The trip so far.

It has been two weeks since I resigned and started working on my own venture, two very high geared weeks I might say; yet, at the same time, I’ve come to realize that the most amazing part of riding to your own vantage point is that you can, from time to time, roll down the window and gorge at the view as it gets more and more interesting. 

My view has twisted from very common to remarkable. People who were weeks ago not more than coworkers, turned out to be stepping stones on my journey (continuously asking how I am doing and giving help when needed). Acquaintances I’ve made via a virtual interaction –yes, twitter and linkedin again- have made some quite interesting critics about my project and have kept encouraging me all over. And finally and most surprisingly, things that I thought were a given on the Internet industry, turned out to be more part of a fiction most companies think they live than the reality, thus amplifying the opportunities of my venture.

Summer holiday, day 27: Tornado! by askin

Naïve was I to think this would be a bumpy ride: the journey has proven to be a blend of a rollercoaster, a vacation and a rodeo. I’ve found myself missing the office ambient, the water cooler chats as well as the professional discussions (even though they some times resembled kinder garden encounters) with people outside my area of expertise, while at the same I have found out solitude is a good companion, the copilot you need to point at the good and bad things you were barely passing by while day dreaming at the office. 

The one thing no one who I talked with before jumping into the water and while giving my first laps anticipated and warned me about is this: the worst enemy while following your own quest is your anxiety.

It turns out, as an employee one unwarily gets used to getting a quick feedback and results of your work. Why is that? Your work, even and R&D role, is part of a whole that lies within a strategy, you are expected to turn something out at the end of the day, week or month and as an employee you’ll never be really alone there is always someone overseeing, managing or expecting you to pass your homework to start theirs.  

Things are quite different to someone who is at the same time designing his journey and traveling: results and feedback get a lot longer to get to. Whether it is a return call from a client prospect, a document review from a probable partner or a critic of your idea from a friend, the timing of things are no longer dictated by established machinery, they have a live of their own for real. One has to get accustomed to it, learn how to control part of the timing and keep reviewing the plan, while at the wheel, since from time to time you’ll need to get the occasional detour.