Escaping the 9 to 5 - Adventures in Untethered Living

Startup Focus Hack: Creating Guidepost Values

July 14, 2018
Startups

Starting a business is hard. Even if you’ve done it a few times. It takes a crazy amount of excitement and real vision to simply commit to making the leap, then after the high of “shiny and new” wears off, determination and continuous action must kick in to keep you going.

We’re now 11-months into AVRA Talent Partners. There have been three name changes, several rounds of figuring out our true product/market fit, and now we’re in the process of patching systems and refining our people product to deliver stellar results for our clients, every time.

Guidepost values

One hack I’ve realized that makes all of this a LOT easier, is creating a set of values, and words associated with those, that you use over and over. They’ll most likely transform, adapt and mature over time—but having 3-5 core values early on can act as guideposts along the blizzarding, mountain-climb that is getting to a viable and healthy company.

The Case Small Batches, Versus Scaling Fast.

July 10, 2018
Startup Lessons

In Startuplandia the concept of “faking it until you make it” is accepted as part of the process of building a successful business.

When speaking to potential customers, partners or the press, the common wisdom is to pad your user numbers, growth trends or team size so outsiders assume that you’re larger than you really are—thus more established + less risky of a proposition.

The interesting part is that in other parts of the economy, scarcity, small batches and fewer offerings are seen as a sign of quality. Think boutique bakeries that only make a few dozen artisan croissants a day—and when they’re gone, they’re gone. Or Hermes, whose signature Birkin bags are in perpetuity (and purposefully) kept in short supply; and Bespoke Watchmakers who produce their craft in small batches and have customers waiting for years before their order is fulfilled…

But back in Startup Land, an ecosystem fueled by capital that needs to be returned in 8 to 10 years, these models are deemed “lifestyle businesses” and if not openly derided, then at minimum looked upon as not a part of the rarified air that is the world of scalable startups.

Though, the facts don’t bare this out. All of the massive companies, and household names, we now know, started as small businesses. In fact most of them started with small batches, and did things that “don’t scale”.

A Return to Escaping the 9 to 5: Documenting a New Startup Adventure

June 20, 2018
Awesome Sauce

The Escapingthe9to5 blog started almost a decade ago, and though I was greener than green to the world of business, I had figured out how to start and grow a profitable jewelry business through eBay.

The idea of documenting my journey appealed to me—partly it was the vanity of youth, assuming everything we do is new and unique. Partly, I loved the idea of sharing my experience with others—maybe to motivate, maybe to make friends, maybe just to be heard. This blog was started as a simple online journal to document my attempt to escape a traditional nine to five job. I have never had any love for cubicles, or mid-level managers, and they’ve never much taken a shine to me.

maren kate 2011 — *Riding the train, in 2010, between Reno, Nevada and San Francisco, just trying to get an idea off the ground… and clearly feeling EMO.*

Nothing about my background, except the hard workers on both sides of my families’ genetic lineage (Armenian, Irish and Syrian), indicated that I would, or could, hack it in the business world. I wasn’t a star student, and had dropped out of college three classes short of graduating.

Yet, with some luck, and a lot of serendipitous relationships along the way, I’ve been able to clear my own path in the business world.

Alongside my co-founders, we grew a startup to a ten million dollar run rate, and 400+ people. I’ve raised over five million in capital (which is a crazy experience) and have been blessed to belong to strong networks of inspiring people in both San Francisco, and New York.

Now, after some intense personal and professional struggles, a decade older, hopefully wiser, and definitely much happier, I’ve begun again…

An Update on Life, Love and Exciting New Business Stuffs!

May 17, 2017
Branding

maren kate donovan Well, the last twelve months have been a whirlwind, both full of exciting adventures, heartbreak, high highs and low lows.

As blessed as I feel to have experienced each and every one of those emotions, and for what they have taught me, boy howdy am I happy to be on the other side!

Professional recap:

Between May of last year and January of this, I was COO at Roam.co an international co-living company that has communities in Miami, Bali, London and now Tokyo. I met amazing people, was lucky enough to travel for work (my fav kind!), and in Japan, the seeds of my next startup took root.

For the last few months I’ve been working with the lovely folks at Calm.comas interim COO, I wrap that role as they bring on an amazing VP of Operations and I myself move to New York City (a dream of mine for over 5 years!).

Personal recap:

After my breakup (almost exactly a year ago), I paired all my belongings down to two suitcases to free myself to travel for Roam. I’ve never owned a lot of stuff, but this time I even left my precious book collection behind (sob).

Do You Have a Love-Hate Relationship with Freedom?

June 28, 2016
Escaping the 9 to 5

freedom

I certainly do.

In one sense I crave freedom… it’s what this blog was born out of. Freedom from the traditional 9 to 5 job, from a traditional life, from the (perceived) monotony of the same daily routine for months, years… decades.

Alternately, I crave safety. It’s biological. You probably crave it too. Safety, companionship, love, a family unit, community.

There is a continual tug of war going on inside of my head. Which do I prize more: freedom or the human need for closeness, for one’s tribe, and for roots?

The answer is: I don’t know.

Both…?

Escape the San Francisco “Summer” and Roam the World!

June 24, 2016
Escaping the 9 to 5

SF Fog If you can see me over that mountain of scarves you piled on to fight off San Francisco’s infamous summer chill, raise your hand… and if you can lift your arm with those three sweaters on, even better.

Listen… I know that summer in SF can be “cool” and not just because the thermostat is reading in the low-60s Fahrenheit. There’s Dolores Park to lay out in when the sun actually decides to shine; music festivals that carry on no matter the weather; and occasional days when Karl the Fog is on vacation and we actually remember why we love living in Northern California.

