

The Annoying Traits of Entrepreneurs From a Non-Entrepreneur’s Perspective - e27sg
http://www.e27.sg/2010/06/15/the-annoying-traits-of-entrepreneurs-from-a-non-entrepreneurs-perspective/

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epochwolf
Let's look at my experience at a startup.

 _Tenacity – a.k.a nagging people day and night_

\- If a feature, no matter how large, took too long, it was time to nag. Like
adding google maps with those popup detail boxes, directions, and other things
to three screens without knowing javascript in a weekend.

\- Why am I wasting time reading documentation? (While I'm trying to learn a
new web framework and language at the same time)

 _Pivot-ability – Be agile, iterate, feedback and push forth._

\- Every wednesday for 4 months the guy would charge the design of the website
so drastically it was faster to start a new website from the beginning instead
of reusing code. (There was two or three exceptions to this, one of them being
the meeting was canceled)

\- Being responsible for the servers after the admin disappeared meant I was
on call 24/7 if something broke. (Thankfully, I was only called once on a
weekend to fix something. Most of the problems could be handled during office
hours)

 _Inspiration - How exactly does one inspire their team?_

\- Biweekly talks questioning my enthusiasm for the project.

 _Perspiration – Working hard, burning the midnight oil, go without sleep for
few days_

\- Had to be in the office at 8am every morning so it looked like I was
working. I'm a morning person so it wasn't horrible for me but my coding
partner was a night owl and I doubt he slept while he was around.

\- Founder went on a vacation for a few days with his girlfriend. (Don't have
a problem with this.) A week later I was asked to add google maps integration
over the weekend after I'd been working 15 days without a break. I had put in
the most I'd ever done in my life, over 50 hours in 5 days. (I have a problem
with this.)

Yup... I wanted to kill someone.

All that said, I really valued my experience, however horrible it may have
been at the time. I learned an incredible amount about programming, system
administration, and protecting myself during freelance work. The partner I had
is now, several years later, my closest friend.

~~~
synnik
"over 50 hours in 5 days."

That is a lot of work, but hardly excessive for a startup. I have weeks like
that in the corporate IT world.

~~~
cynicalkane
50 hours in a 5 day work week isn't bad. 50 hours over 5 days after working
for 15 days straight, as the GP claimed, is something different.

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kscaldef
Where does referring to non-entrepreneurs as "plebians" fit in the list?

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tjmaxal
It is important for everyone, even entrepreneurs, to learn to take themselves
with a grain of salt.

