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How did you decide to join that specific company over all of the others out there at the time?
Do you have any advice for someone who might be looking for the same growth potential but doesn't want to waste time at just any old startup?
I actually missed out on lots of good companies. Most are very humble. They don't smell like a big shot CEO, more like a lost student. They don't convince you that they're good at what they do, nor do they beg for help. So it's easy to miss. It's just some folks working out of a cheap area of town, sometimes even a large house. I rarely see big startups emerge from the expensive part of town, but there may be exceptions for some towns.
Approach it like a VC. Identify smart people. Hang around where they hang, like accelerators and coworking spaces. Listen to their pitch and ask yourself whether this could be an amazing thing. I actually missed out on lots of good companies. Most are very humble. They don't smell like a big shot CEO, more like a lost student. They don't convince you that they're good at what they do, nor do they beg for help. So it'…
Go to Stanford or Harvard if you can, otherwise if it's too late to get into that club, it comes down to whatever network you can cultivate, along with timing and luck.
Hindsight is 20/20. Don't get too sucked into the casino that is Startup Land.
Go work at BigCorp for big bucks if you're actually adept at engineering. For non-harvardites, everything else is generally a gamble.
If you do work for a startup, make sure to join early for >1% total equity, and if things start to smell funny, don't waste too much time. Every day spent is one you can never get back.
To be honest, most of it is just luck. My two cents is to just find really smart and hungry people, look for evidence of incredibly fast product velocity and some semblance of product market fit. For first 50, there's a decent number of post series A startups that should have those indicators.
Approach it like a VC. Identify smart people. Hang around where they hang, like accelerators and coworking spaces. Listen to their pitch and ask yourself whether this could be an amazing thing. I actually missed out on lots of good companies. Most are very humble. They don't smell like a big shot CEO, more like a lost student. They don't convince you that they're good at what they do, nor do they beg for help. So it'…
Terrible advice, startups have so many variables it's nearly impossible to time on purpose, especially as any kind of outsider. Go to Stanford or Harvard if you can, otherwise if it's too late to get into that club, it comes down to whatever network you can cultivate, along with timing and luck. Hindsight is 20/20. Don't get too sucked into the casino that is Startup Land. Go work at BigCorp for big bucks if you're a…
Approach it like a VC. Identify smart people. Hang around where they hang, like accelerators and coworking spaces. Listen to their pitch and ask yourself whether this could be an amazing thing. I actually missed out on lots of good companies. Most are very humble. They don't smell like a big shot CEO, more like a lost student. They don't convince you that they're good at what they do, nor do they beg for help. So it'…
Terrible advice, startups have so many variables it's nearly impossible to time on purpose, especially as any kind of outsider. Go to Stanford or Harvard if you can, otherwise if it's too late to get into that club, it comes down to whatever network you can cultivate, along with timing and luck. Hindsight is 20/20. Don't get too sucked into the casino that is Startup Land. Go work at BigCorp for big bucks if you're a…
Approach it like a VC. Identify smart people. Hang around where they hang, like accelerators and coworking spaces. Listen to their pitch and ask yourself whether this could be an amazing thing. I actually missed out on lots of good companies. Most are very humble. They don't smell like a big shot CEO, more like a lost student. They don't convince you that they're good at what they do, nor do they beg for help. So it'…
Terrible advice, startups have so many variables it's nearly impossible to time on purpose, especially as any kind of outsider. Go to Stanford or Harvard if you can, otherwise if it's too late to get into that club, it comes down to whatever network you can cultivate, along with timing and luck. Hindsight is 20/20. Don't get too sucked into the casino that is Startup Land. Go work at BigCorp for big bucks if you're a…
The OP asked for advice or anecdotes from people who have been an early employee at a successful startup. There's value in that question, and in answers to it. Obviously not all answers will be applicable to all situations, but nobody reasonable would think they would be.
Then here comes this reply, which smells like the HN equivalent of a StackOverflow "you shouldn't be trying to solve that problem" comment.
Maybe someone doesn't want to spend years of their life writing design docs nobody will ever read, for a feature that won't ship, for a product that will get shut down in a year because the executive sponsor lost interest?
Of all sites, why post threadbare anti-startup talking points on Hacker News?
Approach it like a VC. Identify smart people. Hang around where they hang, like accelerators and coworking spaces. Listen to their pitch and ask yourself whether this could be an amazing thing. I actually missed out on lots of good companies. Most are very humble. They don't smell like a big shot CEO, more like a lost student. They don't convince you that they're good at what they do, nor do they beg for help. So it'…
Terrible advice, startups have so many variables it's nearly impossible to time on purpose, especially as any kind of outsider. Go to Stanford or Harvard if you can, otherwise if it's too late to get into that club, it comes down to whatever network you can cultivate, along with timing and luck. Hindsight is 20/20. Don't get too sucked into the casino that is Startup Land. Go work at BigCorp for big bucks if you're a…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Terrible advice, startups have so many variables it's nearly impossible to time on purpose, especially as any kind of outsider. Go to Stanford or Harvard if you can, otherwise if it's too late to get into that club, it comes down to whatever network you can cultivate, along with timing and luck. Hindsight is 20/20. Don't get too sucked into the casino that is Startup Land. Go work at BigCorp for big bucks if you're a…
What does this post have to do with the post you replied to? What does it have to do with the thread? The OP asked for advice or anecdotes from people who have been an early employee at a successful startup. There's value in that question, and in answers to it. Obviously not all answers will be applicable to all situations, but nobody reasonable would think they would be. Then here comes this reply, which smells like…
My response expressed the lessons I (and many other HNers) have learned THE HARD WAY ALREADY!
What is wrong with trying to save a young puppy from suffering the harsh consequences of reality that I've had to endure? It's free advice, if you don't find it helpful please feel free to ignore it and move along, matey. In the meantime, I'd like to keep trying to rescue the pups.