Choosing the path to start your own company means a lot of things but mostly it means deferral.
Let me explain. If you are a founder, you will understand this immediately.
The general perception about founders is that they are “lucky” to be doing what they are doing. Freedom from the tyranny of “the man”, the ability to chart your own path, the ability to cash out at will — you’ve heard them all, even if you aren’t a founder but work for a startup.
The truth is that for most of us this “reality” is so far from real — tainted by the top of the top companies that we’ve all heard of that have succeeded beyond imagination.
Startups work because everything is deferred.
Founders defer pay.
Founders defer vacations.
Founders defer family priorities.
Founders defer their health.
Founders defer their future.
Founders defer their finances.
Founders defer their friendships.
There is nothing glamorous about founding a company. It requires the highest level of sacrifice in the hopes that it eventually works out.
Faith and deferral is the startup equation.