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Want to found a startup? Work at one first

blog.lawrencejones.dev

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Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#121

Post by lawrjone »

qqqwerty wrote: post #88
jchonphoenix wrote: post #57

I've worked at multiple startups sub 50 to >1000 (unicorn status) and have founded and sold my own company. I've also worked at a few of the FAANGs. This is common advice, especially among VCs since it's one of the key benefits used to pitch prospective employees on giving up that fat FAANG salary, but in my personal experience, it's not so cut and dry. Working in a startup will brand you as a startup person and help…

There is way more than one lesson to learn from each startup. You will hopefully learn how to hire (and possibly fire) people. You will get insight into the nitty gritty of keeping the lights on at a company (taxes, payroll, office leases, etc...), and you will get familiar with the typical fundraising cycle. Most people don't appreciate how fast 18 months to two years of funding can run out. Going through that stuff…

This is... Almost exactly how I feel, to the detail. Glad I'm not alone in that!

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#122

Post by sausagefeet »

PeterisP wrote: post #95
sausagefeet wrote: post #7

> I believe if you want the best chance of succeeding as a founder, first join an existing high-growth start-up where you can learn what good looks like, before you start something yourself. We're all entitled to our beliefs, but this seems very specific to me. Why doe sit have to be "high-growth"? What if your startup isn't meant to be "high-growth"? Why do you specifically have to work at a startup? I believe getti…

The needs of a startup are quite different than (and often conflicting or opposite to) the needs of a stable, large company. So if you have learned "what good looks like" elsewhere and have no first-hand experience in a high-growth environment, then you as a founder may be prone to decisions that are a poor fit in the context of a startup, which by definition is a high-growth. Launching an "ordinary" (i.e. non-high-g…

Let's take it as a given that the needs of a startup are different from a stable, large company. That doesn't mean working at a startup is the best way to learn how to make your own startup. You could work at a company that is seriously dysfunctional and learn things you shouldn't. You could work at a company that just fell into amazing success and not learn anything that applies to the startup you'll make.

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#123

Post by gwbas1c »

PeterStuer wrote: post #69

Counterpoint: I have seen some very bad habits carried over by founders from growing companies. Success isn't always the result of excellence. Also, many founders that worked in somewhat larger environments before tend to rush into 'mature' processes long before their benefits outweigh their costs. This almost always grinds progress to a halt, creates a ton of middle management and other non-productive overhead in a…

Don't forget that: Most startups fail.

As an employee, you need to vhet the startup even more closely than an investor. An investor will spread their money to multiple startups; but you can only have a single full time job at a time.

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#125

Post by lawrjone »

leetrout wrote: post #76
ghiculescu wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Last suggestion deserves a caveat. Unless more than 5% of your revenue will unconditionally require SOC2, you should avoid doing it and accept the small revenue hit. But you are correct, if you do need it, you should do it as early as you can and buy it out of the box as much as you can. I recommend Tugboat Logic for this.

That's true! For those that do not know, an audit is going to cost AT LEAST $20k but the total cost could be more than $50k (certainly more if you are paying market rate and you account for the team's time to pull everything together). And the requirements can cause side effect costs (penetration tests, etc).

As an incident management tool, getting certified was a thing we knew we needed early.

Gotta hand it to Chris (one of our founders) who came from being Director of Platform at Monzo (a UK neobank) and had spent years battling auditors, and knew exactly how to play it.

Kinda hammers home the point of my article... but about three months into our company life, we were SOC 2 certified, and it didn't feel like much effort at all.

In case anyone is looking for actionable advice, we used Vanta to help us through the process. If you're funded, I think it's well worth the money.

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#126

Post by up2isomorphism »

The most important skill of the startup founder is to find funding and customer, while find talent to implement, and if there is no suitable talent at that time, he can at least take the task until find someone. None of these skills can be acquired if you just work for a startup.

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#127

Post by lawrjone »

geeny777 wrote: post #34

How do you pick a high-growth startup that makes it through several stages? It's like saying the best way to make money is to pick stocks that beat the market.

I mentioned this above, but unlike an investor you don't have to pick a start-up that exits successfully for you to gain really valuable experience that can help you on your own.

Pick a company with a team you respect, a product you connect with, and has money in the bank (just completed a funding round).

You can't go much wrong if you do that, at least in terms of learning.

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#128

Post by Nicholas_C »

jononomo wrote: post #77

Does anyone care anymore about just having five kids and a backyard and a loving spouse and a wall full of books and solid church community? I'm so tired of people just trying to make money.

Where do you live? This ideal is alive and well in most of the U.S. outside of the big cities.

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#129

Post by JamesBarney »

qqqwerty wrote: post #88
jchonphoenix wrote: post #57

I've worked at multiple startups sub 50 to >1000 (unicorn status) and have founded and sold my own company. I've also worked at a few of the FAANGs. This is common advice, especially among VCs since it's one of the key benefits used to pitch prospective employees on giving up that fat FAANG salary, but in my personal experience, it's not so cut and dry. Working in a startup will brand you as a startup person and help…

There is way more than one lesson to learn from each startup. You will hopefully learn how to hire (and possibly fire) people. You will get insight into the nitty gritty of keeping the lights on at a company (taxes, payroll, office leases, etc...), and you will get familiar with the typical fundraising cycle. Most people don't appreciate how fast 18 months to two years of funding can run out. Going through that stuff…

Is working at a startup useful? Yes.

Is more more useful than having a longer runway from big co savings? Doubtful.

Most of the lessons you learn are either going to be

1. General startup lessons (This information is available in YC Startup School, lean startup, etc...)

2. Lessons specific to the problem you're trying to solve (Whats the best way to reach rural RV buyers, what keeps people from renting a room for a night)

Working at a startup will teach you a little of 1, and none of 2. So I'd easily trade the knowledge gained during two years of working at previous startup for 2 extra months of working on my startup.

Re: Want to found a startup? Work at one first

#130

Post by mritchie712 »

silentsea90 wrote: post #117
mritchie712 wrote: post #20

We have a "Founders Program" for people that know they want to start a company in the next few years. I think it's better to have full transparency on both sides: As the company: You get highly motivated, amazing talent As the employee / future founder: You make your intention clear to leave in x months to start your own thing and can openly discuss strategy for your company with the current founders instead of hidin…

Is this effectively part time employment?

Yes. We're flexible on the # of hours, but would need to be at least 20 a week to make sense.

We also offer full benefits in the US if the person needs them. Finding healthcare in the US without it being thru an employer is a huge pain.

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