Everyone talks about Startup Success Stories or sometimes Startup Failure Stories. Does anyone talk about Startup Ex-CoFounder Story?
Probably No. That’s because they’re looked upon as a personal failure. That they failed to stick to the company because they have personal problems. In reality, most of the times that’s never the case.
Why are we quick to think that those who leave a company are all failures? Why are those who exit asked pointed questions as if they have made the biggest mistake of their life?
I’m also an Ex-CoFounder myself and having brought up a community based startup that I was so passionate about – left it – the experience has been painfully heart-wrenching. Between making the decision to leave and beginning a new one; I have experienced a gamut of emotions. Why do I suddenly feel the need to share? Here’s why.
Yesterday I went to a cafe whose owners I know extremely well. We were talking about an upcoming event and I was told that one of the cofounder had left. That brought me back to the day I had exited myself and the feelings I had locked within me wanted an escape. People assume a lot about CoFounder’s exit without realizing how potentially catastrophic the decision is for the person who leaves. Let’s see what reasons are given for break-up with myth-breaking explanations too:
1. Ex-CoFounder failed in vision
Says who?? Did all the CoFounders share the same vision? Did you (cofounders) meet and discuss your vision every 6 months (without any team member involved)? Did you? If no, then you can’t blame anyone on basis of vision failure. All CoFounders must sit and share their vision periodically.
2. The decision to exit was sudden
Not now, not even in a hundred years would anyone sane enough leave their belief in an amazing idea and walk out in a huff. It is never so. Speaking about myself, it took me 3 months to come to the decision of saying No and exiting and let me tell you – it is an intensely painful experience just like amputating your limb. It isn’t easy so don’t ever push where it hurts.
3. The methods were different
Everyone has a different working style and a leadership style. Blending and complementing it is the key for any startup. If the CoFounders can’t accept the working style/methods of others they ought to find a way to make it work. You can’t brush off someone’s method as wrong and assume yours is right. That’s invitation for others to leave you.
4. The office is a problem
Those who are passionate about their idea never think about space. It never bothers them. CoFounder(s) don’t leave because of the office. They leave because of the people in it.
5. Wants to be his/her own boss
Then why be a cofounder at all? That you all are cofounders in first place means that you knew that everyone would take a collective decision. If anyone didn’t want to they would have never become a cofounder. Let me tell you, all entrepreneurs harp on the benefits of having cofounder, so it’s actually rare that anyone would want to work solo and slog harder than before.
6. Was not professional
Professionalism is a skill. No one is born with it. We learn it along the way. Its easy to put professionalism into everything and start blame game. However, does anyone know what actually professionalism means? It means adhering to your vision and making it work in a very definitive manner. That according to me is professionalism. You might not agree with me. Now got the point?? Professionalism is subjective and has to be brought to the table for all cofounders to come to a common ground of what they expect from each other.
7. Communication not done properly
Communication if genuinely not done can be a right reason for a cofounder’s exit. However, there are many instances wherein I have noticed communication being cut off between cofounders leading to lot of discrepancy in the work. Sometimes, team favors one cofounder over other leading to more information flow to one person. If this happens that cofounder can do either of the two things – Share everything with the cofounder personally or redirect the team to keep both/all the cofounders in loop.
8. The Ex-CoFounder wasn’t serious
Hell No! No one goes against family /society and starts something that they’re passionate about and leave it. Nobody is a fool. It’s better to do a job rather than take the headache of running a startup. The very idea of slogging hard and then exiting from something you have built with your blood and sweat is unthinkable. So no! Every cofounder is serious about what they want to achieve – the idea is to bring it all on a common platform and let everyone know what the other person is expecting out of the startup.
These and many more reasons are given for the cofounders’ exit. I have experienced myself the heartbreak of exit and have seen a few cofounders around me too suffer the pangs of leaving. I wrote this article to give the people the insiders’ viewpoint of the reasons why a CoFounder will not leave. The above 8 points (with the exception of points 1 and 7 in certain cases) cannot be the reason for the CoFounder to drop the idea like a hot potato.
So be reasonable and don’t judge. We have loved our idea/startup like our own baby – we are not trying to do anything bad. We exit because we can’t bear to see our idea/startup going in the direction it wasn’t intended to go. That’s most often the real reason for saying No and leaving. We make such a huge decision, get depressed and have yo-yo emotions till we bounce back. It’s punishingly hard for us to not be part of what we envisioned. Our confidence takes a dip – more so if people repeatedly ask questions to us directly as to why we left. So despite whatever reasons others give, cut some slack – Be Reasonable. Use your Head and Don’t Judge.
The article was originally published here.
Kavita Singh is the Founder of “Kaffeinated Konversations” and is leading eChai Ventures in Indore. She is also the co-founder of Unbound Her, a platform that encourages women to connect at different levels for greater independence and autonomy.
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Kavita Singh
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