4 ms·

If I were you I'd leave, now. If you want to be upfront with the founders, go and clearly explain why you're leaving. There is a good chance that they will try

by sakisv 7y ago

If I were you I'd leave, now. If you want to be upfront with the founders, go and clearly explain why you're leaving. There is a good chance that they will try to get you to stay by promising all sorts of changes, extra compensation, stock options, trying to guilt you to stay by saying the company goes down without you, etc. Don't listen to them. 1. Changing something now is too late (and usually too little) 2. Extra comp sounds very nice but think about what you're trading for it: Your time and mental health. For me this doesn't sound a good deal. 3. Stock options: Same as above, but worse because that's something extremely vague which depends on many things going well and also (usually) ties you there for a few years. 4. Using guilt to make you stay: Let's make a couple of things clear: How the company stays afloat is not your problem. You are not the one who decided to open a company to do X while you had no idea, you are not the one who hired the toxic TL, you have no responsibility on the company's welfare. Most people are very, very interchangeable in a company. There are also a few special people who are not easy to replace. In either case, guess whose problem it is :) You asked in the beginning as to whether your career is salvageable, and then you went on to describe all the steps you took to manage to get a prototype of X. I think that at the very minimum you learned a lot of stuff throughout this process. You also have the experience of how it is to work in a toxic environment. These things make you grow, both technically and as a person. There are many companies that want to hire people in our tech bubble. For now take some time to yourself and don't worry too much.

mcv 7y ago
If the problem really is the team lead, then getting rid of the team lead (or even just talking to them) might go a long way to improve the situation. I would say, talk to the founders about your problems. How you're getting burned out, and how you're not working well with the team lead. Addressing the team lead is their responsibility, as is creating a healthy work environment for you. If they can't salvage the situation, leave. But they really need to address this, or they lose you. They need you more than you need them. Keep that in mind.
- ethbro 7y ago
  Agreed. If you're really willing to quit, there's no downside to talking to the founders, if done correctly. If they're the sort to appreciate straight talk, plainly state you feel the team lead is doing more harm vs delivering value to the company. Otherwise back into it from "There are some issues with the way things are working that I've noticed..." Make sure to include you're not the only one who feels this way. But certainly don't name or get overly specific with the others you've talked to. I'd simply suggest the founders reach out to {these groups} to get their opinions. End with the work environment created by the team lead is directly causing you to look for other opportunities. (Hint: go ahead and start interviewing and have semi-serious job leads before this talk) Remind them of what you feel you've done: never overestimate their knowledge of who actually did / does what. State that you like(d) working at the company, found the problems interesting, and loved what you felt you and the founders had done ("together!" Be generous, and appreciative of whatever they did to keep the company a going concern while technical problems were solved). If they do come back with an offer, as GP cautions, make sure you don't agree to any "company will make things better in an unspecified manner, in exchange for ensuring you work there another X years" forms of compensation. If you do feel the offer is too vague ("We'll talk to team lead"), thank them for that, but push back and remind them that you've already been dealing with this for X months and are going to need a firmer commitment to change things. Then see where it goes. Anything worth getting it worth asking for, especially if you have concrete other options.
  - deepbreath 7y ago
    > (Hint: go ahead and start interviewing and have semi-serious job leads before this talk) I think this bit of advice is at odds with OP's statement: "I don’t think I’d come across very well (or as sharp as I usually) in interviews at the moment without a break." I was quite burned out at my previous job, as well, and decided (against most people's advice) to quit without an offer. I had similar "I'd rather give it a shot at being a bartender than write more code" thoughts. I was unemployed for a few months, but ultimately ended up with a few good offers. Leaving without a backup was definitely the right choice in my case.
blablabla123 7y ago
Awesome strategy, that's basically what I do myself when things turn bad - after having had a bad startup experience myself. Looking back at the last years, my carrier options have improved a lot, same with overall happiness.

by sakisv 7y ago

mcv 7y ago

If the problem really is the team lead, then getting rid of the team lead (or even just talking to them) might go a long way to improve the situation. I would say, talk to the founders about your problems. How you're getting burned out, and how you're not working well with the team lead. Addressing the team lead is their responsibility, as is creating a healthy work environment for you. If they can't salvage the situation, leave. But they really need to address this, or they lose you. They need you more than you need them. Keep that in mind.

ethbro 7y ago
Agreed. If you're really willing to quit, there's no downside to talking to the founders, if done correctly. If they're the sort to appreciate straight talk, plainly state you feel the team lead is doing more harm vs delivering value to the company. Otherwise back into it from "There are some issues with the way things are working that I've noticed..." Make sure to include you're not the only one who feels this way. But certainly don't name or get overly specific with the others you've talked to. I'd simply suggest the founders reach out to {these groups} to get their opinions. End with the work environment created by the team lead is directly causing you to look for other opportunities. (Hint: go ahead and start interviewing and have semi-serious job leads before this talk) Remind them of what you feel you've done: never overestimate their knowledge of who actually did / does what. State that you like(d) working at the company, found the problems interesting, and loved what you felt you and the founders had done ("together!" Be generous, and appreciative of whatever they did to keep the company a going concern while technical problems were solved). If they do come back with an offer, as GP cautions, make sure you don't agree to any "company will make things better in an unspecified manner, in exchange for ensuring you work there another X years" forms of compensation. If you do feel the offer is too vague ("We'll talk to team lead"), thank them for that, but push back and remind them that you've already been dealing with this for X months and are going to need a firmer commitment to change things. Then see where it goes. Anything worth getting it worth asking for, especially if you have concrete other options.
- deepbreath 7y ago
  > (Hint: go ahead and start interviewing and have semi-serious job leads before this talk) I think this bit of advice is at odds with OP's statement: "I don’t think I’d come across very well (or as sharp as I usually) in interviews at the moment without a break." I was quite burned out at my previous job, as well, and decided (against most people's advice) to quit without an offer. I had similar "I'd rather give it a shot at being a bartender than write more code" thoughts. I was unemployed for a few months, but ultimately ended up with a few good offers. Leaving without a backup was definitely the right choice in my case.

blablabla123 7y ago

Awesome strategy, that's basically what I do myself when things turn bad - after having had a bad startup experience myself. Looking back at the last years, my carrier options have improved a lot, same with overall happiness.