September 30th was Select Start’s second full year as a business. Speaking for myself, Josh, and Tariq, it has been the most stressful but rewarding thing we’ve ever experienced.
In October of 2010, we had just convinced (duped?) our fifth employee to join the family. Revenues were modest and runway was always an issue. We occasionally got very creative with distributing founder salaries to make sure our team was looked after first. We were finding our DNA as a company and our capabilities as individuals.
This year has been incredible. It’s one that we’ll never forget, both personally and professionally.
- We’ve grown from five to 19 of the hungriest, smartest, and most talented people in the business.
- Our revenue is up 575%.
- Our profit is up a staggering 1025%.
- We’ve had the opportunity work with (unannounced) A-list companies.
To everyone who we’ve had stressed-out, candid, off-the-record conversations with: thank you for telling us to keep our heads down.
To our clients: thank you for trusting our engineers and designers like they were your own.
And to our engineers and designers: you are exceptional at what you do, and together you are unstoppable.
1st October 2011
Notes: 23
Things have been going well lately. My company is growing, another is starting, and I work with most of my best friends. We’re at the inflection point every startup hopes they hit. It’s the difference between a small five-person company and a renowned studio like Teehan+Lax or Big Spaceship.
I was looking through my safe for my passport and was reminded me of something my dad said to me seven years ago. Well, he didn’t say it, but we understood it.
My dad passed away in October, 2009 when I was 24. He was terrifyingly smart. He dropped out of grade 12 with one credit left due to sheer boredom. He started working three jobs, bought and paid for my parents’ house in his early 20’s.
Years later he trained as a pipefitter at Atomic Energy where he had a near 30 year career. Although not one himself, he worked alongside PhDs in nuclear physics and engineering, building what they designed. I don’t doubt he could have been a PhD himself, but I suspect he always resented that he wasn’t.
My dad’s fatal flaw was that he would never ask for help. We used to have intensely technical conversations about the inner workings of nuclear reactors, or debate articles from the business section of the Ottawa Citizen. Conversely, he found it difficult to talk to me about past mistakes or his health. It wasn’t in his nature to discuss “personal” things, or to burdon anyone else with problems.
My parents weren’t wealthy people, so at 17 I left for university in Ottawa with only few thousand dollars I had saved. I had no idea what I was going to do for money in a few months, but I knew I could figure it out.
As I was unpacking I found a small note from my dad. It simply said:
A boy becomes a man when he realizes he can do on his own. A man is truly a man when he realizes that he cannot do it alone.
Taped to the note was a quarter. We never talked about the note, but we had an implicit understanding that I had read it. There would come a time when I’d need to ask for help, and that would be okay. A quarter was his way of saying to call, even if it’s not what he would have done himself.
Flash forward seven years later. We’re treading into waters I never thought we’d deal with: negotiating multi-million dollar contacts, trying to disrupt entire industries and helping friends build their careers.
To borrow from my dad: A good entrepreneur thinks that they can do it alone. A great entrepreneur knows that there is no way they can do it alone. Thanks for all of the help. You guys know who you are.
Once a year I leave a coffee meeting thinking to myself “Holy shit I’m doing it wrong.” Today was one of those days.
For those of you who don’t know Rob Woodbridge, he’s a serial entrepreneur, advisor and tech executive here in Ottawa. Rob emailed me offering his advice about our company, team and our success. Having been in our situation numerous times before, I wouldn’t dream of saying “no” to the chance to have someone like Rob as a friend.
Without getting into the private details of our conversation, one thing became crystal clear: Success is about surrounding yourself with the right people. This statement is obvious, and we do our best at this. We have a wonderful board of advisors and actively participate in groups like Fresh Founders and events like Democamp. But there is a difference between talking at Democamp about your latest wins and speaking openly with peers at YCombinator “Founder Dinners” or Techstars’ private dashboard reviews.
So what? Well I’m proposing something I’m calling Founder Food.
I’m looking to assemble a group of 5-6 founders/entrepreneurs to have a long dinner once a month. The idea is to share a meal together where we can speak openly, share dashboards, new product ideas, wins, pains and learn to help each other.
There are only two rules:
- You have to attend monthly. The date and time is set in stone.
- You have to openly contribute.
The idea is to find the right 5-6 people who all approve of each other. If you’re interested, send me an email or DM me on Twitter.
Disclaimer: Credit for this idea (and several future ones) go to Rob.
