Brain Vomit #8: Taking the safe route

This past weekend I spent time with family, my wifes side of the family. Went to a barbecue at my brother in law’s house. It was nice to catch up and have a normal evening with family after a year of social distancing. They told me how pleased they were with the success of my business but ultimately I had made a mistake by not working at SpaceX when I had the chance.

I rejected a safe, well paying job position working as a composites fabricator. A job that would give me health benefits and stock options that would eventually appreciate in value at a ridiculous rate. All for what? A small bike company? I think that till this day they are waiting for the moment they get to tell me “I told you so”.

If I stayed, my stock options would be worth who knows how much. With that money I could open up my business or retire or do whatever I wanted. And they are right. What they don’t keep in mind is that If i stayed I would have done exactly what they did. I would buy a big house, buy a nice car and slowly get used to a lifestyle with a very high overhead. Do brain numbing, soul crushing work till the day I retire, if I don't get replaced by a robot in the process. Live a life of regret. Maybe I’m being too harsh on them.

There’s a set of skills and discipline you only develop in the process of building a business with extremely limited resources. Money is a resource. A lot of times it’s a boost. Think of it like a drug, medicine. You can take a painkiller after your back surgery and you will feel comfortable for a while, it didn’t solve the problem, just your perception of pain. Without discipline you would start taking the painkiller for every sign of discomfort, eventually getting addicted to the painkiller. Now you need it in order to function. A big amount of money at the beginning without proper discipline and problem solving skills is a business that soon will be out of business. The bigger the amount and the simpler the business is the longer it would take. You can only hope they learn how to turn it around before they run out of funds. I think that’s the main reason why most businesses don’t make it past their first 5 years.

When you start with nothing you are at the verge of going out of business at any moment. You are an animal of prey in constant alert and pursuit. You either adapt/ evolve or get eaten. You deal with the paint without the drug. You are forced to learn the skills and discipline necessary to survive till they become second nature.

Besides money, watching my business grow and thrive brings me immense joy and fulfillment. I am stoked to come to work everyday. I feel like I’m doing exactly what I always wanted to do. You can’t put a dollar sign to that.

And what about the stock options? I’m sure if i did a valuation of my business it would be worth a lot more than my SpaceX stock options would be. And I’m not done yet, to the contrary.

I am barely getting started.