In Apr 2020, my startup’s revenue went to zero.
The Covid lockdown shut us down overnight.
The day after the lockdown, I was at home, staring at the walls. Years of struggle and crores of investment were gone — in a blink.
In those moments of nail-biting anxiety, one of my investors (Dr Aniruddha Malpani) told me, “Don’t worry. This is a golden opportunity! Take this time to read and reflect. Ideas will come up.”
But when in a burning house, pausing to introspect is the last thing you feel like doing. Yet, to find an exit, that is EXACTLY what you need to do.
For the next few months, I cut out the noise, set a timer, and just read books. I also introspected about what I could teach others from my own life-lessons.
Gradually, from this despair emerged my current startup, HabitStrong.
Here is what I learned from this journey to hell and back.
When we are in panic, our mind says, “How do you know there will even be a long-term?”
But the reality is that we almost always survive. Before we realize, the ‘long-term’ will become ‘today.’
The time to act is now, right in the middle of the storm. You can’t dig a well when thirsty — dig it now. I know you don’t feel like it, but often, the medicine we hate is the one we need the most.
– Rajan
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