This document discusses important considerations for building an effective startup team, including why having a team is necessary, how to find co-founders and early employees, and how to hire and fire team members. It recommends co-founders should share the same passion, vision, and growth mindset. Early employees should be passionate learners who want to join a startup. The document cautions against hiring people only interested in titles, money, or stability. It also stresses the importance of cultural fit, ownership agreements, and delivering on promises. The author reflects on mistakes made in hiring someone just for their title and not discussing contracts thoroughly.

1. Team and Team Building
Week 10

2. Agenda:
● Why do you need to have a team?
● How to find your co-founder (channels)
● Who should be the co-founder of your team
● How to find your first employees
● Who should be early employees
● What do you need to be careful about
● How to motivate the team
● How to hire
● How to fire
● My case

3. Why do you need to have a team?
Building a startup is really really hard. It’s like a roller coaster.
Emotionally, it will be a quite challenging to run your startup…
Can you do everything by yourself?
Usually you cannot. Thus, having co-founder(s) could be very helpful.
How many co-founders is best?
It is up to you.

4. How to find your co-founder? (channels)
You are in the best position right now!!
- School could be one of the best options
- Co-workers
- Your friends or family
- Intro from your friends
- Joining offline events (hackathon) and networking, Startup Weekend
- Use services and sites (like speed dating)

5. Who should be founder and co-founders
Good:
- Infinity learner
- Growth mindset
- Passionate
- You know them, him, or her well
- Not the same skill-set but same
mindset
- Same vision and mission
Caution:
- Only interested titles/big company
names
- Not for someone who wants to get
rich quickly
- Not for someone who wants to have
a stable life and income
- Not for someone who worries about
being better than others

6. How to find your first employees
Good:
- Infinity learner
- Growth mindset
- Passionate
- You know them, him, or her well
- Not the same skill-set but same
mindset
- Same vision and mission
- Someone who wants to join a
startup instead of starting it by
themselves
Caution:
- Only interested titles/big company
names
- Not for someone who wants to get
rich quickly
- Not for someone who wants to have
a stable life and income
- Not for someone who worries about
being better than others
- Not for someone who cannot
multitask/has no self-motivation

7. What do you need to be careful about
- Who owns IP and code
- Non-compete for employees and co-founders
- Giving stock options and ordinary shares
- Should not be too quick to hire
- Giving Co-founder title to random people
- See their commitment step by step. Do they deliver on their promises?
- Looking for a cultural fit with each other
- Making a contract
- Someone who has a bad track record from their previous team and role
- Overall, always better to not to make enemies. The world is very very small…

8. How to hire
Step by step to look for the right people.
As a founder, you will be the HR manager at the beginning.
You need to communicate to potential candidates your:
- Passion
- Mission
- Vision
- What will be great points about working with you and your startup
Then, once you scale it, you can start to engage more people through
marketing channels. For me, networking is the best way to meet people.

9. How to fire
I am pretty sure you will know if something is wrong or off.
- Other teammates don’t show up to online meetings
- Other teammates say bad thing about other people
- People who only like to win a debate (win or lose)
- People who don’t deliver on promises
- People who break law/team rules

10. My team was

11. My mistakes
● Hired: Employee and co-founder
○ Someone who only wants the title
○ Someone who doesn’t care about mission and vision
○ Someone who is not excited about a service
○ Someone who is just looking for a stable job
○ Needed to talk about the contract earlier
○ Needed people who could motivate themselves
○ If it is not necessary to hire someone, I shouldn’t have hired them.
● Fired:
○ Needed to fire sooner
○ Had an argument about the contract
○ Employee stock option

12. Any questions?