‘Pick up a knife and get on with it:’ Start-ups reject work-life balance ‘beast’

Maxim Shanahan and Paul Smith

Jun 25, 2024 – 11.58am

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Start-up workers must be prepared to “go to war,” to help their companies succeed, rather than worrying about work-life balance top local entrepreneurs have warned, setting up a culture clash when right to disconnect laws come into force in August.

Honey Insurance founder Richard Joffe and Goterra boss Olympia Yarger said tech workers needed to realise that, to succeed in a start-up, “you’re not optimising for work-life balance”.

Maxim Shanahan is a professional services reporter at the Australian Financial Review.

Paul Smith edits the technology coverage and has been a leading writer on the sector for 20 years. He covers big tech, business use of tech, the fast-growing Australian tech industry and start-ups, telecommunications and national innovation policy.