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Failure to Launch

 

Work Really Hard

 

Entrepreneurship is hard. Really hard. Succeeding at difficult tasks generally requires lots of time and effort, so 100% (or damn near 100%) of your focus must be devoted to your venture. That’s not to say though that every waking moment of your day must be spent furthering your company. Here are a few examples of healthy activities you can prioritize while trying to start your own business:

 

  1. Getting good grades

  2. Being a good friend

  3. Excelling at racquetball

 

In all likelihood, none of these activities are directly related to your business. When beating a small, bouncy ball into the walls of a rectangular enclosure, your business is not necessarily progressing. That being said, it is far from detrimental to your overall purpose, and such an activity can very well put you in a more productive place the next time you work on your business. Here are a few examples of activities that accomplish the very opposite of that:

 

  1. Drinking

  2. Seeking jobs with your competitors

  3. Drinking

 

Brief story: I missed a pitch for a local incubator because I was interviewing for a job with an NYC bank. That bank just so happens to administer billions of dollars worth of the student loans our company hopes to eliminate. You probably won’t have nearly as difficult a time avoiding such a grave conflict of interest.

 

On to drinking!

 

 

Startups are indeed difficult and time consuming, but I’m going to offer some nuance to this point. You can skip class once in a while, but if you’re sleeping 4 hours a night on a routine basis, you’re doing it wrong. Read, exercise, sleep, socialize – get stimulation outside of your startup or your cognition and creativity will suffer. 

Jordan

says...

Drinking can be a really fun activity - it’s certainly one of my favorites. Only problem is that it’s not really good for you. I just googled “is drinking good for you” and the first link was titled: “The Truth We Won’t Admit: Drinking is Healthy”. Incredible! I excitedly clicked on the link:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I LOLed.

 

Completely abstaining from alcohol (or whatever your recreational vice may be) is probably unrealistic, so strive for moderation. This is something I’m currently incapable of doing. As time progressed during my senior year, I became much more interested in pursuing drinking opportunities on campus as opposed to entrepreneurial ones. Maintaining a work-life balance is very important, but the amount of nights you spend out should probably decrease when trying to build a company from scratch.  Frankly, I was unwilling to make these sacrifices and because of it, I am simply too immature to be a founder at this point in time. If you can’t imagine not going out as much as your less entrepreneurially inclined, borderline-alcoholic friends, you’re probably not ready either.

 

If you must drink….


Do so as celebration! Set goals for yourself and the team and go out as a reward upon completion. Taking breaks is necessary to anyone’s sanity, even if that break occasionally involves a hangover. Like everything else, make sure it’s done in moderation. I guarantee you’ll have a lot more fun going out for celebration, not routine. This can be a tough mindset to take on because going out all the time can be fun - I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t the case for me. Still, I've always found drinking for celebration to be far more enjoyable than drinking for drinking's sake. Work really hard and you very well might have a lot to celebrate.

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