Learning during the downturns

I’ve been fortunate that my startup experience has exceeded most of my expectations. I left PwC in 2018 to join a startup so I could learn and break into the tech scene. I took a big pay cut and took a chance on myself. I’ve never looked back. Of course, things haven’t always been perfect, but largely it’s been exactly what I’d hope for in terms of my learning and development.

The best part about working in an early stage startup like Secfi is undoubtedly the learning. From 2018-2020, I learned a lot about launching a product and running a business. In 2020, I learned how to deal with a black swan event and how to scale a company. In 2021, I learned on how to really scale a company and launch a complementary product. Of course, those are just the highlights of those years.

Probably the most interesting aspect to all this is how much I’ve learned in the last 1.5 years in the market downturn. I truly think I’ve learned more in the last year and half than I did in my first 3 years combined at Secfi.

Leading a team and company through a period where everything is on fire has been something that I’ve never wanted to do, but an experience that I am grateful for. I grew up a lot in the last year and half during this market reset. There’s been a lot of emotions and stress that have come out of this, but the experience is invaluable.