I am not in a startup, so take this with a grain of salt. I have a number of people I talk to who have been in startups though, and a common refrain is that whe

I am not in a startup, so take this with a grain of salt. I have a number of people I talk to who have been in startups though, and a common refrain is that when you sign on very early you wear many hats - some fun, some not. Don't expect all your time to be coding, just like when you have a child you shouldn't expect all your time with that child to be play time. I say this because if you burn out in 4 hours doing something you find boring then you might not be able to deal with everything needed. However another common refrain is that every startup is different, so you have to decide for yourself based on your read of the startup. One last bit of caution. If you push yourself to the wall all the time then you might not have the energy you need when the time comes where the business really needs that push. From what I've been told, and from personal experience on a number of fast paced projects, it's better to pump out a consistent 40-60 hours a week with an occasional push to 80, than it is to do 80 every week until you crash.