Saturday, September 05, 2015

The first month of freedom and slavery

One month of unemployment from the work that I had done for over 8 years. One month of self-employment (read: slavery towards own venture), trying to build something that hopefully will make billions healthy.

It's truly been a wonderful feeling -- don't have to dress up in formals every day, can manage my own time, that feeling of hiring people and creating job opportunities, brainstorming to crack the code for the problem that we are really passionate about, and the opportunity to demonstrate control, patience and planning, and speed and execution at the same time.

Few important learnings over the last month:
1) Business model will evolve - literally, every day. Do not worry
2) People management can be most tricky. Cofounders might leave, employees who might have been excited to join may not join altogether, hiring talent can sometimes take way longer than ideal. Do not worry. There will always be ways out. We've found some incredible freelancing support in absence of full-time resources
3) Family support is critical. I know I haven't spent quality time with my wife, my parents, or my siblings - and I truly value their support, understanding why I give importance to my time more than anyone else in family these days
4) Multiple business opportunities will come by your way. And a lot of them will be tempting too. Stay focused
5) Yes, it is important to be fast-paced, but the reality is that the market is not going to turn itself around in weeks
6) It is important to ideate and plan, but it is also important to drive to execution. Remember, Done is better than Perfect

The journey towards great learning has just begun. Am sure coming months (and years) will be more awesome than the last month.