(This guest post was written by Ryan Bukoski, start-up enthusiast)

Like many people I’m sure, I was brought up and taught the ideologies that nothing comes easy and if you want something badly enough, you’ve got to go out and get it yourself through a combination of a strong work ethic and an even stronger desire to achieve the goal you’ve set for yourself.  The benefits/results are two-fold; first is the feeling of self-accomplishment in knowing that you gave your all and were successful with your endeavor.  The second isn’t necessarily as cut and dry, and it’s the impression you leave with those around you.  In other words, if you bust your hump, whether you realize it or not, it won’t go unnoticed to those around you.

Fast forward to my first job, starting at the bottom of the totem pole for a start-up.  In an office of less than twenty people, I knew everyone and everyone knew me by the end of my first week, mostly from hand delivering their lunches to each of their desks.  This intimate setting was perfect; everyone knew the roles of one another, and more importantly, everyone held each other accountable for their workload, and if you screwed up, you were sure to hear about it.  Conversely, if you did your job correctly, efficiently, and most of all, exceptionally, you would seldom hear your name.  This seems like no big deal, but it’s something that C-level executives within earshot surely notice in a start-up office, however subtle it may come across over the span of weeks and months to everyone else.

This nuance is the second result of going above and beyond your responsibilities, and you probably won’t know it’s happening, and that’s because you’re too busy busting your ass, but it’s getting you recognition that you’d never achieve in a huge company of never ending cubicles.  By excelling at your job in a start-up environment, you’re building up a trust with your higher-ups, so when the time comes for a new role within that company or even a new role in the next chapter of your career, you’re the go-to candidate simply because you were the one that kept your head down, stayed late, worked hard, and did all the little things right.

I hate to use sports cliches, but I’m gonna anyway: which player would a coach want to build a team around, the power slugging egomaniac superstar who only hits home runs and is busy doing commercials in the off season, or the guy who’s a five-tool player, has great chemistry with the rest of his squad and is unavailable for interviews or endorsements because he’s always in the weight room or busy taking batting practice?  Sure those home runs are fun to watch, but the guy who beat out an infield single the at-bat before is the one who kept the inning alive, and he’s the one who the coaches are interested in keeping around for the long-haul.