in 2017, my wife and I co-founded and launched a human startup that we called Chloe
and in 2021, I solo bootstrapped and launched a B2C digital startup, called rewind
one was instantly and irrefutably life-changing and I hope that over time, the other one will be too. essentially, I now have two children – they’re completely different, yet weirdly similar…
starting a company and creating something from nothing, without any specific prior knowledge, is remarkably similar to learning how to look after a baby. both provide a seemingly constant mix of excitement, anxiety, elation, mild-panic, happiness, sleepless nights, responsibility, exhaustion and curiosity, but also immense pride that they both now exist in this world
both provide daily sources of inspiration and motivation to mold them into the best possible versions of themselves as they can be. one wants a unicorn, and I hope the other becomes one
for happy and healthy growth, both require storytelling and a community. both have expanded my knowledge, taught me skills and allowed me to be creative in ways that I never would have without them. both had minor bugs that needed fixing in the early days, but with a few tweaks and the addition of some new features, both are now ready for compound growth
both provide some emotional or financial return on investment…
my human startup requires way less capital than I originally thought, yet she generates a near constant stream of premium content and although my digital one did require more funding to begin with, it has now taken it’s first steps and actually generated some recurring revenue
huge respect goes out to all the side-hustlers and creators nurturing young startups in both human and digital form. whether you’re knee-deep in tasks or knee-deep in nappies, you’re officially master jugglers of chaos and you have my utmost admiration. perseverance, resilience and endless patience are essential traits for both parents and entrepreneurs and should mean the hard work and sleep deprivation are well worth it in the end