Anyone working as a CTO in a small startup (10-40 people)? What’s the best advice you can give me?

Starting as a CTO next month.

Congrats! I am.

My advice will be to always speak the truth about everything, no matter how brutal it is. Never lie about estimates. If you're not sure about something, say “I'm not sure about it”. Never hesitate to point your finger at bullshit and say “this is bullshit”. If you need time for refactoring things, be firm about it. Never conform to something, never play by the rules. Say what you feel in its entirety. Don't be afraid of getting fired.

There are always a lot of people who are willing to say whatever higher-ups want to hear, to keep the job. But higher-ups really value people who speak the full truth. They're hard to find. Be honest as if every day is your last day at this company. Counterintuitively, this improves your job security and your performance as an executive.

Good luck!

Thanks @kiki!

Run away unless you really want to do it. I am basically in between protecting the devs and making the business people happy while being completely transparent about why they are wrong (when they mess up). It's exhausting. Be prepared to code less and less, and get dragged into more and more meetings. You need to know a bit of everything, so it can be overwhelming but also rewarding.

I've been.

Along with the excellent advice @kiki gave you, I'd add another tidbit.

It's not your job to manage everything, because that's unsustainable. Delegate into your trusted leads, focus on managing them, and improving processes and stacks in the company.

And, like Balderich would say in the "hero" overwatch short: "Your team needs you. Be their shield".

Speak truth
Dont be an ass
Be there for your employees
Always be the one who the hard shit, you are always there during weekend upgrades/maintenance.

unpopular opinion:

if you gotta ask, you're probably not a great fit.

@tosensei Yeah, I think I know why this opinion unpopular.

> Hey, I’ve just starting running. What’s the best advice you can give me?
> If you have to ask this, you probably shouldn’t run.

*what the fuck*

@yehaaw CTO..

chief technical officer.

CHIEF!

that's the position where only people should end up who ALREADY KNOW what they're doing.

to improve your example a bit:

> hey, i've just started running my nuclear power plant....

@tosensei

I’ve asked for an advice - not what I should do in my role. I’m sure I’m competent.

I honestly think you’re trying to get into fight with random strangers. For that I recommend you logging back into 4chan.

@yehaaw no, i literally believe that someone who wants generic advice from anonymouse masses _probably_ is _not_ a good fit for any leadership role.

i'm not trying to start a fight. i'm just trying to propagate a mindset that makes people think "AM i qualified?" - because in my experience, especially in C-positions, most people actually aren't. at all.

and it's just my honest belief: for some things, if you gotta ask, you shouldn't do them.

(also: what should the advice be for, if not "what you should do in your role"? advice for casserole recipes?)

@tosensei

You’re definitely entitled to your belief.