Online Witch Hunt

The term 'startup' can feel like a modern rite of passage, where people don't just start businesses,they start entire worlds, full of hustle and uncertainty, often while juggling loans and a side hustle of existential dread

In social media, 'startup' has become a badge of identity, a way for young professionals to signal they're either in the midst of building something or just trying hard enough to make it look like they are, with every post a little billboard of hustle and hope

When you're out at dinner with friends and someone mentions 'my startup,' it's less about the business itself and more about the unspoken competition,who has the most glamorous, chaotic, or 'I’m-rich-so-I’m-busy’ story going on

Generations older than the millennial entrepreneurs now calling it home might see 'startup' as just another word for ‘temporary job,’ something that flares up and then fades into the background, much like a short-term gig or a seasonal hustle

In a work setting, when your boss says 'let’s think like a startup,' it’s a call to loosen up, make do with less, and treat every day like a survival game,because for many companies, the line between 'startup' and 'just a stressed-out business' is starting to blur