Startup people are productive go-getters that know how to scrape and grind their way to making things happen. In nearly all situations, this is an awe-inspiring attribute to have. If you’re this type of person, or you hire these types of people, there’s one time that I’d watch out for these tendencies: being newly hired…
Tag: startup
Startup Leaders: Early-Stage Must-Haves
With all that goes into getting a startup up and running, it’s easy to miss some important aspects. Below are a few things to make sure you have, and are ready to deliver on; especially as you start to staff up. Strategy Unless you’re self-funding (or at least self-seeding) this is likely something you’ll need…
Startup Leaders: Get These Things Right For Your Staff
It’s easy to chalk certain things up to being at a startup. With everyone being stretched for time and resources, leadership often misuses the concept of “that just comes with the territory” to shirk certain responsibilities. It’s imperative that leaders get certain fundamentals right and make small, consistent, incremental improvements. Here are a few areas…
Startups: The Case For Keeping Things Simple
Yes, this blog is very simple and that’s on purpose. Decluttering and getting back to fundamentals is a theme in my life; and I impart that on this blog very intentionally. What you’ll find below is not a framework for avoiding difficult or complex situations. You will, however, find suggestions for making the complicated seem…
The Startup Environment: It’s A Real Thing
I’ve interviewed, hired, and onboarded hundreds of startup employees. During the interview process, whenever I’m asked, “what should I know about XYZ company?”, I always tell them to be sure they truly want to work at a startup. One person’s baggage is another person’s opportunity. To me, being a part of a startup equates to…
In The Startup World, Luck Is Earned
As I have an ever-growing number of conversations with early-to-mid-stage Founders and CEOs, there’s an obvious pattern that’s emerging. Somewhere along the way, while telling the story of their startup, something gets chalked up to “catching a lucky break.” While I see value in the humility behind these statements, I think it’s important to realize…
What Incentivizes Your Startup Staff (it’s not really free beer and ping pong)
It’s easy to get caught up in the (by now cliche?) norms of startup life. The standing desks and open-office layout abound in a variety of snacks, catered lunches, breakout spaces, beer, cold brew on tap, and the list goes on. I would never promote getting rid of these perks; I think they’re important. What…
Startups: Hire Top Down or Bottom Up, Just Make a Smart Decision
Lately I’ve noticed a lot startups that seem to be haphazardly seeking their next hire. Don’t get me wrong, the positions they’re trying to fill make a lot of sense, but the strategy and logic behind who to hire when seems to be vacant or skewed. This seems to happen for a few reasons: Casting…
Startup Leaders: Your Team’s Job Isn’t To Make Your Job Easier…Yet
In a startup, you need every bit of horsepower you can get; but few know how to harness that from their staff. I promise you, your people are hungry to achieve great things, they just have to be shown how. I know a lot of folks who work at startups; I have for over a…
Meaningless Buzzwords Are Killing (what could be) Your Startup’s Culture
Here’s how you can turn company values into a living organism, thriving in an ecosystem that is functional and makes sense. ∞ The crux of the problem: It’s not them, it’s you ∞ A collaborative, team environment sounds nice and is a great buzzword for People, HR, and Recruiting teams to throw out to staff and…