By+Cheryl+Liew

“創(chuàng)業(yè)”聽起來是個很酷的想法：做自己最感興趣的事，擁有自由的工作時間，自己當老板，說不定還能掙大錢。然而，人們往往只看到創(chuàng)業(yè)者的風光，卻忽視了他們在背后的種種犧牲：工作占據(jù)了生活的大部分時間，沒有穩(wěn)定的收入來源，需要獨自面對失敗的風險……個中甘苦，恐怕只有親身經(jīng)歷過的人才會明白。

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 didnt 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， Im 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 couldnt 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 couldnt 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 didnt 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 dont do well or I dont 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 didnt 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 youre passionate about. But who knows what will happen？ I could end up spending a few years on a startup that couldnt pick up15）， bust16） my savings， and at the end of the day， I would still need to go back to working for someone else， whats 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， its 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， its 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！

在過去的兩周里，我跟其他人一樣度過了中國春節(jié)——走親戚，收紅包，大吃特吃新年的各色美味。

然而在享受喜悅、歡慶節(jié)日的同時，我的內(nèi)心卻縈繞著深深的恐懼感。

“你現(xiàn)在在哪里工作？”

這是我在春節(jié)期間一直非常害怕聽到的一句話，甚至比“你什么時候結(jié)婚？”更讓我害怕，盡管后者也同樣可怕。

不可否認，起初當我告訴朋友和家人我決定辭去手機開發(fā)工程師的工作去創(chuàng)業(yè)時，我并不覺得困難。雖然有點擔心人們的反應(yīng)，但總的來說我不太在意別人對我的評價和看法。

從“你為什么要辭職？”到“我以為你的工作待遇挺不錯的，不是嗎？”，再到“為什么要從頭開始呢？”。

當我提到我要辭職去和幾個朋友創(chuàng)業(yè)時，以上就是人們向我拋出的問題。對于新加坡的大多數(shù)創(chuàng)業(yè)者而言，我很確定這些問題早已屢見不鮮。

即便如此，在提交辭職信的時候，我以為我知道自己將要面臨什么。

我知道自己必須得努力工作，我了解自己將會面臨的財務(wù)狀況，我明白創(chuàng)業(yè)可能會失敗。我本以為我已經(jīng)把大部分問題都想清楚了。

同時，我為能夠參與打造屬于自己的產(chǎn)品而感到非常非常非常興奮。

即便如此，我卻沒有真正預(yù)料到會面臨下面這些問題。

少了許多跟我愛的人相處的時間

我非常清楚地知道自己將會花費大把的時間在創(chuàng)業(yè)公司的工作上。在我上一份工作中，我也常常需要長時間工作，所以我以為這不是什么新鮮事。

而后我才意識到我少了更多與朋友、家人和男友相處的時間。最終，過了很長一段時間后，身邊所有人才明白我辭職創(chuàng)業(yè)有多影響我與他們相處的時間。

這對我來說也很艱難，因為我突然意識到，要勻出時間跟朋友聚會、與家人聚餐以及和男友約會是多么困難的一件事。我偶爾會熬夜工作，有時周末也會加班，因此和我所愛的人約時間見面變得越來越難。

情緒上的大起大落

我一直都覺得自己是個AQ （逆商）很高的人，因此創(chuàng)業(yè)不可能比當手機開發(fā)工程師糟糕到哪里去。

但是我簡直大錯特錯。起初，我花費大量時間想各種辦法來提升我們當時在做的產(chǎn)品，幾乎心力交瘁。我不斷地思考與創(chuàng)業(yè)公司有關(guān)的事，似乎根本沒有辦法停下來。

除此之外，我身邊似乎沒有人（不論是朋友還是家人）能理解我所面臨的問題，也沒有人能認同我作為創(chuàng)業(yè)公司的聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人所做的工作。我很快就感覺到我們曾經(jīng)的對話與現(xiàn)在的對話有了差異，可能是因為我的認知發(fā)生了改變。我覺得他們無法真正理解我腦海中的千頭萬緒，而我則在吃力地以盡可能恰當?shù)姆绞桨研畔鬟f給他們。

