It makes you wonder if the current spate of hot takes from multiple startup founders over the last few weeks is attributable to the growing pressure among this cadre to turn from leaders into thought leaders. — AFP
Recently, a startup founder-CEO was 'cancelled' on social media after the individual advised, via a LinkedIn post, 20-somethings to put in 18 hours a day at work and stop whining. The post was dissed by so many that the founder had to announce a sabbatical from the platform. Even as this incident caught international media attention, another founder put up a LinkedIn post bragging about scheduling hiring interviews at odd hours to test applicants' determination to get the job. This was widely criticised for various reasons, including its exclusionary disposition towards working women with familial responsibilities.
A fortnight later, you'd think people would have forgotten it all. Far from it. Last week, a unicorn founder put out a Twitter post about being evacuated in a tractor as tony parts of Bengaluru were submerged by a continuous downpour in the country's startup capital. In reply, some users commented how the ambassador of an 18-hour workday would have swum to work even in this scenario, while the other would have kept interviews for that particular day "to test their hustle".
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