---
title: "It's Supposed to Be Hard. You're Changing the World."
description: "Building successful startups is hard - even for unicorns. A VC's perspective on navigating challenges, from fundraising to remote teams, based on 12+ years of experience."
categories: ["management"]
keywords: ["Theory Ventures","venture capital","startup challenges","remote team management","fundraising strategies","startup culture","Tomasz Tunguz","unicorn startups","entrepreneurship","team dynamics"]
ai_summary: "Explores the inherent challenges of building startups and managing remote teams from a VC's perspective."
date: 2020-11-30
lastmod: 2026-07-28
canonical_url: https://www.tomtunguz.com/its-supposed-to-be-hard/
author: "Tomasz Tunguz"
---

"It's the Finals. It's hard. It's supposed to be hard." After [Game 2 of the NBA Finals](https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nba/steve-kerr-its-the-finals-its-hard-its-supposed-to-be-hard) Steve Kerr said this to Steph Curry as they walked through the tunnel to the locker room after a loss. 

What's true for basketball is also true for startups - at least in this case.

With all the news of unicorns and IPOs and acquisitions driven by the broader market, teams can fall into a trap to think building a startup into a success is easier for others. 

But I can tell you more than 12 years into my career as a venture capitalist, it's hard. It's always hard. Even for the ones that make it look easy from the outside. 

We've had the privilege to [partner with some iconic companies](https://redpoint.com/companies). Let me pull back the curtain: all of them have had their tough days. Missing a quarter. Failing to close a key hire. Receiving a rejection, or 20 nos, from potential financing partners. Struggling to re-energize after a derailed acquisition process. Fearing the rise of a competitor. Cutting costs to reduce burn and buy time to get the product right. Rebuilding trust after arguments amongst founders. Managing the psyche of a team throughout the rollercoaster of everyday startup life. 

Today, every company wrestles with one significant additional complexity: managing a remote team. How do you engage people over Zoom? Maintain the culture? Keep connected? Manage burnout? Those are the questions I hear in every board meeting. They're real, meaningful, and challenging. 

It's a startup. The company's goal is to change the world, quite literally, by building a product, evolving user behavior, and sometimes creating a category. 

It's hard. It's meant to be hard. You're changing the world.