This article by Kirill Zubovsky underlines the point I made on Monday about the difference between Entrepreneurs and Startup Founders.
I was free; free to think, free to learn, free to do whatever I wanted, as long as it didn't require money. Sure, there was a question of what would happen when I ran out of money, but that question was for the future, and I didn't concern myself much with the answer. Life was simple and life was good!
Then Kirill raised money.
The way I see it, I am now responsible for the dreams of my team, and that's not something that should be taken lightly. I don't mind the pressure, I love it, actually. But No one tells you about the long tail, when you start a side project, dreaming of it to become the next big success story. Keep in mind that starting is easy, but you will need to have the energy and the dedication to keep going. If you start a company, be ready to commit to the lifestyle.
And the money line:
I promised our team that we will solve certain problems together, that they will get to work in an environment we've created, and as much as achieving these goals is everyone's responsibility, I have promised and I cannot fail. This is my strongest motivator to wake up in the morning.
Taking funding (which, once again, I think is valid for some businesses) makes a big change to your attitude, to your life. From freedom to commitment, from profit to promises, from responsibility to yourself, to responsibility to others.
If one of the things you want out of running a business is the independence of making your own decisions rather than being beheld to someone else's opinion (and I know a fair few serial entrepreneurs who are fiercely independent in this way) don't take funding.
If you read this far, you should follow me on twitter here.
