(Image credit : Alleywatch)

Want a startup job ? Everybody does nowadays. The “cool” jobs, teams of ninjas, rockstars and co, the ping-pong tables, free food and crazy offices in the Valley or some cool startup district.

And with high levels of funding and attractiveness, startups still can afford to fight for the best of the best over money and perks.

But the one perk is missing … 

As much as a hipster working on his Mac at Cool Beans can be a usual sight in San Francisco, it does seem that this same hipster will not be found, working, at a terrace in Paris or the beach, at Bondi.

Pure geographical logic.

Not really when considering the hip and promises of the startup world where “remote” is a common word.

However, a closer look at this world, the jobs advertised and the everyday chatting does uncover a bit of truth. Startups, the cool kids, are old geezers in the end.

“Telecommuting” vs “remote” 

Remote seems to be the word for startups. Telecommuting the one for all these corporations with employees allowed to work from home.

Yet, beyond wording the reality of working unattached to an actual desk takes different turns when comparing startups and larger corporations.

Yahoo! and Marissa Mayer did sound very corporate and old-fashioned when calling for a termination of remote work in the company. The corporation did look like a corporation.

However, from personal experience and encounters, an observation has to be made. Corporations do allow a lot more true remote work than startups do.

A quick look at jobs advertised on AngelList for instance does show some “Remote OK” ads. Out of which, the remote is basically about living in San Francisco, New York, etc … and having the possibility to work from home.

Not everybody is Buffer 

Remote, by Buffer’s definition is the ability to sit in a country, whichever it is, and work from there. They are a social media darling, with a transparent culture but have also truly embraced what remote is about.

Sure everybody likes to get a free coffee in the morning, relax on bean bags and play some video games during breaks. But how does it translate to simply being able to work and live the dream ?

Being able to work and travel, live abroad and deliver is priceless. That is a perk that should top all others.

But it does seem, in the end, that the cool kids only innovate, disrupt markets and industries but … do not dream.