5 Things I Learned During My First Week at a Startup

My first week at a startup has been a thrilling sprint into uncharted territory. Part of me expected it to be chaos since there was no safety net of coming into a well-established organization with structure and processes in place. After all, there are plenty of horror stories out there about bright-eyed, bushy-tailed entrepreneurs walking into a disaster. However, my experience was shockingly smooth, and I was up to speed and contributing in no time.

What I wanted to really share with everyone in this post are the key observations and learnings that I picked up in my first seven days. I admit I had several misconceptions about the startup world as an outsider coming in but it has been completely refreshing to dive into a totally new world and really see what happens beneath the surface. For example:

The show Silicon Valley doesn't quite represent real life at a startup. One of my favorite shows right now is Silicon Valley, and yes while there are some truths to the ridiculous situations you see on screen, most of it is dramatized for our entertainment. On the show and in much of what you read, you only get stories about startups that are constantly on the edge of survival as they fight off competitors, avoid running out of money, or manage crazy investors/founders. In reality, most startups get by without much of the drama you would expect. Bad ideas die quickly as companies pivot in another direction and when the money runs out it's easy to move onto the next company because you now have an incredible skill set that can be used in a variety of ways.

Anyways I am happy to report that I am working in a real office building and not out of a basement, I don't live off of Ramen despite living in one of the most expensive cities in the world, and I have a very healthy work life balance. I credit this to an amazing group of founders who thought about creating a financially sustainable business through limiting extravagant expenses (for some reason many companies believe it is necessary to have outrageous perks to keep employees around - not true) and having a realistic growth plan with well thought out goals.

 On a side note - there is business down the street from our building that is called Pied Piper. Unfortunately, they serve drinks instead of software.

Having total autonomy in your job is kind of intimidating. After being surrounded by corporate bureaucracy all my life, I had always fantasized about a work life of full autonomy to make decisions. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to call the shots and not have an idea killed off by an unmotivated manager or complicated approval process?

Well in the startup you can have this fantasy world where you get the freedom to choose your own adventure which was what I was told on my first day of work. Part of me was elated to have this freedom but another part of me was surprisingly terrified by this newfound power. I realized that entering the world without processes and approvals meant I was the only person accountable for the success or failure of acquiring users for my company. I am now either going to be the hero or the guy who is unable to deliver results to get us additional funding in the next round of fundraising. No pressure.

Entrepreneurs are incredibly supportive of each other. Companies survive out here in Silicon Valley because of the generosity and support of other entrepreneurs who have made it through the same struggles. It is incredible how much time successful entrepreneurs will volunteer for free to speak at an event and share best practices. I owe all of my current success as a growth marketer to a vibrant community of local marketers that take time out of their busy schedules to put on conferences and produce resources to share. That's why startups thrive so well in the Bay Area relative to other areas in the world. This strong sense of community exists because of a pay-it-forward attitude and a philosophy to always be learning and teaching.

It would be easy for many of these successful experts to hoard their knowledge and use it as a competitive advantage to benefit their own personal gain but that just doesn't happen here. The belief is that we all stand to benefit when someone creates a disruptive innovation. Knowledge is the real currency here in Silicon Valley and you only grow rich by sharing it not saving it.

Not everyone is in it for a money. Silicon Valley is full of stories of self-made millionaires building unicorn companies to be IPO'd or get acquired for exorbitant sums of money. Because the media focuses on these stories, it is natural to assume that every entrepreneur is out to make a quick buck on an idea just to move onto the next one. However after spending time with the founders during my first week and also observing many other startups, financial gain is usually a secondary objective instead of the primary objective. If you look at large corporations, on the other hand, it is usually the opposite as they focus on profits to keep their shareholders happy first.

I admit I come to work every day inspired and highly motivated because our company is driven by purpose and passion, not just profit. It's a complete mind shift that has made me a much happier and fulfilled person that is fueled by the work that I do instead of drained by it. Nothing makes me more proud than knowing that my work at MindSumo is directed towards creating an entirely new way for college students to get experience to help them get a job.

Trust is the glue that holds everything together. The lack of processes and procedures in the startup is fully compensated for by trust. What I mean by that is startups are able to be nimble and adapt quickly because people on a startup team trust each other more out of necessity. For example, I am tasked every day to come up with new ideas to reach our target audience of college students. Rather than be tied down by a decision process with multiple layers of approval and consensus meetings, my team trusts my ability and knowledge to make the right decisions on my own starting on day one even though I had yet to prove myself to everyone.

 In fact, if you think about it, the entire startup ecosystem is based on trust. How else does a twenty-something year old with an idea, no customers, and no revenue raise millions of dollars to create a business? Why would perfectly logical individuals like myself leave a stable, high paying job to roll the dice on a company still finding its way and building a foundation for future growth? It's because we trust our founder's unwavering belief in creating something better for the world, and we trust our gut that smart, motivated people will always adapt and find a way through adversity. Without this trust, it all falls apart and innovation doesn't have a chance.

Well, that recaps week 1 for me and I can't wait to see what new things week 2 has in store. I hope this post has cleared up a few things about life at a startup. In the meantime, I would love to hear stories from others on what they learned in their first week at work so add them to the comments. Thanks for reading and sharing.