{"id":685,"date":"2014-11-03T06:25:38","date_gmt":"2014-11-03T14:25:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.thinkapps.com\/?p=685"},"modified":"2016-03-31T17:23:59","modified_gmt":"2016-04-01T00:23:59","slug":"read-even-think-starting-startup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thinkapps.com\/blog\/entrepreneurship\/read-even-think-starting-startup\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Start a Startup: Read This Before You Even Think About Starting a Startup"},"content":{"rendered":"

Party. Do magic things on your computer that make you money. Party some more. If you think that\u2019s what it means to be an entrepreneur, then you\u2019re in for a surprise. <\/em><\/p>\n

Contrary to what you see in the movie The Social Network, being a startup founder is difficult and tedious work.<\/p>\n

That was the theme at Stanford University when Sam Altman<\/a>\u00a0(Y Combinator<\/a>\u00a0president) and Dustin Moskovitz<\/a> (co-founder of Facebook<\/a> and Asana<\/a>) began the first installment<\/a> of their\u00a0How to Start a Startup<\/a>\u00a0series, which is\u00a0aimed at businesses\u00a0whose goal is hyper-growth and building a very large company.<\/p>\n

Even the title sounds counterintuitive. If the hype is to be believed, then a startup is just something you dream and act on.<\/p>\n

But there are actual fundamentals you need to know, like your motivations behind starting the company and steps that produce success.<\/p>\n

(For more startup advice, check out\u00a0How to Start a Startup: The Book<\/a><\/em>. It’s\u00a0the ultimate reference guide to creating a successful tech startup.)<\/strong><\/p>\n

The truth about startups.<\/h2>\n

As Phil Libin, CEO of Evernote, once said:<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople have this vision of being the CEO of a company they started and being on top of the pyramid. Some people are motivated by that, but that’s not at all what it’s like.<\/p>\n

“What it’s really like: Everyone else is your boss–all of your employees, customers, partners, users, media are your boss. I’ve never had more bosses and needed to account for more people today.<\/p>\n

“If you want to exercise power and authority over people, join the military or go into politics. Don’t be an entrepreneur.\u201d<\/p>\n

Start a startup if \u2026<\/h2>\n

You feel compelled by a problem and think that building a company will solve it. Altman says the passion comes first and the startup second.<\/p>\n

You have to have the passion and the aptitude. Here’s how Moskovitz breaks it down:<\/p>\n

Passion = you need to do it.<\/h3>\n