Managing My Psychology

80% of a founder’s journey is managing one’s psychology, both the high highs and low lows.

Easier said than done, especially when mornings come with an automatic feeling nagging at the chest. A feeling I’ve intermittently begun feeling as of late.

Fortunately, journaling, a co-founder, group therapy and a list of rationalizations boomerang my sanity.

I thought I’d formalize some of my mantras and rationals, as a way to explicitly remind myself what to stay grounded to and in an attempt to other founders out there.

Ah, the classic marshmallow experiment, applied to founder life. What might seem painful in the day the day, can be fulfilling in the long-term. Long-term thinking is where it’s at.

Anne Lammott reminds us to take life (and writing) bird by bird. Day by day, week by week. On Monday mornings, I especially tell myself to take it a week at a time. My co-founder and I take ample time to define what our week’s goals are and I take comfort in fulfilling those goals for the rest of the week. Same goes for the day, and the next, and the next.

When I quit my job to jump into the entrepreneurial world, I coined my journey as an asymmetric bet. I still stand by it. I’m learning a ton, gaining expertise in things I enjoy, meeting a ton of people in the space.

I still value a ton of autonomy in my work and being a founder is the ultimate representation of that autonomy.

Now that I’m taking my shots on goal a second time, I’m feeling the brunt of compounding growth. I’m still learning A TON more than I would have at a larger corporation and glad I have the freedom to continue taking more shots on goal.

Time to kick some psychological butt.