Lots of people ask me about what it is like to work in a startup. I've had both the best times and some pretty miserable experiences. It's fun to work with creative, smart people and build something from nothing. It's fantastic to be involved in an IPO and calculate your net worth every hour, even if you can't cash out for six months. But it really sucks when you can't make payroll and you have to pick, Sophie's Choice style, who stays and who gets fired.
There's one thing to look for in a potentially successful startup: urgency. Because, as you'll see below, there is never enough money, people, or time, there had better be a sense of urgency in hiring, product development, marketing and sales and everything else connected with being successful. But urgency is not panic. It's doing things quickly, but thoughtfully and efficiently. Panic - or its opposite, a lack of urgency - are huge warning signs for any company but they are fatal to a startup.
