Sprinting While Running a Marathon
Startup culture can often resemble sprinting while running a marathon. Let me explain.
The feel around startups is a mix of chaotic change and rapid iteration. There is no cookie cutter, paint-by-numbers approach to building a technology and launching a tech business. You proceed along one path, test, and either continue forward or pivot. And this all moves at a breathtaking pace. Even in moments of relative quiet and calm, things just move faster and more just gets done in contrast to other types of companies.
The reality however is that startups are actually running a marathon that lasts several years. Your goal should be to build a sustainable, profitable company that serves the needs of its customers, employees and investors (that is if you take on investors). Because most startups do not really get going in the first few years, this is a long term process. You pivot once, twice or even more times. You are tinkering with customer acquisition strategies. You go through massive highs and gut-wrenching lows. You are constantly finding right the business model and the best revenue streams and the appropriate product-market-customer fit.
The important point is that no matter how fast you are going and how much work you are doing, make sure to keep perspective on the long-term. Your actions today are immediate, but results take time. Attractive opportunities in the near-term may be counterproductive later on. On the flip side, you may miss great opportunities because things are falling through the cracks as you proceed at ludicrous speed.
Take time to slow down, take a breather and decompress every so often. If it helps, get out of your town for a long weekend and disconnect to the extent that is possible. That goes for everyone on the team. Sometimes going on a retreat with the team can be a great experience to focus on something other than the startup.
Sprinting is valuable and often necessary to target certain opportunities or deal with major issues (thanks for the valuable reminder from Tristan Louis). Just remember that the real race is a marathon and that you do not always need to be sprinting non-stop.
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