The Startup Life May Be for You If You Have These 5 Qualities

Five years into my own startup -- Deborah Mitchell Media Associates -- I must admit that joining or creating a startup, whether you're just out of school or in midlife, may not be for everyone.

"Hundred-million-dollar investment rounds and billion-dollar valuations have created a romanticized version of the startup lifestyle in the public perception. Some of it is justified and some of it isn’t," says Joseph McKeating, president of marketing and public relations firm Pulsar Strategy, whose clients are considered early-stage startups in the technology space.

"To students considering joining or creating a startup for the glory, I’d tell them that there are easier ways to make money," he continues. "If you want to reach new levels of freedom, do it. If you want to truly find out where your breaking point is, do it. If you want to remove the ceiling on your potential, do it. If you want to help change what it means to be a working human being in the 21st century, do it."
If you are thinking about making the leap, then a startup may be for you if you:

9 Tips for Hiring and Managing Interns Startups Need to Know

Ah, cheap labor. The idea of hiring low-paid or unpaid interns is quite a compelling prospect for cash-strapped startup founders. Indeed, a team of talented, productive interns can allow startups to remain focused on high-level strategy while others do the busywork. What entrepreneur could refuse such an opportunity?

The problem is that many startups do a terrible job hiring and managing interns, causing the process to become more time-consuming than not having interns in the first place. We know this at Brainscape because we've made plenty of mistakes ourselves.

Hiring interns at a startup can be quite different than hiring at big companies. Below are some best practices we've learned about hiring and managing interns at an early-stage startup: