Startup hunger: I'm sorry for the things I said when I was hungry.

They want hunger from startups... until they starve to death?

I once read some advice to startups that really stuck with me: "I don’t want the knife or the cheese—I want the hunger."

I find it funny because this is so disconnected from reality, in my humble point of view. I do agree to some extent because no matter the resources you have (knife) or the results you get (cheese), hunger is perpetual. I understand it is the driving force that keeps businesses alive and thriving.

Though, according to the source, businesses don’t die from lack of funding, product, or market—they die because they lose their hunger. That's where it got me.

Honestly? My lived experience so far and the stories of many entrepreneurs shared loud and clear to date, have shown me another reality: those who expect you to stay hungry quite often watch you starve. And those who get there often reveal helping hands along the way. Contradictory, isn't it? If you haven't watched the following video yet, please do so - Grit - Kleiner Perkins Podcast interview with Parker Conrad, Founder & CEO of Rippling).

1. The Dark Side of "Hunger"

You can hustle, you can starve, you can fight like your life, your team’s survival, and your family’s well-being depend on it—and they often do. Reality is that too many people are willing to simply watch. They clap, podcast, and offer advice from the sidelines, they think they are being a great support to your journey, but they won’t step in to actually feeding the hunger when they can and even when they benefit from it.

I personally believe we have a great amount of entrepreneurs really hungry to make their business work. I know not all of them, but it is not difficult to differentiate it while interacting a few times.

Then, I come across another advice for startups: “Companies don’t die of starvation; they die of indigestion.”

Well, the root cause might be the same—a lack of true support. You’re hungry, going th eextra mile to survive, you try everything. If you see a flicker of light at the end of the tunnel and grab at every opportunity, though, scattering your focus. And that is how another challenge in the life of an entrepreneur is create.

"The real threat isn’t just hunger or indigestion—it’s the way we allow our focus to be stolen."

2. Focus: The Silent Killer

From my experience, the real threat isn’t just hunger or indigestion—it’s the way we allow our focus to be stolen. How often do we make space for projects, people, and distractions that derail us? How often do we pedestalize role models, valuing their validation over our own instincts and capabilities? And in a way, allocating time and effort on to them, believing that by following their advice, based on their reputation, it most likely will pay the bills.

3. The Takeaway

I don’t have all the answers, but these are the answers from what I’ve learned:

• Hunger is important—it keeps us moving.
• Focus is essential—it keeps us on track.
• And we need more than audience, claps and advice—we need people willing to roll up their sleeves and truly support. I used to seeing this beautifully happen a decade ago, when ecosystems were emerging. Nowadays, not really and, to me, that is the challenge of current broken ecosystems, which I covered in my recent article The Evolving Landscape of Ecosystem Sucess Stories.

Let’s rethink how we approach the way businesses are fed: hunger, starvation, indigestion. Are we really fostering sustainable growth, or are we just watching people starve?

I have been in a position of an ecosystem enabler too many times. Also as an investor and I always felt my experience and energy allocation wouldn't be completed if I didn't go through the process of having my business. So here I am, speaking by a holistic experience, putting myself in several types of shoes.

As an entrepreneur, have you ever heard these advice or expressions? Have you felt hungry or HANGRY =) when those who could feed you but instead just watched you, told you that you were not hungry enough?

Have you experienced this dynamic in your journey? I would love to hear your comments below.

If you are pursuing international markets, because you are HUNGRY FOR MORE (pun intended), our support is real. Just send us an e-mail: [email protected].

Ludmilla Figueiredo

Founder & CEO

Global Markets

#EntrepreneurshipJourney #BusinessGrowth #LeadershipLessons #FocusAndHustle #MotivationForSuccess #kleinerperkins #ParkerConrad #Rippling #startupmentorship