I woke up today thinking about the hardships of entrepreneurship.
I consider myself an entrepreneurial VC since it is not easy to start a firm and make it successful.
At the core, I am a founder. A founder of a VC firm. There is very little glamour in my day-to-day — quite the contrary. That is ok, and it is by design.
For a long time, I have been trying to get a specific project done at ONEVC. I have not been very successful at it, because its completion depends more on others than my partners or me.
There have been three times in the past six months in which I felt that I was close. Almost there. Then things fell apart at the last minute.
As I reflect on this temporary failure, I meditated upon three important principles — in no specific order.
As a founder, you must "be like water." As you mature, you will soon realize that the Universe isn't at your command. Flexibility is paramount for successful founders. Unemotional adaptation is right for you.
I don't know anyone successful and unprepared. Do you?
One of my favorite quotes of all time on the topic of preparation:
"Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the ax."
— Abraham Lincoln
If you are too much "in your head" and preoccupied with what you have to get done, you are not living; you are not preparing. Losing your tranquility to your imagination can generate a lot of anxiety.
I find it very soothing to book a time to get ready for things. To plan and make sure I am doing less, but doing less with competence. Try to find tranquility in execution.
Pro-tip: when you want to procrastinate, force yourself to work on it for 15-min, non-stop, and see how you feel. Turn off Wi-Fi and put your phone on airplane mode.
As an entrepreneur, you must be able to imagine your company evolving. The power of creative thinking and imagination is essential. It can propel you into "beast execution mode".
On Striking Thoughts, Bruce Lee says:
"Practical dreamers never quit. Right now I can project my thoughts into the future. I can see ahead of me. I dream."
Dream and practice imagination, but come back to reality to execute.
Be flexible and prepared. Be present.
Find intimate redemption with your spirit. Proceed with the courage to the authenticity of your spirit. Change starts from within silence.
If immigrant-founders knew the difference it makes to speak excellent English, they would be working harder at it. You must be fluent if you want to succeed.
Paulo is the founder and CEO of Arena, a data platform for consumer enterprises that has over 25,000 customers in more than 50 countries.
