Contemplating Suicide
Photo by Lucia Holm
Last week I went through a severe depression. With no money flowing in, a lead developer that left the team, and student loans to pay off, I was pushed to my breaking point. I contemplated suicide, corporate suicide that is.
My good friend Andrew Warner said it best during an episode of FDTV, “No one will remember your name!” If you work in the corporate world, you will be forgotten, plain and simple. If you don’t leave a legacy, if people forget about you the instance you leave this earth, and if your presence on this planet doesn’t positively affect the people around you, then you might as well have not existed.
I actually interviewed with a few firms, and each one reminded me of why I had left the corporate world in the first place. During one particular interview, I asked my interviewer if his company was open to using the new media to brand itself and develop a conversation with its customers. My interviewer hesitated for a moment and said:
“My company is open trying new ideas for branding as long as they fit the company goals and vision. Before we implement any new initiative, we need to talk to the company executives to make sure the new plan fits our budget, that we have the right people for it, and that it fits our future goals. But yes, we are always open to implementing new ideas that have been proven to work [insert small chuckle].”
Right there is when I knew that going back to the corporate world would be suicide. Just look at all of the processes that one has to go through to implement something new!
So as an entrepreneur, how can one position himself or herself to be remembered for his or her accomplishments? These are the 5 steps to being remembered as an entrepreneur:
1. Understand that you must be worth remembering
In order to live an extraordinary life, you must live your life extraordinarily. This means you have to spend every moment of your life being productive and furthering your career. While your friends are out clubbing, you have to be at home writing a blog post. When your co-workers are at happy hour, you have to forgo it to go to a professional networking event. While your peers are watching the new Hills episode, you have to be reading and expanding your knowledge. Be a person worth remembering.
2. Surround yourself with memorable people
Tell me who you hang out with, and I’ll tell you who you are. If you want to be incredible, then the best way to stay motivated is to join forces with incredible people. These can be people who you met at your university, current or former co-workers, or amazing people that you find on the blogosphere. Leverage your personal brand and online presence to meet the best of the best and build a team that has a great chance at being memorable.
3. Do something worth remembering
Never settle for the comfortable; never succumb to cruise control and let the world pass you by. If you want to be remembered, then you have to shoot for the stars. With a great team, you can put your heads together and develop your vision. Will you build a company, start a non-profit, create a new eco-friendly energy source, or create the next Facebook? The possibilities are limitless to a team of people with an extremely hard work ethic.
4. Execute or be forgotten
As an entrepreneur, you may be the CEO of your company, but you’re also the manager, secretary, and janitor. Take a deep breath, and work every ounce of your body to the brink of exhaustion. When you finally lay to rest, you want to know that you laid all your cards out on the table and that you have absolutely no regrets. Execution is the single most important quality an entrepreneur can have.
5. Be persistent and never give up
Chances are that your first entrepreneurial venture will fail. What are you going to do about it? Will you get punched in the face and go home and cry to your mommy? Or will you stand back up, side by side with your teammates, and battle it out again in the entrepreneurial life? Yes, it hurts to fail, but failing will only make you stronger in the entrepreneur’s world. If we were cartoon character, we would be Saiyans from Dragon Ball Z. The more we get beat up, the stronger we become.
What do you think? Do you feel that accepting the corporate life is suicide?
I’m all about catchy post titles, but geeze man, you almost gave me a heart attack.
A.J.’s last blog post..I voted…
I love this post (shocking title though). I think your topic and your advice are great, but its hard for anyone of our age to develop the kind of one-track-mind work ethic you describe here. I’d love to hear more about you can have that kind of work ethic when there are so many distractions available to us…
@AJ - Hey good to hear from you bro. Didn’t mean to give you a heart attack but I did get you come back and comment
@Nisha - It is very difficult to develop that mindset. To be perfectly honest, I sometimes have trouble maintaining this life style along with having a girl friend. I did write a post about entrepreneurship and relationships earlier in the year, and I think I will follow up on that one.
You make a great suggestion! I look out for my next post (or one after the next one) that is about managing your time with so many distractions.
Jun Loayza’s last blog post..Contemplating Suicide
Great post. I can’t emphasize the importance of “be persistent.” Not only do you need to persistently pursue your goals, but you need to persist through failure and what Seth Godin calls “The Dip.”
Derek Halpern’s last blog post..Why People Buy Anything
Glad the post isn’t what I thought it was going to be.
As the economy gets worse, I think many entrepreneurs will really contemplate suicide. Entrepreneurship is a tough way to live, full of ups and downs, and sleepless nights.
But, as I said when we talked, if you build something that lasts, you can leave a powerful legacy.
Looking forward to seeing your legacy buddy.
Andrew Warner’s last blog post..5 Reasons Why Zappos Is Doing A Billion Dollars In Sales.
@Derek - It’s so true. People give up too easily and never give their idea or company a chance to really succeed. This is what separates the men from the boys
@Andrew - Look forward to seeing you build your legacy as well! Look forward to teaming up on a project sometime
Jun Loayza’s last blog post..Best Week Ever in Social Media - Nov 22
Hi Jun. Found you through Viral Blog. Love your post man. I just finished my major classes at Columbia College Chicago and I’m going through the same thing. Keep your head up homie.
As for your advice, #2 resonates best with me. I call it the mastermind theory. Surround yourself with successful people, and you’ll be successful, right? Good luck to you.
Roland Cailles’s last blog post..10 Tips for Negotiating with Media Vendors
Hey Roland, thanks for the comment and your encouragement.
If you hang out with good, productive people, then you have no choice but to be productive yourself. I live by this constantly everyday.
Do you have your own company as well.
Jun Loayza’s last blog post..Contemplating Suicide
YES! The corporate life is suicide! I’m convinced that my current day job is slowly killing me. I’ve had a headache every morning for the past week, as soon as I wake up and think about going to my *real* job my head hurts. I get no exercise because I sit at a desk all day, not allowed to take breaks or run errands or leave early. I WILL be breaking free soon and beginning a new happier, healthier, more fulfilling life. Just wait and see!
Haleystar’s last blog post..Week 1: Blogs you should be subscribing to
@Haleystar - I am very happy that you’re breaking free! If you ever need any advice at all, don’t hesitate to contact me.
Good luck!
Yikes, glad you didn’t go through with the suicide!
I’m in the corporate world, and it’s not that bad. Actually, it’s pretty freaking awesome being in San Francisco. It’s like being an entrepreneur but having a massive safety net.
I’ll never earning multi millions a year, but I will do well and don’t have to worry about healthcare and all this other stuff.
With Financial Samurai, I’ve got a great outlet to express my creative side.
Best