How I took a leap into the unknown
a.k.a., how I started a company
About 6 years ago, I was in a windowless, teeny tiny “phone booth” style meeting room, which had two chairs and a small side table.
I was with my manager at the time, who was babbling on about something that sounded awfully, well, managerial.
As I recall, this was her first go at such a role, and though she really tried, it just didn’t land with me.
My eyes glazed over.
"I would rather be anywhere but here right now,” I thought.
And that was the moment I knew I wanted to start a company of my own.
Something where I didn't have to answer to anyone about seemingly trivial matters.
Something entirely remote, because the nature of my work (writing and editing) required an environment conducive to heads-down focus, not an office of distractions or fake work banter.
Like me, my employees would have the freedom to work from anywhere in the world, and I would trust them as fully-functioning adults to do their work – and do it well – on their schedules.
Almost six full years later, my company has managed to secure business with household names in finance and the buzziest fintech startups. We’re signed with the world’s biggest hedge fund, as well as smaller, leading regional banks and financial companies.
I don’t say this to brag. When I read stories about female founders, I always resonate with the moment they “took the leap.”
It’s inspiring and shows an idea without action is like a fart in the wind.
A lot of people talk about strategy. But for me, execution of an idea is the only thing that counts.
It started as a side hustle
People in my network knew I was a writer.
I had a book published in 2014, which was a personal finance book written from seven years of experience in helping people borrow money to buy homes.
I saw hundreds of situations during that time, dealt with personal finances, credit, mortgages, lending, underwriting, rates, the secondary lending market, wholesale lending – I really delved in and learned the nuts and bolts of the industry.
After this, I worked at two global financial broadcast news networks.
This was more in line with what I’d studied in college: English Literature and Journalism.
It was only natural for me then to take action on the sum of my experience up until that point: finance + writing.
I wanted to do editing and writing, to produce creative editorial content, to help people in financial or technical industries express, simplify, and articulate themselves and what they were offering.
Of course, once I parted ways with the company where I was stuck in the phone booth, I had time and space to focus my energy and brain on what to do next.
I took a beat
I’d previously side hustled and taken on a few client projects. But I wasn’t quite sure yet how to spin this into an entity of its own.
I got out of New York City and hung out at home for a couple of months, including the holiday season.
You can only imagine the conflicting emotions I had: In my ‘30s, jobless, single (read: not married), staying with my parents, carrying business school loan debt, and the person I was seeing was hinting I needed to find a full-job, and fast.
My parents live in a neighborhood situated in front of a community lake, about .65 miles in circumference.
It’s beautiful, and you can experience some incredible sunsets and see turtles, fish, ducks, geese, friendly smiles, and furry friends.
When I was in this aimless period of “what to do next,” I walked and walked around this lake in the mornings and evenings.
In my ears were you can do it-themed business and entrepreneurship podcasts, which, as cheesy as it sounds, provided the motivation and guidance to just do it, to have faith in yourself and pursue starting a company.
This was the fucking scary part.
Was I ready? How would I get clients? Would I go broke? How much faith and confidence did I really have in myself to do this? How much did I trust my abilities? How strong was my network? Am I going to be smart or end up a broke loser?
I recalled my business school classmate’s story. After school he took simple jobs, like sweeping floors at his relatives’ businesses, so he could keep his brain energy free and clear and think about what to do next. He looked around and thought, there’s no way I’m not as smart as some of these dumbasses out here I see making millions.
The “free and clear” period I took for myself gave me the time and space I needed to reflect and decide to go for it.
I’d already registered my company. Next up was getting the admin out of the way, signing up for a tax ID, and separating personal finances from company accounts.
Then, when I returned to New York, a combination of hard work (emailing professional contacts, providing quality content work, being responsive and giving thoughtful service) and the strength of my network led me to my first paying clients: a fintech startup which eventually sold to Goldman Sachs, and one of the big 4 accounting firms.
Today, almost six years later, we’ve experienced plenty of exciting and equally trying times. We were acquired in 2020, but day-to-day I still helm the ship.
To sum it up, my advice to anyone who’s thinking about taking the leap and starting a company is to just get started.
Take a beat if you have to. Listen to free podcasts and do research – knowing that at a certain point you’re going to have to shit or get off the pot.
If you need validation for what you’re offering, then start small and test demand first before investing too much money on branding and costly bells and whistles like software and design.
The market will be waiting for you, and yes, you’re smart enough.
Observations
I just returned from almost 3 full weeks of travel in Italy.
Stay tuned for my stories about 36 hours in Rome, Florence, and Milan.
You may have also noticed or read recently – the dollar’s super strong right now.
This pair of Maje boots is €375 in Italy but $490 in the U.S.
With the dollar at parity with the euro, it almost makes sense to redeem all your travel rewards points if you have them, fly and stay overseas, and do all your high-end design and luxury shopping over there.
Additionally, after the 11% - 16% VAT refund, these pair of boots could be as low as ~$325!
P.S. My commitment to a weekly cadence got a little sidetracked from said travel and also a real gnarly bout with Covid (ugh I KNOW, and even after I was vaxxed and so careful for 2 years). But apparently, most people (70% says the White House in a WebMD report) have had Covid by now 🤷🏻♀️. That said, I’m not one for excuses, so I’ll do better, take my own advice, and commit to a weekly cadence going forward.
Superwoman! So so thankful and proud to have worked with you. Forever an inspiration!