| Some startups are more demanding than others. There may be a difference depending if you're a founder, early employee, or regular employee. 40 may be too much for some and too little for others. One of the startups I founded required 10 hours a week from day one. Made my first million. That's when I realized that the number of hours you put in to something doesn't necessarily reflect what you will get back from it. Another startup I founded required 60 hours a week in the beginning, and 5 hours a week down the road. These days? RescueTime says I'm at 61 hours this week so far. Obviously not sustainable, but it's what needs to be done to reach my goals. I know where I want my startup to be, and what it will take to get there. It's important to be honest with yourself. I keep my significant other in the loop so that she understands what I'm doing, why I'm doing it, and why I'm putting in long hours. She knows that right now I'm working hard, but there will come a time when I won't have to put in long hours. Communication is key. There's something to say for efficiency too: make better use of the time you do have. My personal efficiency hovers around 92% — While I'm at the computer, I'm unproductive only 8% of the time. If you're working 40 hours a week and you improve your efficiency by 25%, now you can do 40 hours of work in 30. |
I've been terrible at that in the past. Any tips?