[tptacek]

Not just for solo founders!

I remember after leaving a full-time job for the company we started in 2005 being really freaked out by the idea that I didn't really ever have vacations or sick days or any kind of paid time off, since it was all coming out of my pocket. It was a freaky feeling.

We'd have weekly partner calls, and we'd get to the part where we'd run through the pipeline and cash flow situation, and I'd hold the phone away from my face so I wouldn't hear any of it, which did not overly endear me to my partners.

Also: to this day, neither Jeremy nor Dave can call me on the phone without me having a small panic attack (a post-traumatic reaction to several business dramas we had); it's almost exactly the feeling you get when a family member calls at 1AM. Jeremy I understand, because we still work together, but Dave called me a few months ago, and I freaked right the fuck out.

Yeah this seems like the big important entrepreneurial essay someone needs to write. It's a much bigger deal than most of the advice you get about starting a company.