Why You Should Think Twice Before Volunteering for a Startup

Have you ever been fired? I have. I was a volunteer for a women’s wellness startup.

“So, you were fired from a job you weren’t even being paid for?” my friends and family members have all similarly said, with a confused expression while half-laughing.

It sounds even more ridiculous when you hear it out loud like that, followed by a nod and “yes” from me. It wasn’t just me that got fired, by the way.

“What did you do?!” is the next question I get. 

So, what did I do? That’s a very good question. 

Offering your skills as a volunteer can be a great way to gain new experiences and insights, whether you’re a beginner or an experienced professional looking to learn something new. However, as layoffs in tech continue and competition for paid jobs becomes fierce in UX, voluntary opportunities may be a necessity for many more experienced professionals out of work for longer periods. However, these opportunities may expose you to poor leadership practices, total grifters and exploitation.

My experience highlights the red flags I encountered, which I hope others will consider before starting (or continuing) in a volunteer — or paid opportunity, as these are all red flags people may experience in any work environment.

Lack of trust

NDAs

My initiation into this wild ride was marked by a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). While NDAs are common in protecting intellectual property, they aren’t called a “gagging order” for no reason and might indicate shady practices. Particularly for voluntary positions where NDAs are not the norm. These may include the possibility of being let go without warning, complete loss of rights to your work, restrictive confidentiality terms, and many more. These conditions, far from fostering trust, create a stark power imbalance.

Removing access without warning

This shouldn’t have come as a surprise given the NDA, but it did. The sudden removal of access to applications (like Figma) or systems (Microsoft, on a Sunday morning) without prior communication or with a sketchy explanation serves as a stark reminder of the fragile nature of trust. Such passive-aggressive actions, devoid of respect or consideration, erode the foundational trust of any job. 

“Trust is not built in big, sweeping moments. It’s built in tiny moments every day.” — Brené Brown

Unclear vision and expectations

Decisional whiplash

Repeatedly reversing decisions, especially those made collaboratively, can signal a lack of clear vision. This inconsistency not only decreases team morale but leads to a lack of trust towards leadership (Gallup, 2023). Clearly defining roles and responsibilities on a team and documentation of decision-making can help mitigate these challenges. In the words of Wagner & Harter:

“A good team, some say, is a lot like a great jazz band in which each player listens to the other instruments as he plays his own. The better they pay attention to the rest of the band and work their way into the music, the better the result” — Wagner & Harter (2006).

Unfortunately, in my experience, leadership just wanted to play their instrument while wearing noise-cancelling headphones.

Not respecting time

Taking up increasing amounts of personal time or disregarding planned meeting agendas demonstrates a lack of respect for people’s time and effort (Hall, 2020). Effective leaders respect their team members’ time and understand that their time is valuable. This should be even more paramount when people are volunteering their time.

Poor communication

Resistance to feedback

Encountering resistance to feedback reflects poor leadership. True leadership champions feedback. The unwillingness to embrace different opinions and dismiss individuals who raise concerns undermines a culture of inclusivity and growth (Bush, 2023).

Getting personal

When leaders interpret professional interactions through the lens of their past personal experiences, it can skew their judgment and interactions, deviating away from the team’s mission and objectives. Our personal experiences and upbringing significantly influence our leadership style (Evolution, n.d.). While these experiences can enrich our leadership, they can also lead to biases and a narrow perspective if not consciously addressed. Leaders who recognise and reflect on these shaping experiences can achieve more balanced and effective leadership.

These two things (Resistance to feedback and Getting personal), were the catalysts in my experience to the point of no return. Even with the best intentions, you cannot communicate with someone that’s unwilling to listen.

What good leadership looks like

In contrast, leaders, like those Simon Sinek often describes, prioritise trust, empathy, and a clear, shared vision. Empathetic leaders stand out by their ability to understand and share the feelings of others, which enhances their self-awareness and decision-making capabilities (Dennison, 2023).

Empathetic leaders excel in active listening, engaging fully in conversations to understand rather than just respond. They approach situations from multiple perspectives, aiming to grasp the underlying issues genuinely. This leadership style fosters environments where team members feel valued and respected. These leaders see feedback as a tool for growth, not criticism, and they cultivate a sense of belonging and purpose within their teams, driving collective growth and innovation (Dennison, 2023).

What did I do to get fired?

A team member professionally challenged leadership about unrealistic expectations regarding the MVP. The next day, leadership fired the team member for perceived disrespect. When asked for feedback, I supported my team member’s approach, emphasising open communication and the necessity of challenging conversations in a product team. Leadership took my support as further disrespect, leading to my firing.

Final thoughts

This experience taught me that advocating for professional integrity and open communication can be risky in environments with poor leadership. My experience has also taught me the importance of discernment in choosing where to offer my time and talents. In future, I’ll only be volunteering my time and expertise to non-profits and charities. Startups should pay people for their expertise; they’re a business, not a charity.

“No good deed goes unpunished,” they say. Most importantly, this experience highlighted the need for me to listen carefully to the whispering warnings of my intuition, instead of silencing it. Next time, I know the questions to ask to ensure that leadership prioritises trust, empathy, and a clear, shared vision — reflecting the organisation it claims to embody, not just a name pretending to center around something it doesn’t.

References

Layoffs.fyi. “Layoffs in Tech.” Available at: https://layoffs.fyi/ (Accessed: [Accessed 24 May 2024)

Signeasy.com. (n.d.). NDA Meaning: 101. [online] Available at: https://signeasy.com/blog/business/nda-meaning-101#:~:text=Avoid%20unclear%20definitions.,t%20share%20(even%20accidentally [Accessed 22 May 2024].

Gallup.com. (2023). Why trust in leaders is faltering — and how to gain it back. [online] Available at: https://www.gallup.com/workplace/473738/why-trust-leaders-faltering-gain-back.aspx [Accessed 22 May 2024].

Wagner, R. & Harter, J.K. (2006). 12: The Elements of Great Managing. New York: Gallup Press.

Hall, J. (2020). How respecting others’ time results in better performance for everyone. Forbes. [online] Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnhall/2020/03/08/how-respecting-others-time-results-in-better-performance-for-everyone/ [Accessed 22 May 2024].

Great Place to Work. (n.d.). Why is diversity & inclusion in the workplace important? [online] Available at: https://www.greatplacetowork.com/resources/blog/why-is-diversity-inclusion-in-the-workplace-important [Accessed 22 May 2024].

Evolution. (n.d.). How your origin story informs your leadership style. Available at: https://evolution.team/blog/how-your-origin-story-informs-your-leadership-style (Accessed: 24 May 2024).

Dennison, K. (2023). The importance of empathy in leadership: How to lead with compassion and understanding in 2023. Forbes. [online] Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/karadennison/2023/02/24/the-importance-of-empathy-in-leadership-how-to-lead-with-compassion-and-understanding-in-2023/?sh=c1cd60359e3f [Accessed 22 May 2024].