3 things I wish someone had told me when I started my company 9 years ago.

In January 2016, I started my company.
I don’t remember the date. I can’t
recall celebrating this birthday.

To me this was nothing special.
More a shrug of the shoulders and a feeling of “why not”.

I thought I knew everything I needed to know to start a
business and the rest I would figure out along the way.

I was wrong…

I took the building blocks I had available and
started constructing my metaphorical business tower.

Didn’t do a very good job…

• Skipped steps in order to reach higher.

• Focused too much on meaningless details.

• Wasn’t following a blueprint of any kind.

Recognize any of these?

Regardless, if you have a company or
thinking of starting one, don’t do what I did.

I was about to pay the price for my ignorance.

My fall from “Mount stupid”

There is a concept called the Dunning – Kreuger effect. A bias
where you think you are better at a particular thing than you actually are.

Yes, I might simplify here since I am far from an expert
when it comes to this concept… (See what I did there)

I quickly reached the peak of “mount stupid” in my company.
Read some books and thought I was an expert.
I got some clients and felt I was on a roll.

The tower was looking alright and a sense of pride that
I had built something, blinded my judgement.

A global pandemic shook the foundation and revealed
my previous mistakes. The tower started to tremble – and I with it.

I realized that I had reached a point where I didn’t know what to do next.
I couldn’t build, couldn’t add, couldn’t change anything.
If I touched it, it would fall… and I with it.

What I didn’t anticipate was that the fear of waiting for
something to fall – without the ability or knowledge to
do anything about it – is paralyzing.

It drained me by sucking all my energy and focus.
All I could see was something that was far from stable – but
had not yet collapsed. And I was to blame for the construction!

Why had I done such a bad job?

Years went by and the tower was still standing – unchanged.

But I fell…

Fell from mount stupid and I didn’t understand what was going on.
I had nothing to stand on when my world was changing.

I was tumbling down – not able to stop.
Not knowing when or where I would land.

What I wished someone had told me 9 years ago

A part of me wished that someone had found me 9 years ago and
provided some guidance… I am not sure I would have listened…
even if anyone would have tried to guide me.

No one did. I don’t blame anyone.

I could have found the answers myself… if I knew what to look for.

But I didn’t. I now know that I had not expanded my worldview and
perspective enough to know what I didn’t know back then.

And… without the confidence and inexperience of youth…
I might have never dared to start my company at all.

Today I know that I needed to:

• Learn – You don’t know everything so continue to learn, expand and evolve.

• Write – Make your progress visible and your mind clearer by writing.
  Write to build, to reflect, to adjust, to sell and to grow.

• Just start – It doesn’t have to be perfect! And don’t be afraid to start again. As someone said, you need a first crappy thing in order to create an amazing 10^th thing. 

Today I know that these 3 things…

• push you off the cliff of “Mount Stupid” quicker,

• slow the fall into “the Valley of Despair” and

• are the tools that will help you climb the “Slope of Enlightenment”

Regardless of what you are doing and where you are,
learn, write and start are the ingredients of success.

Don’t be afraid to smash down your tower!

At the end of 2023, I finally “smashed down the tower”.
In anger, frustration and sadness I screamed, kicked and
threw the building blocks in all directions of my mind.

It no longer served me.

I should have done this years ago… but I didn’t – I was afraid.

Afraid of many things but mainly of failure.

Being seen as a failure by others prevented me to act and
instead… I ended up failing and hurting myself.

A cliche? Yes.
But there is a level of truth in all cliches.

With the fear of a falling tower being gone, I suddenly
had more energy and focus, to direct towards new ideas.

You will too.
You will start to see new things and
rediscover things about the world that you have forgotten.

Beware of what comes after…

With new bricks and new energy you start to see a new tower.
You start to rebuild!

You take things slow, careful not to repeat your previous mistakes.
Maybe too slow…

You sit with one brick, turning it, adjusting it, tweaking it.
It has to be stable this time. It has to be… perfect…

Do you think that is a good strategy?
It isn’t…

Remember the third point!
Just start – It doesn’t have to be perfect!

I forgot that again…

Which is why this newsletter has been unpublished and
over-polished for almost 8 months.

Today, that changes!

I am really glad you are here

Regardless if you are climbing “Mount Stupid” or are lost in “the Valley of Despair”.
Regardless if you already have or are thinking about starting a business.
I hope my words, perspectives and metaphors will give you the language
to help you handle and deal with your challenges, whatever it may be.

I will continue to write and share.
Look for my next letter on Wednesday, April 9th

Want to learn more about me and
my company, send me a DM on LinkedIn 

Learn, write and start!

Make a great day!
Until next time!

Daniel - The Talking Bridge

Ps: Music motivation: “You might like it” by Jason Mraz