辞职创业后,我才明白…

“创业”听起来是个很酷的想法：做自己最感兴趣的事，拥有自由的工作时间，自己当老板，说不定还能挣大钱。然而，人们往往只看到创业者的风光，却忽视了他们在背后的种种牺牲：工作占据了生活的大部分时间，没有稳定的收入来源，需要独自面对失败的风险……个中甘苦，恐怕只有亲身经历过的人才会明白。

For the past two weeks I spent my Chinese New Year just like everybody else―visiting relatives， gorging1） myself on new year goodies and collecting angbaos.

But amidst the joy and festivities2）， there was a deep dark fear inside me.

“So where are you working at now？”

That was the sentence I really feared to hear all through Chinese New Year， even more than “When are you getting married？”， even though that was just as scary.

Admittedly at the start， I didn’t have a hard time telling friends and family about my decision to leave my job as a mobile developer to start up. I was a little worried about the response people would have， but was generally not too bothered by comments and opinions dished out3） to me.

“Why do you want to quit your job？” to “I thought your job was paying you quite well？” and “Why start from square one4）？”

Those were the questions thrown at me when I mentioned that I was quitting my job to start up with some friends. And for most startup founders here in Singapore， I’m pretty sure these questions are nothing new.

Even so， I thought I knew what I was getting into when I “threw in the letter.”

I knew I was going to have to work hard. I understood the financial circumstances I would be in. I acknowledged that it might fail. I thought I had already got most of them sorted out.

At the same time， I was super super super psyched5） that I could be a part of building my own product.

Even so， I never really expected to face these issues.

A Lot Less Time with Loved Ones

I knew very clearly that I would spend a lot of time working on the startup. I used to work long hours in my previous job， so I thought it would be nothing new.

Then I realised that I had a lot less time to spend with friends， family， and the boyfriend. It eventually took quite some time for everyone to understand that quitting my job to run my own startup affects how much time I get to spend with them.

It was also tough for me because suddenly I realised how difficult it was to allocate time for outings with friends， family dinners， and for going on dates with the boyfriend. I was occasionally working late nights， and sometimes on weekends， so it became increasingly hard to schedule meet-ups with loved ones.

The Emotional Rollercoaster

I always thought I had a high AQ （Adversity Quotient6）） so it couldn’t have been much worse than working as a mobile developer.

But boy was I wrong. At the start， I spent so much time thinking about possible ways to improve on what we were doing， I almost burnt myself out. It seemed like there was no way to stop constantly thinking about the startup.

To add to it， it seemed like no one else around me， friends or family， understood the kind of issues I faced， or could relate to the kind of work I do as a startup co-founder. Soon after， I felt that there was a disparity7） between the kind of conversations we used to have and the ones we now had， perhaps because of a change in my perceptions. It felt like they couldn’t really comprehend the million and one things that were going through my head and I was struggling to convey the message across in the best way possible.

At some point， I felt like I was alone on a deserted island.

But I am very lucky to have a really supportive boyfriend and friends and family who， despite having a hard time understanding my circumstances， make it a point toaccommodate8） me in whatever way they can.

Losing a Constant Stream of Income

One of the most common questions people ask me when they find out I quit my job to start up is “Was it hard for you to lose your income when you quit your job？” That is definitely a yes.

Having to cut my expenditure to about a third of what I used to spend when I was working was definitely not easy. This was despite the fact that I had actually already planned out my finances before quitting my job.

Now in hindsight9）， when I was forced to lower my expenditures， it was suddenly clear that a lot of the things I used to buy， I didn’t really need. At the same time， my ego took a beating10） as I still wanted to be as self-reliant as possible.

After starting up， I had to accept the reality of having people pay for my food and give me treats， simply because I could not afford to pay them back based on the current amount of money in my bank account.

Doing Things I Dislike

One of the most important things I learnt while building a startup is having to do things （a lot of things） that I don’t do well or I don’t really like to do.

I used to be quite outgoing， but after working as a developer for some time， I started to develop the characteristics of a hermit11）. And as a startup cofounder， one of the important things we need to do is to go out and talk to people.

Having been a little bit of a hermit for some time now， it was really difficult at the start to ease12） myself out of my shell to go out and talk to people. It was also really hard to go around telling everyone what my startup was about.

At times when we had to talk to a few potential clients in a day， I didn’t even want to talk to anybody when I got home. I had burnt through my “human quota” of the day， and all I felt like doing was curling in my shell and not coming out.

