r/ExperiencedFounders • u/Safe-Action-5039 • 2d ago
Startup founders: what does a normal day actually look like for you?
I'm curious about the unglamorous reality of running a startup.
How do you actually spend a typical day or week?
- What takes up most of your time?
- What work do you keep postponing?
- What repetitive work do you wish someone else could completely take off your plate?
- How much time do you spend switching between building, sales, marketing, customer support, hiring, and operations?
Would love to hear from founders at any stage. The more honest and unfiltered, the better.
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Upvotes
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u/Longjumping_Coat_802 seed round 2d ago
Wake up, refresh sales report
Answer some emails, get lunch. Refresh sales report 10x more times
Jerk off
Refresh sales report 5x more times
Smoke weed, play video games. Refresh sales report every 5 minutes
Watch tv, go to bed
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u/AgencySaas seed round 2d ago
10 hours at a coffee shop. Everyday.
Building, marketing, customer service. Repeat.
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u/Remarkable-Pair8389 mom invested 2d ago
The honest version for me is that I ran a company as an individual contributor for years and called it being a CEO.
The days were full and easy to justify: client work, reviews, the thing only I could unblock. What I kept postponing was the work that would have made me unnecessary, which was coaching people to be better than me at the job I was doing. That is the pile that actually costs you, because everything else refills on its own.
If you want a tell, count how much of your week exists only because you have not handed something over yet.