I'm 30 and have previously worked in one big company and one startup. You need to figure out how to make it work --> I know I need to figure out how to make it

I'm 30 and have previously worked in one big company and one startup. You need to figure out how to make it work --> I know I need to figure out how to make it work for myself and to do the best work I can, but I only have so much control over what other people do and how they perform. My question is more whether a startup can succeed with a few incompetent early employees. If it's unlikely, then I want to start looking elsewhere. What do you think?