Hi,
This week I talk about something that came up in the last podcast episode, the concept of hustle porn.
Also;
📸 - Social Snapshot- most startups aren't VC-backable
📊 - How long does it really take to raise each round?
🎙️ - Episode 58: An underdog story w/ Edrizio de la Cruz
🆓 - A brand new startup resource for nailing investor calls
Welcome to issue #94!
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How Much Could You Sell Your Company For?
If a private equity firm or strategic acquirer made an offer to you today, would you take it? Would you know if it's a fair deal? Are you in a position to close a deal?
Getting acquired could transform your life.
Founders don't realize that it usually takes 12-24 months to prepare a company for a successful exit, the sooner you have a plan in place, the greater the potential outcome.
If you want to get acquired, we can help. Book a free discovery call with our team of experts to explore your options and discuss getting a plan in place that could change your life.
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Check out more on alternative methods to access capital for your startup from Jonny Boyarsky on LinkedIn.
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Episode 58: Turning no's into $25M FinTech raise
Last week, I chatted with Edrizio De La Cruz. He shares his journey from serving in the Air Force, to founding a LatAm Fintech acquired by Mastercard and authoring a bestseller.
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Data Corner
How long does the fundraising journey take?
Some startups fly through funding, while others get stuck or take longer. What looks like failure might just be setting up long-term success.
This journey isn’t one-size-fits-all. According to Carta, the median age for startups raising a priced seed round this year was 1.2 years, but others from 2017 got funded too. For Series B, 4% of companies raising in 2024 were founded in both 2015 and 2023.
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Raising Capital for your startup?
Thunder's mission is to guide founders toward the right path to reach their North Star, be it through securing equity or debt financing or navigating the path to a successful exit.
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The Hustle Porn Trap
Being a founder is intense; there are the exhilarating highs when you land your first big client or secure funding, but there are also the gut-punch lows—cash flow crises, product flops, and missed opportunities. It’s all part of the startup life, but somewhere along the way, the chaos got romanticized.
Enter “hustle porn,” the culture that tells founders they have to grind 24/7, if they want to succeed.
I’ve all seen it on social media: the founder who brags about waking up at 4 a.m. to work, or boasts about working through weekends for months on end. Hustle culture tells us that the more we sacrifice, the more we’ll succeed. But the reality? It’s a quick route to burnout, and for most people, it’s simply unsustainable.
What Exactly is Hustle Porn?
While grit and perseverance are undeniably important, this culture can push founders into dangerous territory. We’ve all heard stories of startup founders sleeping in their offices and working insane hours, but does that really lead to long-term success? You've seen the hashtags on mindset and never giving up- so many ways making the hustle seem sexy, but what happens when you peek underneath?
The Whiplash of Startup Life
For every win you celebrate as a founder, there are multiple setbacks. The image of venture news from TechCrunch below threw this into sharp relief for me this week. I was scrolling through and one minute it was "yay, go AI startups", and the next was the bummer-inducing news of massive layoffs in tech.
The highs of a successful product launch or a closed funding round are often followed by the crushing lows of customer churn, technical issues, or a failed partnership. The startup journey is unpredictable, and trying to hack it can feel impossible when you’re running on fumes.
When you buy into hustle porn, you start measuring your worth by how much you grind, and even the wins don’t feel satisfying because you’re too tired to appreciate them. The reality is, no matter how hard you work, the ups and downs are inevitable. The challenge is figuring out how to navigate those swings without losing your balance—or your mind.
Does Hustle Actually Work?
Now, before I throw hustle culture under the bus completely, let’s play devil’s advocate. There are moments when pushing yourself to the limit can be a game-changer. If you’re launching a product, racing against a competitor, or on the verge of closing a critical funding round, sometimes the extra hours are necessary. In these sprints, hustle can pay off.
Elon Musk was the poster child for hustle culture. Musk has famously worked 120-hour weeks during pivotal moments at Tesla and SpaceX, sleeping on factory floors when the stakes were high. And guess what? He’s now leading two of the most innovative companies in the world.
But even he acknowledged that this kind of intense hustle isn’t sustainable long-term. In fact, he publicly stated that working those kinds of hours took a serious toll on his mental and physical health.
So yes, hustle can work. But the key is knowing when to sprint and when to slow down. You don’t want the short-term wins to lead to long-term burnout.
From Hustle to Health
The good news is that hustle porn is slowly losing its grip on startup culture. There’s a growing recognition that mental health matters just as much as hard work.
I'm starting to see a shift in the startup community where founders prioritize balance over nonstop grind. Take Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit, as an example. After years of hustling to grow Reddit, Ohanian became an advocate for founder mental health. He openly talks about how stepping back, prioritizing his personal life, and finding balance helped him in the long run—not only as an entrepreneur but as a person.
How to Avoid the Burnout Trap
So, how do you stay balanced with everything going on? Hopefully, this helps:
- Set Boundaries: Decide when your workday ends and stick to it. Turn off Slack, stop checking emails, and give yourself time to unplug.
- Delegate Like a Pro: You don’t have to carry the entire weight of your startup on your shoulders. Hire smart, trust your team, and let go of some control.
- Celebrate the Small Wins: Yes, this one is over-hyped but don’t wait for the "big moment" to feel accomplished. Every step forward counts, and celebrating these small victories can help keep you motivated.
- Prioritize Your Health: You can’t pour from an empty cup. Make time for family, exercise, hobbies, and mental breaks—it’ll help you recharge and come back stronger.
At the end of the day, startup life is a marathon, not a sprint and you don't have to look like poor SpongeBob. Hustle culture may work for short bursts, but it’s not a sustainable strategy long term. Avoid the hustle porn trap, and focus on building something great and sustainable—without sacrificing your mental health in the process.
Because let’s be honest, what’s the point of building an empire if you’re too burned out to enjoy it?
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Happy with Fundraising Demystified?
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Free Fundraising Resources
We've got a fresh new resource for you. Want to master your first call with an investor and secure that crucial second call? Check this out:
📞 The guide to nailing your first investor call- Download it Here
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Let's stay in touch:
- Written by Jason Kirby - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonrkirby
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