Mehak Vora has been a startup founder since she dropped out of college in 2016. She started Jamocha Media, a media and personal branding company, and then launched Skillbank, an online marketing training program, but closed the business earlier this year to join a major tech company as its head of marketing.
This is the first time in her life that she will be an employee instead of a boss.
“I just wanted a break,” Vohra said. “Having someone tell me what to do helps me relax.”
More than 3,200 venture-backed startups went bankrupt last year, according to Pitchbook data, and that number is expected to rise this year as venture capital funding falls to its lowest level in a decade. This is causing early-stage startup founders who started their companies during the free-for-all boom cycle that ended in 2022 to reconsider whether they want to be founders after all.
“The idea of being a founder is more appealing before you actually start a company,” said Ishita Arora, founder and CEO of Dayslice, a scheduling tool for service businesses that has raised $6 million in funding.
In December, seeing that the company wasn't achieving the hockey stick growth that venture capital investors were looking for, she shut down DaySlice and returned the remaining cash to investors.
“I have a lot of friends who are founders, and most of them are miserable and daydream about what it would be like to be an employee,” added Arora, who joined nonprofit platform Instrumental earlier this year as one of more than 50 employees. “In terms of quality of sleep and what you enjoy on the weekends, it's definitely easier to be an employee.”
Four founders who Business Insider spoke to for this article said they're enjoying a higher quality of life and don't miss the sleepless nights and never-ending pressures of running a startup.
“I have a much better work-life balance,” Vohra says. “I'm a lot less stressed. My social life is a lot better and I don't feel guilty about going out.”
They also enjoy significantly higher salaries, making at least double what they did as founders, when most of their compensation was invested in stock.
“Now I have more savings and I can treat myself more,” Vohra says, “the little things, like being able to pay for a massage.”
The founders also said they didn't miss the loneliness of running a company.
“I think it can get really lonely at times,” said Jacek Prus, founder of two sustainable food start-ups in San Francisco. “You’re really the only person who can make decisions at that level, and people are counting on you to make those decisions.”
Earlier this year, Pruss took on the role of senior director of development at Farmed Animal Funders, a decentralized fundraising collective, and decided he could have a greater impact as part of a larger organization.
“If you're mission-driven, always ask yourself: are you starting a company because you have a really compelling idea, or is it because of your ego?” Pruss said.
I still miss being a founder
For founders used to the speed and agility of running a startup, joining a larger company can sometimes be tedious and frustrating – to the point where it makes them “want to pull their hair out,” according to Sri Chandrasekhar, managing partner at Point72 Ventures.
“When you're used to total autonomy, working in a larger company can feel like everything is slower, with committees for decisions and buy-in for things you could do on your own,” Chandrasekhar says. “I see many of these 'born entrepreneurs' return to the founders' side sooner or later with a renewed vigor: they don't want to work for anyone else.”
Despite all the benefits of being a startup founder and not having to work until the early hours of the morning, most people BI spoke to said they eventually missed the thrill of their old life and planned to take some time off, pick up new skills, and start another company once the fundraising environment was more favorable.
“I love building things that a lot of people use and I love owning them outright, so even though I've had to give up parts of it to join other companies, I look at it all as a learning experience,” Vohra said. “I've never wanted to be part of a larger corporate organization. It's not exciting for me.”
Another founder, who recently started working at a fintech company as part of an acquired startup, said he misses the adrenaline rush and challenges that come with running a startup and finds corporate life boring. (He declined to be identified because the acquisition hasn't been announced.)
“It's so cozy,” the founder said, “I could imagine people just locking themselves in and hanging out here forever.”
He now deliberately tries to maintain a relatively frugal lifestyle, splurging only on luxury watches, even though his salary has almost tripled.
“I don't want to stay in the comfortable position of making this much money,” the founder said. “I want to start more companies.”
