OK, so you got your heart set on a startup? I guess I better tell you what to expect. But first, you’d best get acquainted with the three primary people involved in startups. Allow me to introduce them to you. They are founders, investors and employees. One thing I say is that all three types have a common attribute – an entrepreneurial spirit. There are advantages and disadvantages of being each one of these entrepreneurs.
Employees
Some people function better as employees. I want to stress there’s absolutely nothing wrong with being an employee. Several successful founders have told me that being an employee is the sane option. If you think it would be better to be a founder, ask the CEO who they are accountable to – everyone!
You don’t have to explain to investors that your company’s new Face-Ta-Gram App is six months behind schedule. You’re the strategy, coding or graphics mastermind busy planning for growth, wireframing or working on the UI.
Think about it. You don’t have to fire people. You don’t have to pay overheads. You turn up to work at 10:30 (or whenever) and mosey out of the office at 5. Haha – yeh, right!
Seriously, there are some pressures with being an employee. Well, maybe it is better described as ‘tolerances’ – such as explaining to the nosey investor why you can’t just press a button to instantly migrate your SaaS platform to AWS. Or explain to the new manager, who was hand-picked from the CEO’s gene pool, the importance of code version control.
There are also deadlines you need to meet. But they’re not so bad, are they? I mean, you are reminded each hour by the manager and the manager’s manager. I know it can be challenging – if they just left you alone for 5 minutes, you could get the job done.
When you think about it, many employees have the best of both worlds. You may have stock options and regular income, plus you’re not accepting too much risk – apart from your time.
Employees are fortunate because they usually get very flexible working hours. I know some employees who have day jobs and have committed to 10 hours per week on social media, support, and UX/UI services. Now, that’s what I call a sweet deal.
Many employees who exchange some of their time for company shares don’t mind the risk because they learn new skills while expanding their network. So, the potential downside is not so bad compared to the potential upside. Imagine being Google’s employee numb – or ever 1 – or even number 100.
If you are an employee reading this book, remember you are almost certainly the sane one – so congratulations!
Startup Founders
The big bosses, the ship’s captains – the buck stops with you. Now, wouldn’t that be a dream? Now, back to reality. The reality is that founders are the ones who answer to everyone.
“People have this vision of being the CEO of a company they started and being on top of the pyramid. Some people are motivated by that, but that’s not what it’s like. What it’s really like: everyone else is your boss – all your employees, customers, partners, users, and media are your boss. I’ve never had more bosses and needed to account for more people today. The life of most CEOs is reporting to everyone else; at least, that’s what it feels like to me and most CEOs I know. If you want to exercise power and authority over people, join the military or go into politics. Don’t be an entrepreneur”.
Phil Libin
Founders in startups require the skills of a UN diplomat. They need to be understanding of employees’ mid-morning starts and give props for their Sunday night sprints. They need to gently advise investors that their ‘ideas’ on marketing will be shelved for the time being, and they must beg the coveted coders not to take their holidays accrued two months’ holiday at once.
One thing that a founder must have is passion. It is that passion and enthusiasm that permeates through the company. You are responsible, and you’re a leader.
If you are considering forming your startup, you must get used to pressure, fatigue and responsibility. Before embarking on this epic journey, you must think long and hard about whether you are cut out for the late nights, meetings, company management, hiring and firing, and regular setbacks.
If you think it’s going to be glamourous, forget it. If it is your passion, you are determined to lay it on the line, roll up your sleeves, and go for it!
Startup Investors
Have you gone completely mad? What the hell are you doing investing in startups? Didn’t you learn from the Dot Com Bubble? What’s wrong with you?
Seriously though, you could be onto some massive profits like Ronald Wayne could have been. Ronald co-founded Apple,, whose shares today would have been worth $95 billion – if he hadn’t sold them back to Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak for $800 in 1987. Now, there’s a lesson in commitment!
Forget the Dot Com Bubble, that was 20 years ago. Investors know what they are talking about now, to the grief of founders everywhere trying to raise capital.
Investors in startups have a lot to be optimistic about in Australia. Some gem startups have come out of the blocks in Australia, such as Atlassian, Canva, 99 Designs, Campaign Monitor and more.
Now, who’s a crazy investor, eh? Not to mention that you didn’t have to work every night for three years to do it! Clever you.
