Read the Star Principle by Richard Koch. \
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For you to join a startup should be:\
• in an industry growing 10%+ per year\
• in a market growing 10%+ per year\
• growing as the market segment leader at 10%+ per year\
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If you are wrong about the company, you'll have the industry and market segment knowledge to transfer into the market segment leader. \
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Right now... tech is slowing up, oil and energy are growing. When oil and energy dive, jump back into tech.

Comstock Software, Inc

President

How do your accomplishments contribute to the business and its customers? Think in terms of business and economic impact. Speed, consistency, and re-work all contribute to the bottom line.  That's what the CEO wants to see: your contribution to the bottom line thru new features or bug fixes.

In both cases, it comes down to business impact.  Write and rank your list of priorities by business and economic impact.  Identify the highest-ranked priorities.  Talk about your assessment of business impact with your manager.  Work on them all the time.  Do not let the tyranny of the urgent keep you focused on low-value work.

If you're a young person working in tech, right out of college, without work experience... you need real war stories. Here are 3 ideas to get you started:\
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• Manage to get yourself fired at a side job (wait tables, work a cash register, stock shelves). There now that you know what that's like, it's not that bad; you know what it takes; let's not do that again.\
• Manage to get yourself promoted to lead, supervisor, or manager at another side job. Now you know what it's like leading people. It's not easy. Now that you know what it's like to be the boss, you know how to help your boss, she's your customer, and now you know what she needs.\
• Go shopping for something expensive you want that you know nothing about. Shop around in person and over the phone, and see what it's like to be a potential customer. You'll have people try to tell you every product or solution is good for you; it's not helpful, and now you know what not to do. Eventually, you'll run into a salesperson who recommends something out of all the options. This option will be the best for you based on price, value, features, and other considerations. Now you know what it feels like to be served well. If you're unsure where to go... go to Nordstrom's for business clothes.\
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With this newfound experience, you're going to be better suited to serve real people in the tech industry.

I have been fired more than once. It's not the worst thing in the world. As Rahul Pandey says, you don't have to disclose a PIP. Employers won't say anything when they check references. When the interviewer asks why you left, tell them you weren't a good match and decided to pursue opportunities that stretched you in ways you couldn't have imagined working at your previous job.  

Watch videos by Alan Weiss if you're freelancing.  I've been doing some version of that for years.  You learn a ton that way.  If you do go back to the FAANGs, you'll be 10x the person you were before.  

Love the idea from MistPlay to build 20% learn time into your estimates.  Genius!

Set aside Monday afternoons and Friday mornings.  They are usually slower times of the week.

The reality is that you don't get much ability to shape your environment -- it's generally easier to pick a new environment. - Rahul Pandey

This is why the Star Principle by Richard Koch is my favorite book.  Pick better industries, better businesses, better teams: it's much less work to pick great environments than change poor ones.

I use: RoamResearch.com\
Google Keep looks amazing when my customers use it.

When people reply to action items with when they'll be done, don't reply right away.  Wait a couple of days, then thank them, ask if they are still on target to meet their original estimated completion date.

Focus on what that technology ***enables.*** *\- Rahul Pandey* 

In 2-4 years, I’d likely still be an engineering manager from a no-name startup.\
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REACTION: it all comes down to growth, if your company goes 3-27x, then that likely won't be the case at all.

I'd go with the faster-growing company in the faster-growing market segment.  