4 reasons to love your company’s adolescence

DON’T HATE YOUR COMPANY’S AWKWARD MIDDLE PHASE. EMBRACE IT.

Keep these four points in mind when things get tough.

1. You can afford an interesting, smart leadership team.

Having really talented people next to you is like having playmates who are also your peers, and their ideas will stimulate your own.

2. You have the cash flow to not sweat every little expense.

Don’t go crazy. But you can spend $50 to upgrade your seat on a flight so you’ll arrive at your meeting rested.

3. You have less risk of death from small mishaps.

If you have 10 employees and a key person leaves, you may be left struggling to meet your commitments. If you have only a handful of customers and lose one, then you may have to lay off someone. Scale relieves that constant anxiety.

4. You can hire specialists.

When you and everyone with whom you work are jacks-of-all-trades, half-assing things is a painful necessity. It’s fun to watch quality rise once you can afford to hire a graphic artist or business analyst.