Living on Loyalty, Trust and Big Ideas
There are plenty of reasons to work at a startup. But what those reasons fail to address are some of the core principles that drive startup success.
Not everyone is suited to working at a startup. Even if the reasons entice you, it takes a considerable amount of intestinal fortitude. The ride can be rough. And many of us are programmed to believe in an “us versus them” work environment — the relationship between employer and employee has to be at odds, fellow employees can’t be trusted, it’s a “dog eat dog” world.
All of that is true, to a certain extent, but you can’t succeed in a startup with that mentality.
Startup teams can’t succeed without immense amounts of loyalty, trust and faith in big ideas.
Alexis, an employee at reddit, nailed it perfectly in a recent blog post:
“At a startup, no one needs motivational posters. You work because it’s your damn job and you don’t want to let down the person at the desk beside you.”
“There’s something special about being in that always-sinking-boat of a startup and being able to count on all the folks sinking with you.”
Many people say sacrifice is a requirement of startup success. And in some ways they’re right, because you’re going to make sacrifices. You’ll work weekends, you’ll live on ramen noodles, you might get paid poorly…hygiene is always an issue. And yes, the grass is always greener on the other side. But none of that is really a sacrifice, because you want to be there. If you’re constantly looking at what you’re doing as a sacrifice, get out.
What do Loyalty and Trust mean to you?
Loyalty and trust are necessities if you’re going to build a great startup.
Each person in a startup team has to:
- be there for the greater good
- trust that the other guys will be there
- feel that everyone is putting in the same effort (note: founders put in more time & lead by example)
- be responsible for everyone else’s success
- be responsible to everyone else.
Employees have to trust that the founders know what they’re doing. Founders will make plenty of mistakes, but if a startup employee isn’t prepared to follow, things break down quickly.
Alexis won’t use the “going to war” metaphor for a startup, and he’s right - startups aren’t war. No one dies. No one’s maimed. No one’s tortured (well…) But the camaraderie that must exist within a startup team is very much the same as a unit in the army. You have to trust wholly and completely that I’ve got your back. If you don’t, you can’t succeed. And in a startup team, where each person is insanely important because the team is so small, if one guy isn’t on par with everyone else, you’ve got serious trouble.
Big Ideas are really about big challenges
Lots of startups are founded by dreamers. But in this day and age, when many people believe that web startups are becoming commodities, it’s not just about big ideas and dreams, but really about big challenges. And even a web startup that’s basically a commodity will still encounter big challenges. Succeeding will be a huge challenge.
And you can’t excel in a startup without having a deep desire to take challenges head on. In this case, having an “us versus them” mentality makes perfect sense — you are fighting against the rest of the world, so get ready. More than being ready, you have to want that challenge, otherwise you won’t succeed.
Loyalty, trust and big ideas — That’s what great startups are built on.
Ha - my doctors might not agree that I have the
“intestinal fortitude” to survive the entrepreneurial life
I’m 100% with you on the first two: trust and loyalty - I’m not sure about the big ideas part. Who doesn’t have big ideas? I’d swap that for “unbelievable execution”, because ultimately that’s more important.
Totally agree with the part about “if it feels like sacrifice, get out.”
For me, the entire point of starting a company was to build a company I wanted to work at. I like working and I was tired of doing it under someone else’s direction.
I started up a start up because I did not want to work for someone else - no other reason. When I tried to recruit people, this is what I told them and I also said that I hoped not to be like the superiors I had to deal with as an employee. Surprising how many decided to take the chance. I did try to follow my promise but failed a few times. Thanks to some of the joiners pointing out this whenever it happened, we licked those hiccups and got on with whatever had to be done.
it is not easy, but it has to be done.
[…] - Ben Yoskovitz has a very interesting article entitled Living on Loyalty, Trust and Big Ideas. […]
Ben, with the picture at the top I might just join to feast on the great banquet spread you have!
Wow, the buffet table makes me want to drool! Kidding aside, it’s really hard with startups. I just created a new startup blog and content gathering’s really difficult because it’s niched.
@Mat: I’m a bit late responding - but the idea behind “believing in big ideas” is that everyone on the team has to be on board. Everyone has to be a believer. If someone on the team isn’t a believer it won’t work.
@Robyn - The buffet does look nice, doesn’t it. I think I’ll post more food pictures, they make people happy *smile*
@DesignPinas - Niche topics aren’t the problem, but writing original material most definitely is. There are lots of startup blogs - although plenty of other niches have way more noise that the startup world. Generally, I always enjoy startup blogs that have 1st person accounts of what it’s like. Even if the stories are similar to other entrepreneurs they’re often fascinating and quite revealing about the process and experience. Good luck!
Great post. Your points are spot on. I used to tell folks that I worked a 100 hours week for myself so I didn’t have to work 40 for someone else.
Many of these points are applicable to everyone in their lives. If you want to get ahead, these things are crucial.
My issue today is that I’m 15 years older, wife and 2 kids later. I’m ready to go for it again, but I often wonder if my wife and kids can go through it.
It’s one of the best parts of being young, stubborn and poor. Living in a 1 bedroom flat in a crappy neighborhood eating pizza isn’t such a bad life. Add a wife and kids and your perspective changes.
[…] couple weeks ago, in a post titled, Living on Loyalty, Trust and Big Ideas, I talked about lifejackets too, although not in so many words. Time to clarify a bit… […]
Michael - Without a doubt, I believe it gets tougher as you get older. But, it’s still doable. I’ve got 2 young kids at home and do what I can to balance it all. At this stage in my life, I wouldn’t want to be doing a whole lot else…
For many entrepreneurs I think it’s more a question of “have to” versus “want to” because the want is so strong…
I was at the entrepreneur networking event yesterday. There was a great question asked to the panelists, how we can find good co-founders. The answer was intriguing that it is almost like finding your wife, and you have to date with many people.
Finding good co-founders is in fact critical to the success of the startups. When you have a well-working founding team, it is much easier to attract VC money as well as new employees.
Finding co-founders is critical to the success of a startup. If each co-founder isn’t kicking ass, the team is in big, big trouble.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting!
[…] exactly is the problem with that statement? Nothing. You should hire workaholics. They should also love their work and be passionate about what they’re doing. Workaholics alone are useless, because […]
[…] exactly is the problem with that statement? Nothing. You should hire workaholics. They should also love their work and be passionate about what they’re doing. Workaholics alone are useless, because […]