“I’m actually having fun.”
The words stopped me. “Really” was all I could stammer out.
“Yeah” the founder continued “there’s so much we can do, it’s urgent and we’re getting shit done. It’s kind of fun.”
The founder is a client and we were at the tail end of a review call. We were on project 7 or so of 9 projects we needed to complete in the next 90 days. Additional projects seemed to come up weekly so our list was growing, not shrinking. And I am staring at cash balances which threaten to go negative if we don’t make progress, quickly. In that moment, all I can think about are downsides, so “I’m actually having fun” coming from the smiling founder took me aback. Huh?
I’ve thought a lot about that moment.
I’m an optimist by nature. So it surprised me that in staring at all the downside risk and thinking about all that could go wrong, my outlook had gone negative. Part of that is the job. I have to think about downside and preparing for downturns.
But I also have to be focused on making things go right. The founder had reminded me of that. Yeah, we are in a critical spot. Yeah, there is a lot we have to do. But yeah, there is a lot we can do. And if we pull it off, the company is going to be more durable and poised for great growth. That is exciting, and fun.