For me, the best thing about being a founder is that you’re rarely bored. I’ve been running Jetboost for a year and a half now. Normally as an employee, this would be right around the time I start getting the itch to do something else.
If you’re working as a software engineer (like I used to) at this point you know the ins and outs of the codebase. The major features have been built, and most of what you’re doing can be considered maintenance work. It’s easy to get bored because you’re no longer learning anything new. Or at least not near the same rate as when you first joined the company.
As a founder, you don’t have this problem. I’m constantly learning still. The first year was all about learning how to build and run a product with real paying customers. I learned how to communicate with customers, support them as they used the product, and listen to their needs and desires as they helped shape the product direction.
In the last six months, I’ve faced brand new challenges. Such as:
- How to hire and onboard another developer to work on the product.
- How to hire and train someone to provide customer support for the product.
- How to effectively manage people.
- How to create useful documentation.
- How to get smarter about marketing and find successful channels (still figuring this one out!).
I’ve also learned some smaller but extremely valuable skills.
- How to run a quarterly board meeting, thanks to Calm Fund’s advisory boards.
- How to be a good podcast interview.
- How to deliver bad news to customers when things go wrong.
The learning never ends! As a founder, I’m not sure that I will ever get bored of my job.
Of course, it’s not all roses and rainbows. Each of these new skills I’ve developed has been in response to a specific challenge. When you’re faced with those challenges, it’s tough. For months I wrestled with the idea of hiring someone to help with support. It was extremely stressful since I’d never done it before. However, now that I’ve gone through it, I’ll certainly hire someone much quicker next time and with less struggle!
In summary, if you’re someone who loves to learn, and you tend to get bored quickly as an employee, I’ve found being a founder is a pretty awesome solution to that.