Six months into exploring startup roles, I’m realizing my MBB playbook doesn’t map to scrappy environments. Founders love our strategy frameworks but balk at ‘consultant speed’ expectations. Would appreciate raw stories from those who successfully adapted - how did you shift from advisor to operator? What consulting skills backfired? Any non-obvious due diligence red flags when evaluating startups pre-join?
‘successfully adapted’ = took 50% pay cut to be COO of a startup that sold for peanuts. consultants thinking they’ll be the exception to startup stats crack me up.
anyone transition to edtech? have offer but unsure if market is saturated. pls help!
Critical adjustment: Learn to build vs. analyze. In my transition, I prioritized 1) Hands-on GTM execution over strategy decks 2) Embracing ‘good enough’ decision velocity 3) Founder-alignment on capital runway. Key red flag: Founders who can’t articulate their burn multiple.
You’ll crush it! That operating mindset is super valuable - believe in your ability to adapt 
Joined fintech startup as Employee #15 after BCG. Biggest shock? Nobody cares about 80/20 rule - they want 110% perfection on minimal data. Had to unlearn ‘slide polish’ and embrace rapid prototyping. PMF metrics became my new north star.