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One of the things I learned running my first startup was that I really don't enjoy running a business. The mountains of admin work, the never-ending decision ma

One of the things I learned running my first startup was that I really don't enjoy running a business. The mountains of admin work, the never-ending decision making, the constant anxiety of whether or not I made the right call, the pressure to never actually switch off and just work work work, all of the pointless 'networking' with people who're pretending to be interested ... it all adds up to a pretty horrible experience. The high points (raising a successful round, first revenue, first hires, etc) kind of make it worthwhile, and obviously an exit is nice (not that I'd know... I've never got to that point), but I don't think I'd do it again unless I have an amazing idea that I have to build. Anyone who tells you being a C-level person in a startup is fun and glamorous isn't running a real startup.

rsrsrs86 4y ago
I always ask candidates why they want to work at an early stage startup as a developer, and “because it must be fun” is a show stopper. Being a founder is certainly not fun. The good parts are there, like earning money, interacting with your team and seeing them grow, the first round, the first sale. But the job is quite painful itself. Please note that not all startups and founders are / want to be funded with billions of dollars. The true story is that you are going to be overworked and fail 99% of times.
- s1artibartfast 4y ago
  Maybe fun isn't the right word, but the best startup engineers that I've met found great satisfaction in their work. They enjoyed the engineering, the subject matter, and the process of learning. It is closer to the type of "hard fun" one has training and running a marathon, than the "easy fun" of watching a movie or playing a game.
  - rsrsrs86 4y ago
    Yes, it's hard fun :)
- amanj41 4y ago
  Similar to the sibling commenter, I would say it's a matter of semantics. I am one of three developers at a small startup and definitely would describe the experience as fun albeit stressful. The two sentiments are not mutually exclusive. If it's not fun / interesting / challenging, the possibility of options being worth something in future would absolutely not justify the stress of working at a startup
- AmericanOP 4y ago
  I enjoyed every aspect of starting a brand other than the lack of customers :)

rsrsrs86 4y ago

I always ask candidates why they want to work at an early stage startup as a developer, and “because it must be fun” is a show stopper. Being a founder is certainly not fun. The good parts are there, like earning money, interacting with your team and seeing them grow, the first round, the first sale. But the job is quite painful itself. Please note that not all startups and founders are / want to be funded with billions of dollars. The true story is that you are going to be overworked and fail 99% of times.

s1artibartfast 4y ago
Maybe fun isn't the right word, but the best startup engineers that I've met found great satisfaction in their work. They enjoyed the engineering, the subject matter, and the process of learning. It is closer to the type of "hard fun" one has training and running a marathon, than the "easy fun" of watching a movie or playing a game.
- rsrsrs86 4y ago
  Yes, it's hard fun :)
amanj41 4y ago
Similar to the sibling commenter, I would say it's a matter of semantics. I am one of three developers at a small startup and definitely would describe the experience as fun albeit stressful. The two sentiments are not mutually exclusive. If it's not fun / interesting / challenging, the possibility of options being worth something in future would absolutely not justify the stress of working at a startup
AmericanOP 4y ago
I enjoyed every aspect of starting a brand other than the lack of customers :)