The kinds of people that start tech companies in this economy are among the most employable people in the entire world. If your company fails, you'll do the same thing a laid-off steelworker will do: get another job. But of course you'll succeed at doing that almost immediately.
When I talk to other founders about the gut of steel, it's not about the money but the people.
'Real' founders are fine -- we have a lower expected salary anyways but are probably extra employable. (Imagine who knows the most about contributing to a business!)
The issue is that we were the ones who convinced the people we sat down with to put their eggs in our basket. Investors put in their hard-earned money, employees devote their precious personal hours and "one shot", and customers (in B2Bs) put their own businesses on the line. A company is a social bedrock and we're ultimately responsible.
This stuff can certainly be rationalized away. Professional investors spread their risk and angels are often in it for the fun, employees get a bundle of a paycheck, lottery ticket, and personal responsibility, customers make business decisions, and everyone is getting a seat on the rocket. However, founders are human and part of that means having empathy.
I think that's only true if the company has a decent sized win. As the CEO I actually feel pretty much unemployable. You're the ultimate generalist in a world where companies need specialists.
This is entirely true, and it isn't only that you cannot find another job as a CEO, but you might have a really hard time finding any job at all even if it is lower status (non-executive).
