for it, and now as the opportunities are coming up, investment is around that much more, and secondary to finding the right fit with team, market, and product.
As you can tell, I think growth capital interests me more than getting funding to get a market. I think both are fine, I just find I respond better to grinding, hustling and being resourceful.
If the goal of your company is to grow as fast as possible, then the VC rocket ship approach seems like a no-brainer.