3 Bone-Chilling Absolutes about Startups
October 29, 2015
If you’ve ever worked for or are currently working for a startup especially in tech, med device or med tech these three facts about startups should chill you to the bone! If they don’t, then congratulations you are the company spooky, scary, (not just for Halloween) sociopath, or are in serious need of a deprogramming.
1. You work for at least one sociopath
- Manipulates facts without shame, remorse, guilt or accountability
- Places blame without taking accountability (takes credit for your work)
- Never happy with employee work regardless of unrealistic demands that have been met
- Rarely challenged, becomes demeaning, insulting, threatening or intimidating when challenged
2. Your CEO is unqualified to be there (aka CEnO)
- The board places an unqualified (likely never before) CEO so they can easily manipulate them
- Manages through fear: Image of Sales + Hypergrowth = Fraudulent IPO or Sold to Conglomerate
- The company follows The Sociopathic Business Model™ playbook
3. Your board contains at least one not yet convicted felon
- Venture Capital firm hand selects an easily manipulated (grateful for the opportunity) first time CEO
- Pressures executives who pressure managers who pressure sales to get a quick ROI even if unethically or illegally.
What you can do to protect yourself while working for a startup:
Think of HR as your spouse’s divorce attorney
- HR is there to protect the VC investment, not you!
- If the company has a history of ignoring sexism or racism claims they’re engaged in far greater unethical & illegal behavior.
- Nothing is ever enough, 60+ hour weeks, 7 days a week of work, 150% to quota, eventually all employee (accomplices) eventually become employee (victims)
Document everything
- If a company hasn’t done anything wrong then they have nothing to worry about! This includes documents executives & management ask you to destroy. Ask yourself who is that protecting? Not you!
- Remember the enemy of The Sociopathic Business Model™ is exposing the company’s negative unethical & illegal truth they’d rather remain hidden.