The Part of Startup Life Nobody Really Talks About

Startup life is… a lot.

Some days, the smallest win can lift your whole mood and suddenly you feel like, “Okay, I can survive another few months.” Then there are days where everything breaks at once and you just sit there thinking, Seriously? Again?

When you’ve spent years in big companies, you forget how much comfort there is in scale. A couple of bugs? No big deal. There’s brand reputation, tons of features, layers of people to absorb the impact.

In a startup, you don’t get that safety net.

Everything is exposed.

Everything feels urgent.

And sometimes one small issue sets off a chain reaction and suddenly your entire day (or week) derails.

That’s when the doubt creeps in.

And you catch yourself asking,

“Why am I even doing this to myself?”

Everyone joins a startup with their own version of the dream. Maybe not the pot of gold—though let’s be honest, it’s always somewhere in the back of our minds—but at least the idea of building something meaningful. The truth is: the chances of actually reaching that magical moment are much smaller than people think. And even if you get there, the journey is so much messier than the glossy success stories make it look.

That’s why I always tell people thinking about joining a startup:

If you’re in it just for the money, it won’t carry you through the tough days.

Because the tough days will come.

And on those days, money isn’t motivation.

It’s just a number on paper.

To survive this kind of environment, you need something deeper—tenacity, internal drive, a weird stubbornness, the ability to keep showing up even when things feel heavy. You need a certain wiring that not everyone has.

But here’s the part I’ve been reflecting on a lot lately:

Life isn’t perfect, and neither are people.

You meet teammates who are genuinely aligned and ready to grind with you. These are the people who get it, who don’t need to be reminded, who just… show up.

Then you have people who think they’re aligned.

They like the idea of the mission, but when it’s time to put in the work, the reality hits them differently.

And of course, there are those who realise this isn’t what they signed up for at all — the chaos, the pressure, the pace. They’re just not built for it, and that’s okay too.

But in a startup, the mix of these personalities hits much harder.

There’s no room to hide.

Every gap becomes obvious.

Every mismatch creates friction.

And yet… we still have to make it work somehow.

At the end of the day, a startup is built by people.

Real people.

Flawed people.

People who get tired and frustrated and overwhelmed, but still show up anyway.

And honestly, it’s the people standing next to you who make the difference.

They’re the ones who turn the impossible days into something survivable.

They’re the ones who keep the whole thing moving when the product isn’t ready, the bugs won’t stop, and the pressure feels a little too real.

Some days that’s the only thing that keeps you going.

Not perfection.

Not promises.

Not some fantasy ending.

Just the people beside you, trying their best.