One of the best parts about running a company is that you get to live, run and breathe at a hundred miles an hour. That means, you’re moving with speed and force that crushes obstacles and leaves competitors in the rear view mirror.
And the results are blatantly obvious. In the past 2 years, across my companies, we have:
- Earned or raised in excess of $2,000,000
- Pushed through legal obstacles by fighting large convoluted laws
- Established trust and confidence in the ability to execute at scale
With that, comes a significant impact on everything - life, work, family and values. As with everything in life, some of it is good and some of it is bad.
Being on the road for the past few weeks has been extremely important for me. Living in New York, you add a lot of layers of bullshit in your decision making process.
Being on the road brings clarity. Some changes I’m sharing below. Others will be shared in a future update.
Effective immediately:
- I will no longer invest in companies if I cannot have a material impact on the outcome. There’s simply no point.
- I will no longer invest in people who are still employed or have a safety net. Comfort is the enemy of success.
- I will no longer invest in people who haven’t experienced life - whether it is travel, adventure, a foreign language or international culture. These characteristics are critical to prove how one navigates the ever-changing landscape of startups.
- I am halting the publishing of my 3rd book. I do not believe I’m ready to write the most important chapter of my life - not just yet.
- While I will always consider New York City home, it is time to move on. Later this year, I’ll be packing up a few bags and moving to Los Angeles. New York has been home for me for nearly 15 years. Every good thing has happened here. A lot of firsts. A lot of important decisions. I respect the hustle this city has taught me. But, it is time to add a second home.
Lastly, I realize I’ve been spread too thin. I need to breathe, sleep and enjoy more of why I work 18 hours a day. As such, I’m going to be spending a vast majority of my time at Poln. It has been growing at a significant pace and its time to guide that rocket ship to the next level. As such, my time on other projects and companies will significantly be reduced.
There are a few more important decisions that have wide ranging consequences, but this is day 1 of my return to reality. None of these decisions are easy for me. But they need to happen. Otherwise I’ll be back on a treadmill to nowhere.