Why you might hate startup
When we look at a startup we usually see only the materialistic aspect of it. We usually come/start a startup because we want to be the savior, want to be the ideal, or just for some old adrenaline rush.
But after a while being in a startup or owning a startup can become depressing. I’m pretty sure each of the startup owners must have been through a depression phase at least once in their lives. During these times they hate Startup and want to go back to their old self (having a 9–5 job and getting a paycheck)
Imagine an iceberg floating in the ocean, there are some aspects visible above the water, but there is a larger portion hidden beneath the surface.
What we can usually see is the material aspect of the startup world. So that would be flexible working hours, being the boss of ourselves, and being in control of our choices. You know the obvious startup stuff.
But what you don’t see is the rest of the iceberg and this is where the non-material parts of the startup are. This can be things like no separation between personal and professional life, the constant crunch of money, 24x7 stress, and feeling discriminated against by people especially if your startup is based in a small city and it would not be wrong to mention “The Constant Hair Loss”.
I would like to divide the startup into 4 phases
If you are filled with energy and you are ready to prove it to the world. You are burning with passion. If you have the utmost confidence then welcome to the “THE HONEYMOON PHASE”. It’s the first of the four phases you are going to experience.
The first phase is the most incredible part of starting a startup. You’ll love the control, the power, the happiness. Seriously you will love how you are in charge of everything and no one is controlling you. You’ll be like WOW this is the most fun I ever had working. But yeah the amount of time each person spends in each phase varies from person to person.
But all the honeymoon stuff will crash down after a while. It’s all the other circumstances that follow that we often fail to consider and which leads one to a really really dark phase, the second phase, “THE FRUSTRATION PHASE”.
Once you hit the peak of the first phase you get used to the happiness around us. And those will actually begin to decline pretty quickly. The things you found most exciting now have become really boring and seem normal to you. They now seem frustrating to you. The frustration phase goes really deeper than that. This is where depression and resentment and anger start to set in. Even though you love your startup there will be a time you’ll start hating it and will want to go back to your old boring life.
There will be a lot of factors that will make daily living incredibly difficult. Like dealing with the actual concept of no money to spend and constant anxiety. It will be a nightmare!
Unless you are some knight in shining armor or from a very rich family, people around will serve as a constant reminder of how wrong you are. Every day becomes the nightmare of doing the same thing, getting ready and going to the office hoping today there might be a difference, and putting on a face that everything is okay. Loneliness and isolation are other feelings you will experience.
But thankfully, there is a light at the end of the tunnel and it’s called “THE ADJUSTMENT PHASE”
If you don’t give up you will start to adjust to whatever situation you are in. Whether that’s being okay with having a strict and narrow budget, figuring out solutions to prevail, or maybe learning a totally new skill/solution.
And then eventually one hits the final phase of startup “THE ACCEPTANCE PHASE”
You will finally be able to stop putting your own expectations first and thinking as a whole team more. Instead of trying to control things around you, learn how to control yourself to suit the best needs of the startup.
Of course, there will be things that will bother you from time to time but you’re gonna be in a much better mental place to deal with those problems. You’ll become more comfortable with your day-to-day life and will not feel every day is a struggle
It’s really important to understand that you are not putting your own expectations of how you believed a startup should have been but accepting the startup you have created and work on making it better by day.
By Mahima Gupta
