I used to be staring out of my London condo window, 80% income drop, lower than three months of runway left, and 140 salaries I couldn’t pay. It was April 2020, COVID-19 had simply shattered the journey trade, and our funding spherical (the one presupposed to catapult us ahead) had evaporated in a single day.
However right here’s what nonetheless surprises me: I felt calm.
That sudden peace got here from a easy precept I’d encountered in historic philosophy: focus solely on what you possibly can management, and don’t fear in regards to the issues you possibly can’t. This 2,000-year-old Stoic idea turned the muse that helped my firm not simply survive the pandemic, however emerge as Europe’s main short-term rental administration firm.
I’m not a thinker. I’m the CEO of GuestReady and RentalReady, and I’ve spent eight years constructing firms in one of the vital unstable industries possible. However Stoicism has grow to be my secret weapon for navigating startup chaos. And if these historic ideas can assist a hospitality firm survive a worldwide pandemic, they can assist any European founder climate their storms.
The management precept: Your North Star in disaster
Probably the most basic Stoic idea is the dichotomy of management. Marcus Aurelius wrote, “You might have energy over your thoughts, not exterior occasions. Realise this, and you will discover power.”
When going through the potential finish of the corporate’s journey in 2020, I couldn’t management the pandemic, collapsed markets, or journey restrictions. However I may management our response.
As a substitute of losing vitality on denial (initially refusing to imagine London may lock down like Italy), panic (watching 80% reserving cancellations), or remorse (why construct a travel-dependent enterprise?), I channelled all the things into execution mode and we acted quick.
We reduce prices ruthlessly. Everybody took a wage reduce, and as CEO, it was my responsibility to take the most important reduce. We furloughed the place potential, sadly needed to let some crew members go, and pivoted into mid-term leases. These measures satisfied present buyers to help us by means of the disaster. Many of those actions are emotionally difficult to navigate, so I made a decision to focus my feelings on what mattered most.
The end result? We didn’t simply survive. We used the disaster to consolidate our market place while rivals struggled, finally changing into the market chief in Europe.
Turning setbacks into aggressive benefits
Seneca wrote, “Catastrophe is advantage’s alternative.” This isn’t feel-good philosophy; it’s a sensible enterprise technique. When setbacks hit, Stoics don’t resist actuality or waste vitality on remorse. As a substitute, they ask: “What can I do now? How can I exploit this case?“
Throughout COVID, while our rivals have been paralysed by disaster, we have been actively pursuing acquisitions and partnerships. Corporations that may have remained impartial have been out of the blue prepared to affix forces with us. The pandemic was brutal, but it surely taught us that market downturns typically create the very best alternatives for strategic strikes. This systematic strategy to problem-solving additionally led us to develop our property administration software program that automates advanced workflows we’d mastered by means of operational expertise.
Strategic pessimism: Anticipating what may go incorrect
Founders are everlasting optimists, however blind optimism with out preparation is harmful. The Stoic apply of premeditatio malorum (imagining what may go incorrect) turns into a aggressive benefit.
Early on, we had that basic startup mindset: if giant tech giants like Airbnb and Uber may defy rules, certainly we may too. However this mindset modified when my cellphone rang throughout a crew lunch in Lisbon. Our Singapore nation supervisor, with concern in his voice, advised me the Singapore authorities had modified short-term rental legal guidelines in a single day. We have been now not compliant.
We shut down the whole market that day. It damage, but it surely taught us that regulation is now one in all our most vital strategic issues. We consistently monitor regulatory developments as a result of we all know guidelines will change. When Edinburgh later modified its rules, we have been ready. We’d diminished funding properly forward of time, making the loss manageable as a substitute of catastrophic.
Your startup may die, and also you’d be okay
The Stoics practised memento mori (remembering that you’ll die). For founders, I adapt this to: your startup may die, and that you must be okay with that.
Throughout our COVID disaster, I realised that even when we didn’t survive, our journey would nonetheless have been price it. I’d realized tremendously, met unbelievable individuals, and had the chance to steer throughout unprecedented instances. This attitude didn’t make me care much less in regards to the firm’s success; it made me care higher. The motivation shifted from fear-based to purpose-based.
Many founders tie their identification to their firm. I nonetheless establish with GuestReady, however I’ve made a aware effort to create separation. What’s helped me keep grounded are the opposite elements of my life: time with my spouse and son, household, train, nature, and friendships. Self-worth has to return from inside.
Constructing your sensible Stoic toolkit
I don’t observe formal Stoic routines like every day journaling. For me, Stoicism is a psychological toolbox I attain for when wanted. In tough moments, I ask myself:
- What’s truly in my management right here?
- How can I be taught from this case?
- Am I responding thoughtfully or simply reacting emotionally?
- Is that this definitely worth the vitality I’m giving it?
When my thoughts spins at 3 AM, I ask: “Is there something I can truly do about it proper now?” If sure, I do it – principally it’s simply writing down my ideas so I don’t overlook. If not, I let it go.
While scaling the corporate, I’ve developed easy habits that preserve me grounded: beginning the day with a stroll, exercise, or yoga earlier than sitting at my desk; blocking time on weekends for household and associates; prioritising sleep. These aren’t grand gestures, however they create moments of stability that allow peak efficiency below stress.
The truth: It’s tougher than it sounds
I’ll be sincere: following these ideas is far tougher in apply than it sounds on paper. I nonetheless get labored up emotionally, berate myself for errors, and dwell on failures greater than I’d like.
But it surely’s precisely in these moments that reminding myself of those Stoic ideas has been most useful. After I catch myself getting caught up in remorse or anxiousness, I can step again and ask: “What’s truly in my management right here?” It doesn’t magically resolve all the things, but it surely helps me get out of the negativity and again into motion.
The objective isn’t to grow to be some impassive robotic. It’s to have instruments you possibly can attain for when your thoughts inevitably begins spinning. In case you’re going through robust instances proper now, begin small. While you discover your self worrying about issues exterior your management, simply pause and redirect that vitality towards one thing you possibly can affect.
For founders eager to discover this additional, I like to recommend Marcus Aurelius’s “Meditations” for insights into how probably the most highly effective man of his time handled struggles all of us face, William Irvine’s “A Information to the Good Life” for sensible knowledge you possibly can apply instantly, and Ryan Vacation’s “The Impediment Is the Manner” for assist turning setbacks into benefits.
