Salary, Salary, Salary is credited to your bank #18
It’s payday! There’s a unique joy in seeing that “salary credited” message. The hard work of a whole month gets rewarded at the end of it! For almost 1.5 years, I never got paid. Yes, as a bootstrapping founder, until we generate sufficient revenue, only then, it may happen.
In 2013, I was used to seeing roughly INR 175000/- credited at the end of every month. I left behind almost INR 800000/- worth of unvested CTXS stocks. It was a bold decision to leave all these and start from the scratch! Throughout 2014, I did not receive that SMS. It was quite sad! As a founder, it is a scary experience. It’s not just about receiving a salary; a founder needs to ensure the team gets paid. The team may not want to know about the cash in the bank. They join the company for the startup’s vision, and the trust and passion the founder shows.
There are more learnings as a founder. As an employee, we used to receive payslips. Designing and issuing the payslip is a unique experience. Deciding the perks that work well for the employees is also crucial. There were special festival months where we credited the salary a week or two before the end of month. All these are possible only at small startups.
Every last working day of the month, I used to log in to HDFC bank and make NEFT transfers to my teammates. It is a special feeling when you see their smiling faces upon receiving that SMS, “Salary, Salary, Salary is credited to your bank!”.
At the month’s end, there are dues to pay as well—workspace rent, UPS rent, payment to the office boy, monthly tea charges, and internet charges.
I received revenue for ActOnMagic via PayPal, cheque, direct credit, NEFT, and more. These payments were much bigger than what I used to get from companies. It was a special feeling when I got my first salary from ActOnMagic after the first revenue from a Dubai-based cloud provider.
Overall, it is a gift for a founder to have these experience. A responsible job with great depth of learning.
If you are working for a company and receive that SMS, think about all those souls who make it happen behind the scenes. If you are a founder, thank you for making your team smile on this special day (which comes every month). Cheers!
