Nina Stepanov’s Post

Good Morning! 🌞 Many friends are reporting layoffs, yet again! With their family wellbeings on the line they ready to hustle! This state of economy shows importance of being focused on delivery! Support your local businesses, support startups, help your community build jobs! Before we kick off a day, if you're entrepreneur, have a project... drop it in the chat! Let me try it, buy it and reviewed it! Every customer matter, every feedback it's step closer to creating new jobs! So rather than here is to find a job today! Here is to create a job today! Let's make a difference together. Here are some ways we can support each other and our communities: 🚀 Startups need our backing now more than ever. Invest in innovative ideas that can shape the future. 🤝 Collaborate with local businesses. By working together, we can strengthen our economy and create opportunities for growth. 💬 Share your knowledge and expertise. Mentor aspiring entrepreneurs and help them navigate the challenges of starting a business. 📈 Embrace technology. AI and other advancements can revolutionize industries and open up new possibilities for employment. Let's come together to build a brighter future for all. Drop your projects below or share how you're making an impact in your community! We got you! #SupportLocal #Entrepreneurship #Innovation #CommunityBuilding

Imagine yourself in this situation... ____________________________________________ You get laid off 😓. You take time to reflect, self-assess, and update your CV and LinkedIn accordingly. You finally get a grasp on what you're looking for. Then comes the hard part. You then need to: - Research roles and industries that align with what you're looking for - Reach out to build and nurture your professional network - Connect with recruiters, headhunters, and hiring teams - Prep for interviews (research the company, the role, and interviewers) - Put your best foot forward during each interview - Share thank you notes appreciating the team's time and consideration - Get the "Thanks, but we're moving in a different direction" message - Get ghosted - More prep - More interviews - Practice for your final round presentations All of this while trying to stay positive and avoiding the inevitable imposter syndrome that creeps into your head. You go through all the trials and tribulations to finally be in the position to negotiate an offer! 🎉 You feel the weight being lifted off your shoulders. All the hard work has paid off and you are excited to see what's to come with this fresh start... Only to hear that you'll need to start all over again. ____________________________________________ It was hard enough to deal with a situation where I was told I was the top candidate, only to find out the offer was rescinded days later. But this is a whole other level of pain and frustration. I applaud people like Kevin Jasmine who stay resilient during times when things aren't going your way. To all the jobseekers and green banners out there, just know you are not alone. Who else has dealt with unforeseen circumstances like this? Comment below or feel free to DM me. #keepgoing #beresilient

It's absolutely the worst job market out for talent especially students and recent grads, but there's always room for talent in any given economy. To empower your search, with the help of our community we put together a complete stack of resources to find the right opportunity. This includes: Startup accelerators jobs listings, 70+ global VC portfolio companies, niche sites, and more! Comment below "let's go FoundersBeta" to get the list. Cheers to a new offer! 🥂🥂

#IHelp Share this and use the #IHelp hashtag You may also find useful info to correct #jobsearchmistakes you're making in the blog at www.TheBigGameHunter.us. Also, subscribe to JobSearchTV.com on YouTube and No BS Job Search Advice Radio, the #1 podcast for job search with more than 2700 episodes over 12+ years.in Apple Podcast, Spotify, Google Play, Amazon Music and almost anywhere you listen or watch podcasts. Let me know if you have any questions about your #jobsearch. That's available to any of you looking for a #newjob #jobsearch #jobsearchadvice #jobhunting #jobhuntingadvice

Are we going to survive this storm in the industry? My survival kit for founders in the Games industry. I’ve been part of the industry for almost 9 years and I have not seen this level of layoffs and closures ever. Recently I met two of my peer founders who had to shut down their studios and let everyone and their dreams go. It’s painful. I had to shut down a business before. I know the feeling… Here’s how I approach the turbulence as a founder: 1) Re-focus. Shifting my focus from big plans towards the quick wins (e.g. consulting projects) helps to stay afloat. 2) Cash is King. Be prepared to get into a negative cash flow suddenly. Aim to have 3-6 months of burn rate saved.  3) Networking and new connections. Connect with other founders. An open discussion and openly sharing the pain points leads to new ideas. 4) And Do Not neglect your health! Physical activities are great for your mind! I do a 20 minute morning exercise before I switch on my phone and see my inbox. 5) Plan for the dry season. If there's a monthly cost that does not contribute to your core business, have it cut or reduced. IMHO building a business is like building a relationship. When it’s over it’s just as painful. Do you agree?

