In the business world, it often seems like startups go from idea to billion-dollar valuations in the blink of an eye. But these overnight success storywhile inspiring, they often mask a crucial truth: Building a large, sustainable business takes time, often much longer than most founders, investors, and observers expect.

Nothing sells better than the idea of ​​a rapid, meteoric rise to success, and we've all heard the stories of the legends – Instagram went from a startup to a The $1 billion acquisition by Facebook in just 18 months, Uber reached a $70 billion valuation less than a decadeand the idea for Airbnb went from air mattresses on the living room floor to a the global hospitality giant in a few short years. But these are exceptions, not rules, and they create a distorted picture of how long success really takes.

Like one founder turned investorI've built and funded startups that have been very successful. But it took them a long time, in some cases over a decade, to get there. And there is nothing wrong with that. The real secret to building and growing startups lies in the art of patience.

Related: Overnight success as a startup is unrealistic – Embrace uncertainty and try this instead.

Reality Check: The True Timeline of Startup Growth

The reality for the most successful startups is a lot less glamorous than the headline-making companies and takes a lot more time. When you're starting a new company, these are the things that take the most time, but you need to prioritize in order to succeed:

• Product-market fit: Finding the right product that solves a real problem for a specific market may take years of iteration and rotation. Take Slack, for example—it started as a gaming company before turning around to become the workplace communication tool it is today.
• Income generation: Developing a sustainable revenue model often requires multiple efforts and adjustments. Pinterest spent years fine-tuning its monetization strategy before achieving profitability.
• Escalation: Growing from a small team to a larger organization while maintaining culture and efficiency is a slow and challenging process. Dropbox spent more than a decade perfecting its product and scaling its operations ahead of it. Successful IPO.
• Market education: For truly innovative products, educating the market and changing consumer behavior takes time. Tesla spent years convincing the market of the viability of electric vehicles before achieving mainstream success.

I spent eight years at the company I co-founded, Density, and we were incredibly focused on getting these areas of the business right. At first, we tested our idea by manually counting people in a coffee shop and publishing the results online. We initially sold WiFi-based counting solutions to retail businesses, but after receiving feedback and interest from larger organizations, we decided to branch out and focus exclusively on commercial real estate (CRE).

Along the way, we realized our product wasn't accurate enough, so we rebuilt it from the ground up. We expanded into mid-market businesses and even found an unexpected use case with airport lounges—if you fly Delta, you'll probably see one of our sensors above the lounge doors. Eventually, we went back to focusing on CRE and changed our business model from a fee per sensor to a software fee based on square footage because it made more sense for revenue generation.

Since I left the company, that journey has continued. This timeline is much more representative of the typical startup experience.

Related: How Saying 'Yes' to Every Opportunity Helped My Startup Make $1M in Year One

Maintaining momentum for a long time

Long deadlines without milestones can certainly be demotivating for employees and management. But there are ways around it maintain motivation and momentum for a long time.

Set intermediate goals by breaking down the long-term vision into short-term, achievable objectives. This will help your team understand that they are making progress even if it is incremental. I also believe in celebrating small victories. Acknowledge and celebrate small achievements along the way, no matter how insignificant they may seem.

It can be hard to do when you're making your idea a reality, but hear me out – it's essential to maintain a semblance of work-life balance. If everyone works until 9pm and on weekends, they will burn out and be even less likely to stick around long term. Encourage your team to take time off.

Finally, stay connected to the mission. Regularly review and reinforce the company's mission and core values ​​because it reminds people why they are doing the work and why they should keep going even when progress seems slow.

Both investors and founders can align on long-term visions

Building a great startup it takes time, and it's not just you who needs to be patient—your investors need to be on board, too. From the start, make sure you're having honest conversations with them about what the journey will look like. Talk about timelines, milestones and what success means for your startup.

It is essential to find investors who not only buy into your industry, but also share your long-term vision. It's important to pursue capital from investors who share your ideology and have a vision for their fund that transcends your business – an investor can only be in it for the long haul if their fund model supports it.

In general, try to find investors with good data and some operational experience. They will often have more sensitivity to the ups and downs of finding market fit or unlocking income. Once you have those people in your corner, keep them in the loop with regular, open communication. And don't just focus on today's revenue or growth numbers; pay attention to key indicators such as customer acquisition cost, monthly recurring revenue and user engagement metrics. These are the signs that you are on the right path to future success.

Don't be shy to ask your investors for help. They bring experience and connections that can be game-changers when the going gets tough or when you're looking to scale faster. As a former founder, I try to mentor the companies I invest in. I am always willing to meet the founders and help them with operations, brand work, product development and company culture. The more involved your investors are, the better off you'll be.

Embracing the long game

Building a truly great and sustainable business is more of a marathon than a sprint. It requires not only ambition and hard work, but also patience, resilience and a willingness to learn and adapt over time.

For founders, that means setting realistic expectations from the start, both for themselves and their teams. It means preparing for the long haul, celebrating the small wins along the way, and staying focused on the ultimate vision.

For investors, this means looking beyond the lure of quick returns and being willing to back promising companies through the tumultuous startup journey.

We also need an industry-wide mindset shift. We should celebrate not only the rapid growth, but also the steady, persistent builders who create value over time. By being patient, we can foster a more sustainable startup ecosystem – one where sustainable companies create real value for society. The most influential companies of our time were not built overnight. They were built day by day, with patience, persistence and unwavering commitment to their vision.