It’s been 4 years since a group of friends got together and started talking about what it would be like to follow our hearts instead of our heads; 2 years since Rebecca and I agreed we wanted this to be more than just a side gig and navigated the difficult process of separating from our other co-founders; 9 months since I left the perceived “safety” of a 9 to 5 to focus all of my time, heart, and energy on building The Impact Collective; it’s been, 1 week since you looked at me, cocked your head to the side and said “I’m angry”…oops, nope, wrong song.
The last 9 months have been a wild ride. I’ve never worked in a “typical” office (whatever that means). I spent many years in restaurants, followed by many years in early stage startups. I had a brief period of time where there was an office I was expected to show up to at a certain time, but other than that I’ve been working remotely with flexible hours. I worked in environments where we knew the goal, but there was no roadmap to get there. I thrive in a “figure it out” environment, not in the least part because of the level of autonomy it brings. Because of this, I thought, at least tactically, the transition to full time business owner would be a breeze.I was unprepared for just how untethered I would feel. I felt paralyzed on a daily basis by the paradox of choice. From 2016 to 2020, almost every weekday morning was the same - up at 5, on the bus, some kind of workout class, online and working by 8. (I loved being someone who woke up at 5 and went to workout classes at 6 - even writing this out I feel a small bit of smug satisfaction). I was an early riser! A go getter! Deeply embedded in hustle culture! Boss babe! Crumbling under the weight of capitalism! For the first few months of being my own boss, I woke up every morning and the calculations began - if I get on the 6:44 bus I can get to the gym by 7, into the office by 8:30, ready to work by 9….but, my first meeting isn’t until 10…so I can get on the 7:30 bus, gym by 8, office by 9….but, nothing is in person today so maybe I just don’t go to the office….or I could go to the office this afternoon….or I could take the day off….what if I moved that one meeting to tomorrow…..
When I finally left my last tech startup in May of 2023, I was simply exhausted. I was tired of the grind, tired of the promises of reward at some indeterminate date in the future that always seemed to get further away, tired of driving towards KPI’s for investors, tired of focusing on what people might pay more for vs what might bring more actual value to stakeholders. Tired of white lies told so often I started to wonder if they were true. The juxtaposition between the world of social impact that I was heading towards, and the world of ruthless tech startups I was drifting away from was startling. When I unhooked myself from the “business world” that I had become so accustomed to, I realized I wasn’t sure where the next hook was. It’s like that feeling when you think there’s one more step at the bottom of the staircase, but there isn’t. A brief, millisecond of falling into the abyss.
My core values are authenticity, resilience, joy and courage.- I am grateful that I was able to be authentically untethered - luckily I had a business partner who had made the transition a few years earlier and could help show me the way.
- To me, resilience is the ability to just keep trying - to experience setbacks, frustrations, and disappointments, and get up the next day and try again anyway.
- I wouldn’t be doing this work if there wasn’t joy! There is joy in resisting prescribed paths, in saying “but what if there was a different way”, in connecting deeply with other humans who are trying to carve out a little bit of positive impact in whatever ways they can.
- It takes courage to do all of the above, and to talk about it. It is my deepest wish that all humans had the courage (and safety) to speak openly about who they are, how they experience life, and what they might need to thrive.
Deeply resisting the urge to end this blog with - “Does this make sense? No worries if not!”My point is - I am an anti capitalist business owner. I reject hyper individualism and the stupid dumb bootstraps analogy that isn’t even right! I reject the idea that the ever widening wealth gap is just because some people work harder. I reject the idea that someone else’s light burning brighter means that my light dims. I reject ignoring systemic racism and oppression! I also reject the standard 5 paragraph essay with a nice neat conclusion so….the end!