Be brutally honest—are you climbing the right mountain or kidding yourself?   Took me a while to make peace with climbing a different mountain.   Before starting moonwater, I was on the fast track to another exec role at an even later stage startup.   Last one got to $50m+ rev, and I was the CMO with a team of 15 people.   I felt like I needed to keep going later—help take a startup to $100m.   In doing so, I could:   - Build a better resume - Have a bigger team - Make more money - Impress lots of people   Nothing wrong with that career path. And I can’t imagine it’s easy. Mad respect for those who make it happen.   But it wasn’t my mountain.   So I sold for 3-weeks, booked a full client load, and went earlier—helping $2m-$20m startups build a more repeatable and defensible engine for growth.   Been a trip so far.   Thanks for following along.   p.s. Here’s a photo hiking out west. Hope you find your mountain.

I think the move away from growth at all costs in the startup ecosystem is good for all stakeholder. Founders can focus on things that really matter. Investors stop giving away free money to end consumers. Long term sustainable businesses are built, less over-hiring, so less chances of layoffs, which means great for the employees.

Why am I excited about being an early stage investor right now? Challenging economic times often push founders to excel. In a tough economy, they need to create a product that customers love, minimize expenses, and charge for their service or product. Great companies like Stripe and AirBnB started after the 2008 housing crisis, showing that difficult times can foster successful businesses. The entrepreneurs I meet today are exceptional. They are examining their strategies and sometimes making tough decisions, like layoffs or budget cuts. These difficult steps can shape a founder and open new growth opportunities. I'm ready to support them in this journey.

The A16Z GAMES investing team is hiring an early career investor 👇 We want someone who... - Can work like a founder (blood, sweat, tears - whatever it takes) - Is extremely thoughtful + a high capacity communicator - Focuses on the long view on their effort and choices - Comes well-regarded by many in the industry - Knows what startups are like - Is a truth seeker As someone who works daily with this team, I'll say the following: it's the first truly truth-seeking culture I've ever been part of outside of my own family. Honest and healthy debate is a daily activity. "Argue" is not a bad word. So you better come EXCITED to join the fray, and to capitulate when it's evident there are better ideas on the table. You must also come prepared to live very visibly, out there for all to see. As a life-long hermit, I promise they accept nothing short of full-throated commitment of your ideas to the commons. I've come to fully embrace the benefits of this orientation - but if you come thinking you'll get to hide in a corner - think again (I thought that, it did not work). And, of course, you must know our space intimately. We invest in game + game adjacent - which means you should be very familiar with the products and companies in the space, where it's going, and why. This generally means both having a reasonable degree of consumer-depth (yup...) - and also understanding the businesses behind the products across our ecosystem. If you think you have what it takes, I encourage you to check out the pieces Jonathan Lai + Andrew Chen both published today. They lay out more specifics about what they're looking for etc... and how to be considered.

I cried in front of my entire team at Good Words’ all-hands meeting today. We were discussing the difficult economic situation in the tech industry that’s been hammering our company and our clients all year. I was sharing openly with my team about how these economic forces have impacted not just our business, but me and my family personally. The next thing you know, I was in tears in front of everyone. This isn’t the first time I’ve cried in front of my team, and it probably won’t be the last. I talk to a lot of other business owners and leaders who, understandably, emphasize the importance of remaining strong and stoic in front of their employees. Most of the time, I agree. But sometimes being strong and stoic is disingenuous, at least for me. One of our values here at Good Words is “disarming honesty”: We believe everyone does their best work when they have access to true and equal information. We’re extremely straightforward and communicate openly, honestly, and proactively, even when it’s hard. And today, what was true is that this has been a hard year; that their CEO is doing her best to get us all through it safely, healthfully, and wisely; and that sometimes that's a very emotionally demanding task. I don’t think it serves them or me to pretend that running a business through a downturn doesn’t suck, or to put on a facade that leaders aren’t impacted by tough times. No one scolded me for being “too emotional,” and no one ran to the press to announce that I’m a weak leader. Instead, multiple people thanked me for telling them the truth—that they feel more confident in me and in the company because they know I’m honest with them. Two things can be true at once: ✌️ I can lead an effective all-hands meeting, AND I can cry at the same time. ✌️ I can be be optimistic about our company’s future (which I am!), AND I can admit that I’m tired and wish things were easier right now. ✌️ I can be vulnerable, AND I can lead my team with confidence and bravery. And so can you. ❤️ #entrepreneurship #leadership #techlayoffs #femaleentrepreneur