Why is it so hard to find programmers? Are people afraid of joining a start-up?
Let's not overlook the big differences between working at most start-ups and working at most companies:
1. Every programmer, no matter how good, is at least a little insecure. Every one of us doesn't know something. Is the something you don't know going to make or break the next project? In a start-up, there's rarely a safety net to catch you, but in a larger company, there's probably a better chance that someone else can help you along.
2. It takes a special mentality to work in a less certain environment. This is more a matter of personality than skill. My mentor was fearless. He used to say, "I didn't know I couldn't do it, so I did it." This attitude, as much as skill, determines how well one would thrive in a start-up.
3. What happens when things go wrong? (And they will go wrong.) The ability to recover from problems in a larger company is a great asset. In a startup, it's a necessity. I've met many enterprise programmers who could crank out great code between 8 and 5, but melted under the pressure of an all night emergency. They would never survive in a startup.
4. What happens if you don't feel well or if your mind is "someplace else"? In a larger company, you could coast for a day or two (maybe more). That's rarely an option in a start-up; time lost is time lost forever.
5. In a larger company, you can do quite well whether you have deep domain knowledge or you're a jack of all trades. In an early start-up, you better be both.
6. Ever wonder why waterfall development refuses to die, even though it's not as effective? Because so many of us have to have a road map in order to function. "Road map" personalities don't fare nearly as well in roadmapless environments (many start-ups).
7. A start-up programmer must have at least a little maverick blood. If you believe everything you hear and do everything everyone else is doing, how can you differentiate yourself? In a larger company, you may not have to. In a start-up, you probably do.
8. Is there something you simply have to do? Then you probably belong in a start-up environment. It's tough (although not impossible) to get the same opportunity in a large company.
9. Do you think the work is really cool? I know lots of good enterprise programmers, but have trouble thinking of very many who think their work is cool. They like their jobs, but work is "just a paycheck". Not the type of people who would thrive in a start-up.
10. Do you do a happy dance whenever something works for the first time? Then you may be more comfortable in a start-up than in a big company.
There seems to be a work-life balance difference also. Depending on the large company, it's at least possible to get a job that, most weeks, takes about 40 hours, mostly during the day, and leaves time for friends/family/hiking/reading/whatever outside of that time. Many startups seem to want someone for whom their job will be their life--- some of the job postings come close to saying so pretty explicitly! That can be unappealing if you want to maintain a non-work-related life. I'd personally only be willing to make my job my life if it were my company.
That is not the case at all startups. We make a huge effort to foster a solid work-life balance at Weebly.
Yes, the founders do usually work quite a bit. But most everyone else works as much or as little as they want during the week, as long as they are being productive and get everything done they set out to at the beginning of the week.
Ditto for vacation time. Take as much or as little as you need as long as we're not in an emergency-mode (which rarely happens).
More than larger companies, I'd guess that startups have a much larger variance in culture -- there are those that require you to commit your life, and there are those that are able to foster a great work-life balance, it's just a matter of choosing the right one.
Interesting! Sounds like a nice culture. The key to it is maybe (?) this part: "as long as we're not in an emergency-mode (which rarely happens)". My impression is that the "which rarely happens" part varies quite a lot; some places are in emergency mode every other week. Though to be fair, that's true of some large companies too (EA has a reputation for being crunch time all the time).
About once every 6 months for us. To be fair, a major release might require a tad more work than usual once every 2 months (think 1-2 extra hours per day that week).
I think the key to making it work is keeping it small. If there were too many people, nobody would feel individual responsibility and it would devolve into a nobody comes into work culture.
As it is, some people come in to work at 9 and leave at 4:30, some 9-6, some 11-8, some 2-2 (whoops, that's just me :) -- depends on when you like to work.
Also, everybody has easy weeks and hard weeks, and there's no point sticking around work if you've got nothing to do. Much better to work hard for 4 hours a day on the easy weeks than stick around for an extra 4 hours depressed.
I completely agree. Most folks interested in working for a startup have founder ambitions themselves. When you really think about it, if you're going to ride the roller coaster, you may as well do it as a founder. Otherwise (unless you change your mind or happen to join a very successful company), you're going to have to do it all over again anyways.
EDIT: The moral of the story is that it's up to the hiring startup to convince you they will be a very successful company, beyond an exit that only windfalls the founders.
Let's not overlook the big differences between working at most start-ups and working at most companies:
1. Every programmer, no matter how good, is at least a little insecure. Every one of us doesn't know something. Is the something you don't know going to make or break the next project? In a start-up, there's rarely a safety net to catch you, but in a larger company, there's probably a better chance that someone else can help you along.
2. It takes a special mentality to work in a less certain environment. This is more a matter of personality than skill. My mentor was fearless. He used to say, "I didn't know I couldn't do it, so I did it." This attitude, as much as skill, determines how well one would thrive in a start-up.
3. What happens when things go wrong? (And they will go wrong.) The ability to recover from problems in a larger company is a great asset. In a startup, it's a necessity. I've met many enterprise programmers who could crank out great code between 8 and 5, but melted under the pressure of an all night emergency. They would never survive in a startup.
4. What happens if you don't feel well or if your mind is "someplace else"? In a larger company, you could coast for a day or two (maybe more). That's rarely an option in a start-up; time lost is time lost forever.
5. In a larger company, you can do quite well whether you have deep domain knowledge or you're a jack of all trades. In an early start-up, you better be both.
6. Ever wonder why waterfall development refuses to die, even though it's not as effective? Because so many of us have to have a road map in order to function. "Road map" personalities don't fare nearly as well in roadmapless environments (many start-ups).
7. A start-up programmer must have at least a little maverick blood. If you believe everything you hear and do everything everyone else is doing, how can you differentiate yourself? In a larger company, you may not have to. In a start-up, you probably do.
8. Is there something you simply have to do? Then you probably belong in a start-up environment. It's tough (although not impossible) to get the same opportunity in a large company.
9. Do you think the work is really cool? I know lots of good enterprise programmers, but have trouble thinking of very many who think their work is cool. They like their jobs, but work is "just a paycheck". Not the type of people who would thrive in a start-up.
10. Do you do a happy dance whenever something works for the first time? Then you may be more comfortable in a start-up than in a big company.