For the most part though (or at least IMHO), it’s pretty miserable to spend your whole summer in SF. Luckily, or unluckily (?), for me at the start of the summer I went through a breakup that was just the “get the hell out of dodge” kick in the pants I needed.

I decided to offload the majority of my belongings and spend the rest of the year exploring and working my way around the world, I’ve been looking for places to live and connect with other people who share my same passion for doing good work without all the tethers that used to keep me in SF.

It didn’t take long for me to start hearing about Roam, and since I stepped foot into their Miami house, I can see what the buzz is about…

The Beauty of Living with Less

June 16, 2016
Optimalism

living with less

In May I moved out of the house I shared with my ex. It was a great spot, furnished beautifully, and spacious—a rare luxury for downtown San Francisco. The heartache of leaving a relationship of three years was compounded by the anchorless feeling of no longer having a place to call “home.” For the first few weeks I hauled several bags and containers from one friend’s apartment to another, silently cursing each time I had to repack all my worldly belongings and lug them to another location. Then something amazing happened…

I 80/20’d my life and learned the joy of living with less…

Silicon Valley Has a Vulnerability Problem

May 4, 2016
Vulnerability

vulnerability A few of us sat in a swanky restaurant, the air was warm and smelled faintly of the honeysuckle growing outside. Glasses clinked on the patio and a group of dilettante’s tittered over a handsome young waiter’s joke. The general mood of the place felt like a modern day Gatsby party… except to me. I was trying to keep my breath steady as a deep, angry blush crept up my neck as the man across from me continued…

“Well, I just don’t know how you could have made those mistakes, being CEO. I am a CEO now and I would never let that happen” he said.

Breath in, breath out. I nodded, shrugged my shoulders and after a long moment responded “I guess you’re a better man than me”. The table nervously laughed and I mentally checked out until the dinner was over.

I had been brought out to discuss joining this CEO’s company for some contract work. Over the past few days I had surveyed the company, talked to employees, and put together a detailed list of recommendations. There were a lot of “easy fix” problems but all in all the growth challenges were ones that could be handled as long as a strong culture and focus on community was in place.

But I had made the critical error. At dinner, someone asked what I would do to improve worker efficiency, I answered honestly. As I talked I could see the CEO’s face change, he was taking my feedback as a criticism of his leadership… I realized too late that I was dealing with an insecure, “alpha” male (the worst type). So before I had time to swallow a sip of red wine, he fired back a reply aimed to hit me where it hurt.

“…I just don’t know how you could have made those mistakes.”

In Silicon Valley, admitting mistakes and showing your vulnerable side is one of the biggest social faux pas that I’m tired of trying to follow.

What is an Untethered Life?

April 18, 2016
Escaping the 9 to 5

untethered life

The word tether, as a noun, is defined as a rope, chain, or the like, by which an animal is fastened to a fixed object so as to limit its range of movement.

Human beings are animals, but the difference between us and the dog on a leash or cow tied to a fence is that we often choose our tethers. Those tethers cost us money, and many of us—sadly—believe that by collecting tethers our lives gain meaning.

What tethers us?

Debt: mortgage, credit cards, payday loans, college loans
Social obligations: networking events, “friends” we don’t really want to meet up with but feel we must, parties that we don’t enjoy but will feel FOMO if we miss them
Material possessions: more clothes/shoes than you need, anything that you either don’t actively use or don’t actively love
Work we hate: the 9 to 5 where you can’t leave your desk even though you would be more productive and happier if you were working remotely, the career you choose because of money—especially money that goes to buy you material possessions you don’t need or love
Unhealthy relationships: friends that tear us down, romantic partners that aren’t growing with us, any relationship that causes more harm than good… and yes, this can even be family members at times
“Shoulds”: I’m Y years old I should be married by now, I’m X years I should have a baby by now, I should go to college, I should… anything that you have to convince you should—versus innately knowing it is right, true or something you actually want.

Leading an untethered life is as simple as cutting out, or minimizing, as many tethers as possible. Instead of striving for material possessions (something that is proven to make us miserable), untethering means getting rid of everything you don’t either love or need (similar to the philosophy espoused in Maria Kondo’s book on tidying up).

Life Isn’t Fair: So Why Play by the Rules?

April 11, 2016
My Life

life isn't fair “Life isn’t fair” I remember this refrain being seared in my consciousness early on in life. It’s a bitter-sweet memory because I can still taste the knot of staunch injustice that gathered in the back of my throat when my mother would dish it out; at the same time, I’m grateful that the inequality of life was shown to me at a young age because I learned a valuable lesson that many adults I know seem to still have not learned.

Life isn’t freaking fair.

Now that you know, deal with it. You can bitch and moan. You can try and make the best of the cards you are dealt… or you strive to become the dealer. Your situation may be righteously unfair – but dwelling on that fact won’t move your situation one iota in a fairer direction.

Instead, embrace the fact that life isn’t fair. When you do your eyes will open to a world of possibilities, one that much population misses while they focus on the injustice of their situation.

Life isn’t fair, so why play by the rules?

You don’t bring a knife to a gunfight and you don’t expect to win at a table where the dealer’s cheating. The “fairness” that people so often talk about is the idea that if you go to school and make decent grades you should be able to graduate, get a good job and earn fair wages. It’s the idea that if you worked 15 years for a company they should keep you around for the next 15 years. Don’t get me wrong, I love that notion, the idea of fairness but it is simple not a reality anymore.

1 2 3 … 25 Next »