A few yeas ago,
Jeff Jarvis was in Toronto promoting his book What Would Google Do. As a
VP Digital at a large newspaper, I invited him to stop by our offices to meet
some key executives and to provide some input into a planned redesign of our
website.
It was a nice afternoon, if
a bit weird for Jeff (he was placed at the head of a giant boardroom table and
asked to give his perspective on the future of media). But at the end of
our time together, I did something strangely out of character. I pulled Jeff
into my office and begged him to help me get the hell out of the newspaper
industry.
I had been a vice president
for less than 6 months and though I loved the world of digital media, I was
quickly discovering that I did not love the corporate world. I wasn’t good
at the politics and couldn’t get my head around working in an industry that
seemed more interested in managing decline than building something new and
exciting. In fact, I was having daily dirty thoughts of working in the
start-up world.
Amazingly, Jeff (who is very
kind) did in fact help kick-start my journey toward a new life in the start-up
world simply by making a few introductions.
I took it from there.
And, after a little soul searching, a lot of work and a couple false
starts, I’m now the CEO of Shopcaster, an ecommerce start-up that I’m currently expanding into the US.
If you feel trapped in a
corporate job and long to make a break, here are five tips for making the big
leap:
1. Make sure you’re
doing it for the right reasons
Do you have a genuine desire
to build something from nothing or are you just bored or dissatisfied with your
current job? Or worse, have you watched The Social Network too many times
and are dreaming about Zuckerberg’s billions?
Start-ups are hard.
Can you handle constant
uncertainty? How about ambiguity? Constantly changing priorities?
Are you willing to work long hours at a punishingly fast pace? Are
you capable of working with next to no resources - ie. in a tiny office space
with limited staff and virtually no marketing budget?
Without true passion and
drive, you’re going to struggle.
2. Make sure you
can afford it
With all the stresses of
start-up life, the last thing you need is to be worrying about your own
finances. If you get paid at all, start-up pay is nowhere near the levels
of corporate pay (not to mention the lack of benefits).
Sure, the long-term goal may
be to make your millions, but the truth is, most start-ups fail. Do
yourself a favour and build nest a egg first. Even if it takes a couple of
years to get there, at least you’ll be working toward something. And, you
won’t be freaked-out about your mortgage payment when you should be focused on how to grow your business.
3. Talk to everyone
Do your research. Which start-ups do you admire? Who are their
investors? Get some meetings and let it be known that you have a certain
skillset and you’re looking to make a move to a start-up.
If you’re not a
techie and you’re looking for a technical co-founder, get ready for a long hard
search. It’s probably easier to find a husband than to find a great CTO.
Ask for help. In the
corporate world, we’re taught that needing help is a weakness. In the
start-up world, not admitting that you need help is a weakness. Ask for
introductions, ask for advice, ask for resources.
But, you have to be willing
to give help too. Which leads us to tip #4...
4. Be willing to
work for free
If you’re looking to join an
existing start-up, the best way to break in is to volunteer your time and do
some project work. You can do it by working nights and weekends before
you leave the corporate world. Not only will it show the start-up team
what you can do for them, but it will help you determine if start-up life is
really for you (see tip #1).
If you’re starting a new
business from scratch, you’re going to need a working prototype and some
thoughts on a revenue model before your first investment. That means
working for free.
5. Only make the
leap if you love, love, love the start-up you’re entering
My first start-up job was at
a company called CanSport LIVE where we were gathering amateur sports
organizations into a digital advertising network. I joined
the company because I thought that the business model was very clever (we were
selling actual soccer moms to advertisers).
But the job didn’t give me
the satisfaction I longed for when daydreaming at my old corporate job.
And that’s because I have zero passion for amateur sports.
So I had to go back to the
drawing board and that’s when I found Shopcaster, a company I truly love with a
mission I care deeply about.
And let me tell you, I took
a 70% pay cut for this job and I’ve never worked harder in my life, but I’ve
also never been happier or more fulfilled in my career.
I wish all you daydreaming corporate types the same.
Great Post!
I am curious what you believe to be the hardest part of your exit and rebirth?
Posted by: Jvreeland | 01/14/2013 at 09:22 AM
For me it was, and continues to be learning to cope with uncertainty. I've always been a big fan of certainty. The past few years, I've been working on letting go. Things tend to go smoother that way!
Posted by: Judy Sims | 01/14/2013 at 09:39 AM