-
Website
http://www.instigatorblog.com/ -
Original page
http://www.instigatorblog.com/should-you-hire-workaholics-for-your-startup/2008/03/11/ -
Subscribe
All Comments -
Community
-
-
Top Commenters
-
Popular Threads
However, there's a proper way to phrase everything, and coming across like The Guy Who Finds Nothing Wrong With the Puritans isn't going to ingratiate Calacanis with the denizens of the real world, who DO value balance in their lives and (perhaps correctly) perceive the startup space as a place where antisocial people with self-worth issues go to get rich and die young.
To each, his own. And to the man making a fortune off the blood of the workaholics? The universe has a better understanding of "balance" than you do, so listen when it starts talking.
It seems the whole issue is one of communication. We should phrase the words carefully. Wanting a hardworking, passionate, team playing etc., worker is understood, and accepted. No problems there.
Perhaps Jason spoke a little harshly.
What I would really like to read more about is what a start up, with little money, big dreams and no name in the market place can do to help a worker achieve his dreams.
It would be great if you could give some thought and ideas on this.
Regards
That being said, I thought Calacanis' post was actually quite sensible. It's unfortunate that people jumped on what could've been a few unfortunate hyperboles. For realz.
One should bear in mind that these were money saving tips and not management tips.
I wrote a post that keyed off something that Calacanis wrote, but wasn't purely reactionary either. Managing any group of people to optimal performance is not something that can be boiled down to a single sentence, something I have learned the hard way over the years. Similarly, I have learned that hiring people is the easier part of the equation, it's keeping the good ones that is hard.
An interesting debate here. My view is that the tendency to work around the clock is tied to age. Young startups often hire young people, who don't have a ton of experience, but will drink Red Bull like it's going out of style and work like crazy.
On the other end of the spectrum you have startup veterans, who, at this point, may have families. These folks work less but work smart (or at least they should).
Personally, I take a mixed approach. It's all about situational awareness: when there are urgent issues, priorities or deals - I'm all over them and will close them FAST. The rest of the time, I work smart and hard, but not crazy.
One final comment: the right startup leader can get peak performance out of a team regardless of their age. At my last company Terrascale, the team there worked around the clock. They'd go home for dinner, then clock back in and run tests on their code, fix bugs, etc. They (and I) were always on call.
It was not sustainable long term, but for me anyway it was a game changing experience. It elevated my game and made me a better, tougher operator.
So, Bottom line: there is no one right answer.
The problem is calling such committed workers as workaholics. They are most likely just wanting to see the starting problems solved and get the business on strong footing.
@Jeff Nolan: Jason does have a way of "inspiring" others to write about him, or the subjects he takes on. It seems (and maybe this is for another post) that much of the benefits a company offers should be as rewards, and work more effectively that way, versus as motivation - since the best employees are already motivated enough. Any thoughts on that?
@Audiomecca Webmaster: Workaholics isn't the right term, I agree. People that join a startup should already be committed enough to work hard when necessary, and realize that it will involve more work than another type of job at a more established company.
The rewards angle is interesting to consider, but I believe that the best employee satisfaction strategy is to constantly remove barriers that get in people's way. Google is really good about this with their engineers, they create an environment that is as friction free as possible for people to exercise their creativity, while at the same time working in concert to execute on google's mission.
I think rewards don't necessarily serve as motivation, but they do create a positive work environment. And that helps in creating an aura of interest around the company from other potential employees.
You want others (outside the company) congratulating new employees when they get hired. You know if that happens you've created a strong work environment and a good story/aura as well that's permeating into the community.
When making those first few hires, it is imperative that they have the passion to do whatever it takes to help the company succeed. My phrase is, "the have to bleed [Insert company name here]".
Anyone that got in an uproar about Jason's posts is absurd and should stay away from entrepreneurship.
Great post, keep em coming, back t my 18 hour day....
What about 6 months into the project and your employees are completely burned out and either their performance tanks or they start looking elsewhere.
I hope you got enough extra value out of them to justify re-training new employees every 6-12 months.
Great post. I have to agree, I fail to see what the big fuss is about. It's probably the use of the term "workaholics" as apposed to what was actually meant. In my opinion, a key task for start-ups is to hire people that bring additional skills to the business.
I see your point but if you have a bad employee it is because they are a bad employee. Employees that work long hours can cause just as much trouble if they are bad workers.
Great post. I have to agree, I fail to see what the big fuss is about. It's probably the use of the term "workaholics" as apposed to what was actually meant. In my opinion, a key task for start-ups is to hire people that bring additional skills to the business.
You start having lots of problems in the office, from work not being done on time. To customers getting angry because there work is late. So seriously if you want to put your money on the line when starting up a company, make sure you pick the right people.
http://www.flytitle.com
This was my main mistake in my first job - just given the job straight after university, I wanted to be the best, no matter I liked the job, or not. I never repeated it. And never ever started a job I don't like - because when you like the job, passion to it helps to overcome everything. Even long hours :)
I do agree with you in your post, but it is allways easier to talk about it in theory than to do it in practice. But definitely some good points to think about before hire new staff, and how to threat them.
Are you looking to make a good income now, or a great income later?
But the opportunity to hit it big - or at least be part of something that hits it big - is still important when looking at potential employees.
I show short bursts of hard work(compared to workaholics long term sustained burst). So its good if I am operating over many such workaholics rather than working myself. Lol!
Too many people today are working in a place solely for the money because of the "stuff" they accumulated. So they are trapped, while letting their passions die and becoming slaves to their jobs.
Yes workaholics are fine but it only makes sense to hire them is if they are a fit for the position. Sure they can be workaholics for years but eventually in the long term, if they don't perceive they are getting ahead, things make start dropping drastically.
In the end I think they bring more benefit than negative to a new startup. And I tend to think of myself as a workaholic junkie.
You should also remember to set aside quality time for your personal relationships and pleasures.
I know from my experience and starting a new business. I hired my friend... lazy... it ended bad... i could not chase him away because he was my friend...
Could not agree more. You can't decide the quality of the employee that way.
Thanks