in 2017, I co-founded and launched a human startup, called Chloe. then in 2021, I solo bootstrapped a B2C digital one, called rewind. one was instantly and irrefutably life-changing and I hope that over time, the other one will be too. I essentially now have two children – both 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, late nights, early mornings, 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 emotional and financial return on investment. my human startup requires way less capital than I originally thought it would, yet she generates a near constant stream of premium content and although my digital one required more capital 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 a master juggler of chaos and you have my utmost admiration. 💪🏻 perseverance, resilience and endless patience are essential traits for parents and entrepreneurs alike and should mean all the hard work and sleep deprivation are absolutely worth it in the end