Facing Failure

When startups come to mind， a lot of people tend to think about entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckerberg and the like； and think that running a startup is a sexy13） idea， because we get to have flexible working hours， do what we love， and in a few years’ time， make big money.

But no one honestly tells you about the potential of failure.

Of course， no one wants their startup to fail， but at the same time there is no guarantee that your startup will become the next unicorn14） either. Many have told me how awesome it is to be an entrepreneur， to be working for yourself and doing what you’re passionate about. But who knows what will happen？ I could end up spending a few years on a startup that couldn’t pick up15）， bust16） my savings， and at the end of the day， I would still need to go back to working for someone else， what’s worse， with less savings in my bank account than I started out with.

Going back to Chinese New Year and the “deep dark fear，” hearing people ask where I work still makes me take a deep deep breath； it makes me fear the huge tirade17）of questions that people will throw at me， and having to explain time and again to the waves of distant relatives. To add on to that， the social pressure for people to show off their exceedingly perfect/smart/handsome/well-to-do child to your family just makes Chinese New Year lose a little of its festive joy.

That being said， it’s been a heck of a ride since I quit my job and took the plunge18） to start up. I still enjoy the experience of building my own product， instead of building products for other people. But despite all the stress and sacrifices， it’s strangely satisfying and exciting once you find that there are happy customers using your product.

After reading this， if you still feel excited about the notion of starting up， why not take the plunge and try your hand at starting a business？

Just follow your passion！

在过去的两周里，我跟其他人一样度过了中国春节――走亲戚，收红包，大吃特吃新年的各色美味。

然而在享受喜悦、欢庆节日的同时，我的内心却萦绕着深深的恐惧感。

“你现在在哪里工作？”

这是我在春节期间一直非常害怕听到的一句话，甚至比“你什么时候结婚？”更让我害怕，尽管后者也同样可怕。

不可否认，起初当我告诉朋友和家人我决定辞去手机开发工程师的工作去创业时，我并不觉得困难。虽然有点担心人们的反应，但总的来说我不太在意别人对我的评价和看法。

从“你为什么要辞职？”到“我以为你的工作待遇挺不错的，不是吗？”，再到“为什么要从头开始呢？”。

当我提到我要辞职去和几个朋友创业时，以上就是人们向我抛出的问题。对于新加坡的大多数创业者而言，我很确定这些问题早已屡见不鲜。

即便如此，在提交辞职信的时候，我以为我知道自己将要面临什么。

我知道自己必须得努力工作，我了解自己将会面临的财务状况，我明白创业可能会失败。我本以为我已经把大部分问题都想清楚了。

同时，我为能够参与打造属于自己的产品而感到非常非常非常兴奋。

即便如此，我却没有真正预料到会面临下面这些问题。

少了许多跟我爱的人相处的时间

我非常清楚地知道自己将会花费大把的时间在创业公司的工作上。在我上一份工作中，我也常常需要长时间工作，所以我以为这不是什么新鲜事。

而后我才意识到我少了更多与朋友、家人和男友相处的时间。最终，过了很长一段时间后，身边所有人才明白我辞职创业有多影响我与他们相处的时间。

这对我来说也很艰难，因为我突然意识到，要匀出时间跟朋友聚会、与家人聚餐以及和男友约会是多么困难的一件事。我偶尔会熬夜工作，有时周末也会加班，因此和我所爱的人约时间见面变得越来越难。

情绪上的大起大落

我一直都觉得自己是个AQ （逆商）很高的人，因此创业不可能比当手机开发工程师糟糕到哪里去。

但是我简直大错特错。起初，我花费大量时间想各种办法来提升我们当时在做的产品，几乎心力交瘁。我不断地思考与创业公司有关的事，似乎根本没有办法停下来。

除此之外，我身边似乎没有人（不论是朋友还是家人）能理解我所面临的问题，也没有人能认同我作为创业公司的联合创始人所做的工作。我很快就感觉到我们曾经的对话与现在的对话有了差异，可能是因为我的认知发生了改变。我觉得他们无法真正理解我脑海中的千头万绪，而我则在吃力地以尽可能恰当的方式把信息传递给他们。

