Ask HN: First full-time job. Negotiating friendly NDA?

4 points by badclient ↗ HN
I am accepting my first full-time job. However I have a bunch of side projects that are live which I keep playing with. Nothing is super big and about to explode. We've agreed on the monetary terms of my offer. However the NDA is 9 pages long and seems overtly aggressive.

Any tips for negotiating a more friendly NDA so side projects unrelated to my full-time job done in my spare time at home remain my property?

The company is a tiny 5-10 person startup. The company and I are both based in NYC.

3 comments

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Feel free to push back on any parts of the NDA you don't like. I've had success with this. Alternatively, just say "this NDA is too long and aggressive" and make them do the work of getting a friendlier one. Even an aggressive NDA, though, should include a way for your to explicitly exclude your existing projects.
(comment deleted)
Give them a 9-page "Prior Inventions" list to be excluded from the agreement.