Startup is not your job • Hacker News Board

Re: Startup is not your job

#11

Post by bmac27 » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:06 PM UTC

This time crunch is exacerbated even further when you're trying to bootstrap. 8 hour day job (at least) + at least 3 or 4 hours nightly trying to hustle your way through a product doesn't leave much time for sleep/breathing etc. let alone relaxing your mind in any substantive way. Plus the guilt you feel if you take a day off from the day job and don't spend that on what you're working on.

I'm trying to figure out better ways to maximize my time and squeeze the absolute most out of it, while maintaining some semblance of work/life balance. But it's a struggle, there's no doubt. There's the momentary victory of working out all of the scheduling but if you burn out, it's not worth much, is it?

Re: Startup is not your job

#12

Post by igzebedze » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:06 PM UTC

lmm wrote: post #2

Agreed except for holidays. If you don't have a clear sharp line between work and life day-to-day, then you need those more than ever.

hey guys,

a) i'm not saying anyone should overwork themselves, you're seeing that in my post. all i'm saying is that even when entrepreneur (or a type thereof) tries to unplug, the brain still works on the same problems.

b) work-life balance is bullshit, doesn't work. you can't switch contexts like that efficiently. if you try and think you'll be able to, no surprise you need vacation as well.

c) i'm racing against wantrepreneurs who think they have a hard job building a startup because they worry about paying for office space and other non-essential things. as more cash is sent towards early-stage startups, I see more of this behavior emerging.

best, b

Re: Startup is not your job

#13

Post by igzebedze » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:08 PM UTC

JSadowski wrote: post #7

Also, could we stop pretending that every startup founder is in it to "change the world"?

startups make money by making people behave differently - paying them instead of someone else. that's changing the world.

let's stop pretending there is more to it than that, because it's hard enough.

Re: Startup is not your job

#14

Post by igzebedze » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:13 PM UTC

bmac27 wrote: post #11

This time crunch is exacerbated even further when you're trying to bootstrap. 8 hour day job (at least) + at least 3 or 4 hours nightly trying to hustle your way through a product doesn't leave much time for sleep/breathing etc. let alone relaxing your mind in any substantive way. Plus the guilt you feel if you take a day off from the day job and don't spend that on what you're working on. I'm trying to figure out be…

well... i'd say nothing is worth over-working yourself. i like my sleep very much.

Re: Startup is not your job

#15

Post by edw519 » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:18 PM UTC

Founder's Prayer (with apologizes to AA & the original author)

God, grant me the tolerance to accept the limitations of my MVP, strength and determination to work on what must be worked on now, and wisdom to know the difference.

Re: Startup is not your job

#16

Post by andraz » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:33 PM UTC

rimantas wrote: post #8

andraz wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Being constantly overworked is not sustainable. However start-up life does include periods of overwork to get things done. Things that you could put off for a couple of days if you had a regular job.

And what exactly would change in those couple of days?

From what I've seen - a lot. You can lose a leading client (or cause huge bump on the road), your marketing plan can fall apart.

It's about finishing stuff today, so tomorrow you can do more important strategical stuff.

Start-up contrary to some of beliefs is not one big effort to reach the summit. It's a series of small wins (and loses) that accumulate. And you need to be accumulating them faster than your money runs out or competition takes the space, etc.

Re: Startup is not your job

#17

Post by timonv » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:40 PM UTC

So I'm curious, what would you define a job? True, running a startup requires you to make some concessions with your private time. But when you have what you describe as a job, assuming there is no need to excel (i.e., prioritising, pushing), seems a bit judging. Aiming to be good at what you do, doesn't that hold for anything?

So with that argument turned around again on startups, if you need time off, vacations, private me time or whatever to get better at what you do, you should take it. Excessive stress does not make a better person, nor a better life.

Re: Startup is not your job

#18

Post by _delirium » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:44 PM UTC

entropyneur wrote: post #3

I don't understand why the idea that you should try and gain a competitive advantage by stretching yourself beyond limits is so popular in the startup community. Not resting properly (be it vacation or daily sleep) hurts your productivity and decision making ability badly. So overworking is simply not a rational thing to do. Starting a new business is not a sprint, but a marathon. And all this romanticizing does a hu…

I see this genre of writing as less about practical business advice and more about a certain kind of evangelism: leave your old ideas behind and join the new movement! It can be startups, or something else. The general template is an aspiration that a new life awaits you, if you dive in and commit to it, but only if you really treat it as a new life, not just a new job.

Re: Startup is not your job

#19

Post by igzebedze » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:50 PM UTC

timonv wrote: post #17

So I'm curious, what would you define a job? True, running a startup requires you to make some concessions with your private time. But when you have what you describe as a job, assuming there is no need to excel (i.e., prioritising, pushing), seems a bit judging. Aiming to be good at what you do, doesn't that hold for anything? So with that argument turned around again on startups, if you need time off, vacations, pr…

great question, thanks.

i call a 'job' something that has a stable job description, clear career path and predictable roadmap. vacation becomes just another item on the calendar then, which is perfectly fine.

you can and should still excel in those conditions, but the project won't be jeopardized or stalled if you take time off. and when you come back, chances are that the specs of your project didn't shift yet.

there is a surprising amount of people working in jobs, even in technology sector, but they are not founders or employees of early stage companies.

and yes, if you feel like you need time off, you need time off. but planned vacations in this environment I just don't see plausible. I've never been able to even book a plane ticket more than a week in advance, because plans always changed.

best, b

Re: Startup is not your job

#20

Post by jasonkester » Wed, Aug 22, 2012, 2:50 PM UTC

This is another article that makes a bunch of assumptions about its precise definition of a "Startup", then defines those definitions, then restates them as its conclusion.

But it doesn't mean you need to fit any of those definitions to be a Startup. Except in the mind of the author.

I run a successful little software startup that has as its first and primary goal: "Maximize Jason's vacation time". Every decision I make is made in that context. So profitability is important, as is low customer support requirements, as is technical simplicity (so I never have to cut a trip short because something breaks).

From that standpoint, articles like this that make it sound like a startup should consume your life and thoughts seem a bit silly. No it shouldn't. Not unless you want it to.

That's the cool thing about running your own business. You get to run it any way you please.