有時，我感覺自己仿佛孤身一人置身于一個荒島上。

但我很幸運能夠擁有非常支持我的男友、朋友和家人。他們盡管很難理解我的處境，卻堅持以自己力所能及的方式來遷就我。

失去穩(wěn)定的收入來源

當人們得知我辭職去創(chuàng)業(yè)，他們最常問的一個問題就是：“辭去工作就沒有收入了，這對你來說是不是很艱難？”答案肯定是“是的”。

不得不把開支減少到原來工作時的三分之一左右當然不是件容易的事，盡管我在辭職之前已經(jīng)為自己的財務(wù)狀況做好了規(guī)劃。

現(xiàn)在回頭想想，被迫減少開支后我才突然明白，我過去常買的很多東西其實并不真正需要。與此同時，我還是想盡可能地自食其力，所以自尊心也受到了打擊。

創(chuàng)業(yè)之后我不得不接受以下現(xiàn)實：讓別人給我買吃的、請我吃飯，因為根據(jù)我目前的銀行存款，我沒有能力回報他們。

做自己不喜歡的事

在創(chuàng)建公司的過程中，我學(xué)到的最重要的事情之一就是不得不去做（許許多多）我不擅長或是我其實不喜歡做的事。

我曾經(jīng)是個很外向的人，但是做了一段時間的開發(fā)工程師后，我開始變得有點離群索居。而作為創(chuàng)業(yè)公司的聯(lián)合創(chuàng)始人，我們需要做的一件重要事情就是走出去與人交談。

這樣有些與世隔絕地生活過一段時間后，要我慢慢放開自己到外面與人交談，一開始真的很難。同樣讓我覺得很難的是要四處奔走告訴所有人我的創(chuàng)業(yè)公司是做什么的。

有時我們不得不在一天里跟好幾位潛在客戶約談，回家后我甚至不想和任何人說話。我已經(jīng)把當天的“社交配額”用光了，只想蜷縮在自己的世界，不再出去。

面對失敗

一提到創(chuàng)業(yè)，很多人往往會想到像馬克·扎克伯格那樣的企業(yè)家，認為經(jīng)營創(chuàng)業(yè)公司是一個令人著迷的想法，因為可以擁有靈活的工作時間，做熱愛的事情，在幾年的時間里就可以掙大錢。

但是沒有人如實告訴你失敗的可能性。

當然，沒有人希望自己的創(chuàng)業(yè)公司失敗，但同時也沒有人能保證你的創(chuàng)業(yè)公司會成為下一個獨角獸級的創(chuàng)業(yè)公司。很多人對我說成為一名企業(yè)家、為自己工作、做自己所熱衷的事情是多棒的一件事，但是誰知道未來會發(fā)生什么呢？到頭來我可能把好幾年的光景都耗費在一個不見起色的創(chuàng)業(yè)公司上，花光所有的積蓄，最后還是不得不回到職場為別人打工，更糟糕的是，銀行賬戶里的積蓄還沒有開始的時候多。

再回過頭來說中國春節(jié)和“深深的恐懼感”。聽到別人問我在哪里工作，我還是會深吸一口氣。我害怕人們會喋喋不休地向我拋出問題，而我則需要一次又一次地向一波又一波的遠房親戚解釋。不僅如此，人們迫于社會壓力還要向人炫耀自己那極其完美/聰明/帥氣/有錢的孩子，這也使中國春節(jié)失去了一些節(jié)日的喜悅。

話雖如此，自從我辭去工作，冒險嘗試創(chuàng)業(yè)以來，我經(jīng)歷了一段極不尋常的旅程。我仍然喜歡打造自己的產(chǎn)品，而不是為別人打造產(chǎn)品。盡管承受了很大壓力，做出了不少犧牲，但當你發(fā)現(xiàn)有顧客在開心地使用你的產(chǎn)品時，你就會感到莫名的滿足和興奮。

讀了我的故事，你如果仍覺得創(chuàng)業(yè)這個想法令人振奮，那何不冒險一試，放手搏一把呢？

追隨你的愛好吧！

1. gorge [ɡ??（r）d?] vt. 塞飽

2. festivity [fe?st?v?ti] n. 慶典；慶祝活動

3. dish out：給予

4. square one：起點，開始階段

5. psyched [sa?kt] adj. 極驚訝、興奮或緊張的

6. Adversity Quotient：逆商，即逆境商數(shù)，也稱挫折商，指人們面對逆境時的反應(yīng)方式，即面對挫折、擺脫困境和超越困難的能力。

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

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

9. hindsight [?ha?n（d）?sa?t] n. 事后的認識，事后聰明

10. take a beating：挨打；遭受打擊；遭受損失

11. hermit [?h??（r）m?t] n. 隱士，遁世者，與世隔絕者

12. ease [i?z] vt. 小心緩慢地推動（或移動），使緩緩移動

13. sexy [?seksi] adj. 富有魅力的，迷人的，吸引人的

14. unicorn [?ju?n??k??（r）n] n. 獨角獸，指那些估值達到10億美元以上的創(chuàng)業(yè)公司。

15. pick up：（情況等）好轉(zhuǎn)，改進，提高

16. bust [b?st] vt. 使破產(chǎn)；使失敗

17. tirade [ta??re?d] n. 激烈的長篇演說；長篇的指責性發(fā)言

18. take the plunge：（尤指經(jīng)過躊躇）決定冒險一試；采取決定性步驟