(Author's Note - This was written to be sarcastic.  I got some people fired up about the article until they read the comments!)

 For the past 14 years I've played the role of "evil startup boss."  I'm considered "evil" not because I'm literally doing something bad but because I'm the mouthpiece of your tired startup reality. 

I'm the guy telling you to stay later, work harder, forgo pay, and risk more.  I'm the guy your spouse hates.  I'm the reason your children see you less and the reason you missed their last soccer game.  I'm endlessly demanding.

And I have a long list of demands that don't end there.  Here are just a few:

I want you to answer your phone.  I don't care if you answer it and say "hey, we're in the middle of a family outing, I can't talk now."  That's cool.  Or text me back.  Just don't ignore me, because if I'm calling when you're not in the office, it's because something is seriously wrong and only you can provide the answer.

I want you to meet deadlines.  I'm not concerned that you're leaving at 5:01, I'm concerned that you're leaving at 5:01 and the rest of us are still trying to meet our deadlines.  As long as you meet your deadlines, by all means spend as much time with your family as you'd like. 

I want you to respond to email on the weekend.  You joined a startup company, not Procter and Gamble.  At P&G it wouldn't matter if your plane went down in a fiery ball of hellfire - the company would be just fine.  We're 5 guys in a room working like mad with no cash.  There are no weekends, only 2 days per week with different work hours.

I want you to work twice as hard for half the pay.  If this sounds like it sucks, that's because it does.  Starting a company is hard as hell and you can't compete on a 37.5 hour work schedule.  The pay sucks because creating something from nothing means you start with nothing.  But the point of working twice as hard for half the pay is to one day make ten times as much (or more.)  If you want fair pay for 37.5 hours per week go back to big corporate.

(Wow, what a jerk!  How can someone be so relentlessly demanding.  Have they no heart? )

The truth is, I do have a heart and frankly my job may sound great, but it's not all roses.  There's a reason I'm so demanding in the face of all of this.  Take a look at things from my perspective and maybe you'll understand.

If this goes down I'll lose everything.  You will have lost time and potential opportunity.  I'm going to lose my house and I'll probably get divorced long before you do.  You'll get another job.  I'm still saddled with the debt of the $250,000 line of credit we signed up for.  This is a ship with my ankle bolted to the deck.  You can at least jump off of it.

My success depends on you.  You rely on me to make good decisions and guide the company, no doubt.  But without you performing in your role, I'm screwed.  Every moment I have to spend making up for you missing deadlines or dropping the ball means I can't spend it making progressive decisions or working with other people.  I'm constantly being held back by what others are not getting done, which is why I'm constantly riding you about getting stuff done.

I'm sprinting into the abyss.  Leading a startup company is like sprinting into the abyss.  I have no damn clue what's going to happen next, and chances are I'm going to run headlong into a wall.  The last thing I need is to have to keep looking back to make sure everything is where it's supposed to be.  If I can't stay focused on moving forward, I can't see what's coming up next. 

I'm like a hockey goalie.  Best case I don't make any mistakes and we win.  Worst case my defenders let me get pummeled with shots and I look like I lost the whole thing.  Dude, back me up.  I need you to work twice as hard in order to keep me from getting unloaded on by our competition, investors, and on some days, our customers. 

No one is on my side.  See my last point.  If it's not you giving me a hard time, or your spouse complaining, it's the investors riding me about our burn rate, our competitors taking deals from us, or our customers complaining to me about our contract.  If you're not working 110% to back me up, who is?

It's not "woe is me."  When we pull through this ugly mess we'll all celebrate by racing our new Lamborghinis around the beaches of some tropical island.  But until then you need to realize that there's a reason I'm playing the role of slave driver.  It's not because it's fun - it's because it needs to be done.