How to get a job at a startup

I’ve been asked three times in the past month how to pick a great seed-stage startup (and apply) as a job applicant.

Cliff notes:

1. Get a list of the most successful seed-stage VC funds (Google it)

2. Browse their portfolio

3. Filter out any startups who have not raised investment in the past 12 months

4. Filter out any who do not have a relevant job opening (despite what optimists will have you believe, it is VERY unlikely that a startup will create a job opening just for you)

5. Of the remainder, pick ~10 that light your fire (do not spray and pray)

6. *Do a bit of the work* - applying to be designer? Write a teardown of the company's homepage. A marketer? Suggest 5 things they could be doing differently on socials. etc etc

7. DM the founder/hiring manager with the work + a 1-minute video intro (selfie camera is fine)

Step 6 is the thing almost no one does, and is a cheat code (more often than not) for getting that 1st interview.