Editor’s note: Veteran entrepreneur, author and blogger Joe Procopio continues his “Five Stages of Startup” series with Level 4: The Grind, focusing on “Growth, Culture, Change, Trouble, Pivot.”

DURHAM, N.C. – The five stages of startup I’m discussing are not THE five stages of startup. They’re just landmarks, broken down and generalized into something that we can all hopefully use as a guide, not gospel.

This is the fourth of five stages that make up a generalized startup timeline. You don’t have to read the previous installments, but it will help, especially if you’re just starting out. Level 1: The Jump is the period of time when you have a great idea that will become a great product. Level 2: Start is when the company is formed, it figures out how to operate, and launches that great product. Level 3: The Journey is about running and growing your company and selling your product. 

So far, everything about startup is straight-up awesome. The early days are the reason most entrepreneurs start their own companies in the first place. It’s living the dream, writing your own ticket, creating your own destiny.

But not every day is going to be your favorite day at your startup. Sometimes, it’s going to feel like a job. And there will be those rare times when it’s going to feel like the worst job you’ve ever had.

Let’s deal with that.

The Grind is the part of startup that is the least glamorous, the most difficult, and probably lasts the longest. Now, nothing about startup is easy. Coming up with a great idea is hard. Turning that idea into a product is hard. Building a company to sell that product is hard. Getting your first few customers and funding is hard.

But once all that machinery is in place, it’s time to make it better, faster, stronger, and more efficient. This is the point where the steady state changes, and it changes often. Customers won’t be happy, investors will meddle, competition will appear out of nowhere, costs will rise, employees will quit, and everyone around you except your core team will, at some point, stop caring about the success of your startup.

Did I talk you out of it? No? Good. Here’s how to get through the rest of your startup’s life cycle.

Read the full post at:

http://teachingstartup.com/five-stages-of-startup-level-4-the-grind.asp

Note: Parts 1-3 are linked with this post.