Why I Moved Across The Country To Join A Failing Startup

I just graduated from The University of Akron this past December with a Business Degree. Having majored in Integrated Marketing Communications, I felt solid about my prospects in the job market and options were pretty open. Over the summer, I interned as a UX Designer with a startup in Salt Lake City and I absolutely loved the culture.

It wasn’t the freedom to come into work late, but the fact that everyone showed up early despite this. It wasn’t the comfort in being the authority of my subject in the office, but the pressure to constantly evolve and perform. It wasn’t the pay, but the satisfaction of working in an office where salary hierarchy wasn’t a factor.

When you work for a startup, you know the news can come at any time: we’re out of money.

I booked a one way flight for December 22, 2015 out of Canton-Akron Airport into Salt Lake City. Two coworkers picked me up from the airport and we had lunch. My flight left at 5am EST. I landed at 10am MT. We went into work at 12:30pm MT.

It felt great to go into work because I wanted to.

I moved across the country, because I fell in love with startup passion and culture. I didn’t move across the country for a job; I moved across the country for an ideal. A dangerous ideal.

When you work for a startup, you know the news can come at any time: we’re out of money.

I have to admit, I didn’t expect to hear this within a week of starting work. My job officially began on January 4, 2016 and I was informed we’d have 3 weeks of cash left on January 12, 2016 (EDIT: Originally said Jan 13).

My initial reaction was anger. I sat quietly wondering why I had been encouraged to move across the country right after graduation for a startup that didn’t have the money to pay me. I was angry at myself for not considering my other options more strongly. I was angry, in general, because I felt robbed of my opportunity to grow, to learn, and to create.

My secondary reaction was resignation. I was resigned to this new reality of finding a new job in a city where I knew a total of 11 people and none of them were in a position to offer me a job. I was resigned to the possibility that I might have to return home, tail between my legs, and find a job in Ohio.

My ultimate reaction was determination. This is a stressful situation in a foreign environment and it has me electrified. I was not robbed of the opportunity to grow, learn, or create. In fact, I have been granted the greatest opportunity to demonstrate my ability to adapt and survive. I have been granted an opportunity to embody the ideals of startup culture and rise from the ashes.

I’m not sure yet what I’m going to do. I may end up flying back to Ohio to find a job and prepare for the next battle. I may find a job in Salt Lake that I love. I may find that the worst has yet to come and see my stress grow exponentially.

But I know I won’t give up.

As cheesy as it sounds, I’m determined to see my dreams of working for a successful startup come true and I’ll work hard until I don’t have to drift into an exhausted sleep to experience my dreams.