Built In Chicago: There's Never a 'Right Time' to be a Founder

Erik is the founder & CEO of Chicago-based SimpleRelevance, the only email optimization platform that plugs into a marketers existing tools and workflow to personalize digital messages at an individual level. Prior to that he received a patent while a partner in IBM's IT Optimization organization, where he was a top performer, and he helped co-found iContact - a leading Email Service Provider that was acquired by Vocus. He earned his BS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his MBA in Entrepreneurship from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.

The question of whether someone is prepared to be a “founder or an employee of a startup” misses the key phrase “at this particular point of your career lifecycle.” Howard Tullman recently wrote a great post on this question and advised, “plan to be a great employee and to grow into an important role player first and build your future path and your next plan from there, instead of from nowhere.”

While I generally agree with Howard – I think he misses the mark a bit. Your evolution as a person and professional is non-linear. It’s not “go learn skills and then you can be a founder.” Lots of founders become employees, and lots of employees leave to become founders and this cycle may repeat many times in a person’s life. Also missing from the equation is that even being a naïve, know-nothing entrepreneur can be tremendously beneficial for your personal development.

It’s important to take inventory of your assets as well as your aspirations, and use that to plot a course that makes sense for you. While I was an undergraduate, I took multiple paths at once, simultaneously trying to build my financial liquidity (consulting and working for my school,) my network (founding a couple companies that failed but were hugely beneficial for meeting people and building a network that I leverage to this day,) and my knowledge base (taking classes and working as an early employee at other companies such as iContact.)

After college, I thought there was a key skill I needed to learn (sales – particularly enterprise sales) which led me to IBM. Plus I wanted to save up money I could later invest into a startup. After 6 years at IBM, I decided that if I wanted to be a founder, despite still feeling unprepared in many respects, I needed to go back to being a founder.

So my suggestion is to be self-aware and intentional about your decision-making. Understand your personal strengths and development areas (and ask others for advice on your blind spots.) Find role models and mentors that embody your aspirations. Then, use those insights to inform your next move – using your time to develop into the person you want to become rather than simply chasing the next hot thing. Finally, focus on your long-term aspirations and make sure you are using your near-term activities to achieve those goals.

What's your take on Erik's advice? Is there really no right time to found? Join the conversation and register for our panel discussion happening on March 31st at 1871.