有时，我感觉自己仿佛孤身一人置身于一个荒岛上。

但我很幸运能够拥有非常支持我的男友、朋友和家人。他们尽管很难理解我的处境，却坚持以自己力所能及的方式来迁就我。

失去稳定的收入来源

当人们得知我辞职去创业，他们最常问的一个问题就是：“辞去工作就没有收入了，这对你来说是不是很艰难？”答案肯定是“是的”。

不得不把开支减少到原来工作时的三分之一左右当然不是件容易的事，尽管我在辞职之前已经为自己的财务状况做好了规划。

现在回头想想，被迫减少开支后我才突然明白，我过去常买的很多东西其实并不真正需要。与此同时，我还是想尽可能地自食其力，所以自尊心也受到了打击。

创业之后我不得不接受以下现实：让别人给我买吃的、请我吃饭，因为根据我目前的银行存款，我没有能力回报他们。

做自己不喜欢的事

在创建公司的过程中，我学到的最重要的事情之一就是不得不去做（许许多多）我不擅长或是我其实不喜欢做的事。

我曾经是个很外向的人，但是做了一段时间的开发工程师后，我开始变得有点离群索居。而作为创业公司的联合创始人，我们需要做的一件重要事情就是走出去与人交谈。

这样有些与世隔绝地生活过一段时间后，要我慢慢放开自己到外面与人交谈，一开始真的很难。同样让我觉得很难的是要四处奔走告诉所有人我的创业公司是做什么的。

有时我们不得不在一天里跟好几位潜在客户约谈，回家后我甚至不想和任何人说话。我已经把当天的“社额”用光了，只想蜷缩在自己的世界，不再出去。

面对失败

一提到创业，很多人往往会想到像马克・扎克伯格那样的企业家，认为经营创业公司是一个令人着迷的想法，因为可以拥有灵活的工作时间，做热爱的事情，在几年的时间里就可以挣大钱。

但是没有人如实告诉你失败的可能性。

当然，没有人希望自己的创业公司失败，但同时也没有人能保证你的创业公司会成为下一个独角兽级的创业公司。很多人对我说成为一名企业家、为自己工作、做自己所热衷的事情是多棒的一件事，但是谁知道未来会发生什么呢？到头来我可能把好几年的光景都耗费在一个不见起色的创业公司上，花光所有的积蓄，最后还是不得不回到职场为别人打工，更糟糕的是，银行账户里的积蓄还没有开始的时候多。

再回过头来说中国春节和“深深的恐惧感”。听到别人问我在哪里工作，我还是会深吸一口气。我害怕人们会喋喋不休地向我抛出问题，而我则需要一次又一次地向一波又一波的远房亲戚解释。不仅如此，人们迫于社会压力还要向人炫耀自己那极其完美/聪明/帅气/有钱的孩子，这也使中国春节失去了一些节日的喜悦。

话虽如此，自从我辞去工作，冒险尝试创业以来，我经历了一段极不寻常的旅程。我仍然喜欢打造自己的产品，而不是为别人打造产品。尽管承受了很大压力，做出了不少牺牲，但当你发现有顾客在开心地使用你的产品时，你就会感到莫名的满足和兴奋。

读了我的故事，你如果仍觉得创业这个想法令人振奋，那何不冒险一试，放手搏一把呢？

追随你的爱好吧！

1. gorge [??（r）d?] vt. 塞饱

2. festivity [fe?st?v?ti] n. 庆典；庆祝活动

3. dish out：给予

4. square one：起点，开始阶段

5. psyched [sa?kt] adj. 极惊讶、兴奋或紧张的

6. Adversity Quotient：逆商，即逆境商数，也称挫折商，指人们面对逆境时的反应方式，即面对挫折、摆脱困境和超越困难的能力。

7. disparity [d??sp?r?ti] n. 不同；不等；差异；不一致

8. accommodate [??k?m?de?t] vt. 给……提供方便，通融

9. hindsight [?ha?n（d）?sa?t] n. 事后的认识，事后聪明

10. take a beating：挨打；遭受打击；遭受损失

11. hermit [?h??（r）m?t] n. 隐士，遁世者，与世隔绝者

12. ease [i?z] vt. 小心缓慢地推动（或移动），使缓缓移动

13. sexy [?seksi] adj. 富有魅力的，迷人的，吸引人的

14. unicorn [?ju?n??k??（r）n] n. 独角兽，指那些估值达到10亿美元以上的创业公司。

15. pick up：（情况等）好转，改进，提高

16. bust [b?st] vt. 使破产；使失败

17. tirade [ta??re?d] n. 激烈的长篇演说；长篇的指责性发言

18. take the plunge：（尤指经过踌躇）决定冒险一试；采取决定性步骤