Last night, I caught a fever from a mild store throat, so I went to bed an hour earlier. Last month I caught a cold as well, so I took a flu shot right after I got better. I suspect these physical ailments are ramifications of what is happening in my head. I have been feeling lost.
This path as an entrepreneur is cruel, lonely, and stressful. Warning, this post is an incredibly entitled rant and I am writing to fellow/future entrepreneurs.
No one thanks you for doing what you do
Users are the most demanding lot. They are never contented, and they demand excellence. But that is ok because they are our customers.
Then there is the family. Up till now, my mom still thinks I should quit running my show. Her ideal situation for me is to let go of every employee, so I do not have to pay salaries. And that I am better off working for someone.
Then there are the angel investors and venture capital. The nice one's sugar coat their words. The amateur ones will give you an hour lecture on how you should run your business.
You lose your friends
I suspect this category is specific to me mostly because I presume that I have a leaning towards being autistic. Social company is nice, but it takes strong discipline to rein my honest thoughts. So, in the end, I give up. My few friends are either equally socially retarded as I am (and hence do not take offense), or they are forced to accept that Steven is just the way he is.
Right after graduation, I started running my business. Right off the bat, my career trajectory became different. In school, we could talk about our school life. In national service, we argued and shared a common goal to pass out as military divers. We were different, and yet on the same track. After graduation, my friends started dropping off one by one.
The only group of friends that I am still close to is fellow entrepreneurs like myself.