Review of
Instaread Summary of Disrupted My Misadventure in the Start-Up Bubble by Dan Lyons
Five out of five stars
Before I write
my evaluation, I need to mention that I worked for a start-up company for
approximately four years, experiencing the hype, dreams and harsh realities of
trying to make a product from scratch that will make a great deal of money. My
official title was “Research Scientist” and most of what I did was massage and
mine data. My departure was a mutual decision after I openly questioned whether
the company could survive. It did, but only by completely changing the product
and being purchased.
Lyons is an
older worker that joined the start-up Hubspot as a writer. He had problems with
the management and other co-workers and spends some time discussing his desire
for a full-time job with benefits in order to support his family. When reading
this summary, I had a difficult time generating any sympathy for what I viewed
at times as his whining. The start-up environment is fierce, nothing I read
about his experiences were all that out of the ordinary in the start-up
culture. If you want a secure job with benefits, a start-up is not the
environment you should be in
Lyons also
complains about being stuck in the growing gig economy, where vast numbers of
people work on a contract basis in order to complete a specific task before
moving on. This is an economic megatrend and complaining about it is a waste of
energy. I have no desire to read a book by somebody complaining about this.
The best
description of Lyons work is encapsulated in this quote from the summary “Most
of his narrative is cynical and personal, and is related in a casual style. The
language used throughout the book can be crude, involving insult humor, curse
words, and jokes about sex and bodily functions.” It is made clear that the dysfunction
between Lyons and his co-workers is mutual. Lawyers were involved in the
writing of the book, a demonstration of the acrimony.
I enjoyed this
summary very much, it convinced me that I have no interest in reading the book.
This book was made available for free for review
purposes.
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