It’s fair to say that salary or remuneration aside, most people look for work they can rely on. That doesn’t always mean that it’s available or that the contract they’re forced into is helpful – zero hour contracts and many other “work as you can” arrangements can often be seen as predatory, but the reality is that many employment categories make use of them. Moreover, certain employment styles, such as self-employment and freelance work, are often arranged on a gig-by-gig basis.
While job security is often prized, there are sometimes burgeoning, cutting edge or even self-reliant reasons to eschew this priority in favor of others. We often see this in the tech startup sector, for example, where the promise of “getting in early” with a revolutionary company developing a groundbreaking product could mean a lifetime of riches and acclaim. What makes this arrangement even more confusing is that sometimes it pays off.
If there’s an opportunity for you to join a fledgling company full of promise like this, you may wonder if you’re doing so for the right reasons. To help you make your choice, let us discuss why most people choose a budgeting, cutting-edge career path at the expense of security:
1. Heightened responsibility
When you work for a company still finding its feet, there’s a strange mix of excitement and tension you’ll feel as you actively shape the thing as it grows, and that level of involvement can give you real skin in the game. It’s a lot of responsibility, but that’s often what makes it meaningful and why many people are happy to subvert security for it.
That’s because you’ll probably have a hand in several different departments, take on things way outside your comfort zone, and have to problem-solve with the resources you have on hand. That might sound exhausting, but for a lot of people, it’s the opposite; they find it it’s energizing, and there’s real pride in pulling it off.
2. Strong purpose
You may find yourself working ridiculous hours on a project that doesn’t even have a proper name yet, and somehow, you’ll still feel like you’re in the right place. That’s because there’s purpose behind the chaos and struggle, and you’ll feel that you’re working toward something which feels important, even if it hasn’t fully formed yet.
It’s important not to let this lead to exploitation and a lack of compensation for your efforts., but on the whole there’s no illusion here, as startups and early-stage businesses are often messy and unstable. However, when you really believe in what you’re building, the work feels worth it. That’s not something you can always find in a more corporate, stable role, where your input might feel distant from the final result or at least filtered through many reviews and internal filtering systems.
3. Belief in the value-added proposition
If you’re building a product or service that actually makes people’s lives easier, or solves a problem they didn’t even realise they had, it’s a powerful motivator. It’s nice to think your efforts might contribute to the next big thing, or at least to feel like you have some meaning in your work as opposed to just showing up for the paycheck.
That’s especially true if you’re close to the development process and can see how your work changes on the daily, which can change how you approach everything. Some people even find that working on the next thing they know is truly great can help them feel more motivated and a push to do well than ever before.
4. Unique renumeration
For many people, the idea that compensation doesn’t arrive in a neat salary every two weeks is beyond the pale, and for good reason. You deserved to be paid, no ifs, ands or buts.
But certain jobs, especially in the tech sector, might also offer remuneration packages designed to get the best out of their employees while also paying a salary. You’ll often see that come through stock, equity, or RSUs, and while that can feel a bit abstract at first, it’s also a reminder that your role is tied to the long game.
As we’ve seen with many tech startups, those that succeed often let their original employees benefit from the huge funding round. Of course, that can make it harder to explain your income when you’re applying for a mortgage, especially if the person assessing you hasn’t seen this kind of setup before. That’s where specialist options like mortgages for people with RSU income can be more of a help, because they help translate your potential into something a bit more tangible, without needing to twist yourself trying to situate yourself comfortably despite the purposefully uncomfortable work you do.
5. Access to niche fields
Niche interests can keep people attached to given careers for years, and for obvious, clear reasons. Knowing you’re working on groundbreaking efforts before the general public even knows what that thing is is perhaps the most obvious, but you may also find that a hobby you loved to get technical about is now your main career path, or it surrounds you with the kind of people you appreciate.
Working in that kind of space means getting used to doing the unusual, which for so many individuals is the main purpose. There’s also a good chance you’ll pick up technical knowledge that’s hard to find anywhere else, and you’ll likely meet people who think in ways you haven’t come across before. All of that adds up to experience you can take into any personal initiatives you have, or at least keep you connected to a field you adore.
6. The chance of rapid advancement
You can sometimes find yourself jumping into the deep end, and without a huge team around you, you might just end up leading something before you realise that’s what’s happened. That might not be because you asked for it, or even aimed for it, but because you were the one who took the risk and gave a possible outcome a chance. That might sound strange, but it’s also how people build careers much faster than usual, if they take a chance on a business and remain present when it expands. Those who care less about lining things up perfectly and remain happy to say yes to what’s in front of them are liable to enjoy a better experience as far as that goes.
7. Lifestyle preferences
Not every job lets you choose when and where you work, but outside of more traditional standards, there’s often more give in the schedule when you opt for an unconventional, or less secure path, say in the tech sector.
Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s all coffee shops and working in your pyjamas, rather it’s more like you can make space for things like school pickups, late-night thinking, or walking the dog at lunch without having to explain yourself to anyone if you secure a remote role. For some people that flexibility is the one thing that lets them show up to everything else in their life properly, and if this is the only justification you need, that’s fine.
8. The chance to develop your own business
In some cases the crash course you gain in insecurity while working for a burgeoning startup is expeirencee you can use for your own firm. That’s because in this role, you get a front row seat to how something grows from zero into a real, functional business, and if you’re paying attention, you start to see how it’s done.
That will always include the mistakes, wins, and just sheer luck you prepared to make good on. That kind of experience doesn’t come with a certificate, but it quietly adds up until one day you realise you could probably do it yourself if the time ever came, provided you’re willing to take the risk again, allowing you to adopt a playbook or at least understand what not to do. Some professionals find that exhilarating, and maybe you would as well.
9. Commercial philosophy
Some people want to work somewhere that has a clear stance on how it does business and for the philosophy to connect to their own higher principles, such as building tools that don’t mine user data, or only working with suppliers that meet strict ethical standards. Sometimes it’s less about big statements and more about being part of something that operates with care so you can go home and know you didn’t make the world a little worse that day. When you find a place that lines up with how you see the world, everything feels a bit more coherent.
Moreover, every now and then, you get to be part of something that aims to make things a little better. It could be in climate tech, health care access, or financial tools that aren’t designed to trick people, it doesn’t matter what space it’s in really, just that the work matters beyond the bottom line. That kind of conenction can’t be faked, and once you’ve felt it, it’s hard to settle for anything less and you may find it more than appropriate to invest yourself in a specific role to find the best outcome.
