Day 895 - The demons we indies fight in silence - https://golifelog.com/posts/the-demons-we-indies-fight-in-silence-1686732547845
Feeling it with [Dago's raw and honest sharing here](https://twitter.com/dagorenouf/status/1668615338395865089?s=20):
> My wife and I decided to give up on our startup @logologydesign. It was a tough decision to make, especially after spending 5 years and almost all of our savings to bootstrap it. But the reality is that despite our best efforts, we never found a way to grow beyond survival profitability... But after 5 years of fighting, we're exhausted, out of motivation, and out of money. So we decided it's better to call it quits 😞
>
> I feel ashamed to not be one of the "successful founders" I see on twitter every day. I feel stupid that all the time and money spent wasn’t enough to make it. I also feel silly for celebrating that we reached profitability a few months ago... then a couple of months later it was already back below survival level 🤦♂️ I stopped tweeting this past few weeks because I feel like a loser and a failure. I’m afraid people will lose interest in me if I stop sharing motivating tweets. But at some point, I had to face the truth that I just can’t do it anymore.
>
> Somewhere on the way to chasing our dreams, we got lost. Instead of trying to live the life we wanted, we started sacrificing everything we cared about just to reach “success” at any cost. The burnout I had was a wake-up call that we can't keep going like this. The glasses I wear will forever remind me of the limits of my body. On my end, I decided to go back to a job. I never thought I'd do this but I really need to put a stop to the crazy hours and constant financial pressure. I hope working on a product without having to worry about money will make work enjoyable again.
A sad day for Indie Hacker Twitter 😔 But from the replies it's clear Dago is well loved. That's no failure, in my books. That's *something*. Strike that – that's *more* than something. And making that decision in itself is an act of courage. It's never an easy decision to call it quits. Painful, in fact. But when health is destroyed to this point, I like to think it's a right one. Health and sanity is always more important. Besides, there’s always an opportunity to come back to building again in future.
I think this experience is a lot more common amongst indie hackers than we realise. I was close to this point myself during the pandemic. Consulting gigs dried up, new baby in the house, money running out in 1-2 months. I actually started looking for job, applied for many jobs. No one called back. Not even a "Thanks for your application" email. It's clear that after being self-employed for a decade, and hitting mid-forties, I'm no longer employable. My products then didn't earn much either (it still doesn't now too). Things got pretty desperate. I was so stressed out, my body started showing signs of giving way. I got injured and sick easily. My sleep was poor as hell. I gained weight, and struggled to keep it off. I was anxious all the time. So I ended up working all the time. I seldom took days off. It was a viscious loop. All signs pointed to an eventual burnout and breakdown, like what Dago went through.
But in the end, I was 'saved' by a consulting gig, just in the nick of time.
I never really talked about it on Twitter then. It was too raw. Too vulnerable. It still stings to share it. Because while not in a survival crisis, I'm not totally in the clear yet. Finances and opportunities aren't back to pre-pandemic levels. That scenario is still a probable reality, if I take my eyes off the wheel. I can't completely relax... yet.
The plot twist is that back then I still appeared jovial on Twitter. Nobody knew.
My point?
That it's a good reminder for us to be nice to one another, support each other. We never know what kind of demons someone is fighting in silence.
Reality is a lot harder and rougher than the polished facade we see often on Twitter.
Watch out for each other, friends.
> My wife and I decided to give up on our startup @logologydesign. It was a tough decision to make, especially after spending 5 years and almost all of our savings to bootstrap it. But the reality is that despite our best efforts, we never found a way to grow beyond survival profitability... But after 5 years of fighting, we're exhausted, out of motivation, and out of money. So we decided it's better to call it quits 😞
>
> I feel ashamed to not be one of the "successful founders" I see on twitter every day. I feel stupid that all the time and money spent wasn’t enough to make it. I also feel silly for celebrating that we reached profitability a few months ago... then a couple of months later it was already back below survival level 🤦♂️ I stopped tweeting this past few weeks because I feel like a loser and a failure. I’m afraid people will lose interest in me if I stop sharing motivating tweets. But at some point, I had to face the truth that I just can’t do it anymore.
>
> Somewhere on the way to chasing our dreams, we got lost. Instead of trying to live the life we wanted, we started sacrificing everything we cared about just to reach “success” at any cost. The burnout I had was a wake-up call that we can't keep going like this. The glasses I wear will forever remind me of the limits of my body. On my end, I decided to go back to a job. I never thought I'd do this but I really need to put a stop to the crazy hours and constant financial pressure. I hope working on a product without having to worry about money will make work enjoyable again.
A sad day for Indie Hacker Twitter 😔 But from the replies it's clear Dago is well loved. That's no failure, in my books. That's *something*. Strike that – that's *more* than something. And making that decision in itself is an act of courage. It's never an easy decision to call it quits. Painful, in fact. But when health is destroyed to this point, I like to think it's a right one. Health and sanity is always more important. Besides, there’s always an opportunity to come back to building again in future.
I think this experience is a lot more common amongst indie hackers than we realise. I was close to this point myself during the pandemic. Consulting gigs dried up, new baby in the house, money running out in 1-2 months. I actually started looking for job, applied for many jobs. No one called back. Not even a "Thanks for your application" email. It's clear that after being self-employed for a decade, and hitting mid-forties, I'm no longer employable. My products then didn't earn much either (it still doesn't now too). Things got pretty desperate. I was so stressed out, my body started showing signs of giving way. I got injured and sick easily. My sleep was poor as hell. I gained weight, and struggled to keep it off. I was anxious all the time. So I ended up working all the time. I seldom took days off. It was a viscious loop. All signs pointed to an eventual burnout and breakdown, like what Dago went through.
But in the end, I was 'saved' by a consulting gig, just in the nick of time.
I never really talked about it on Twitter then. It was too raw. Too vulnerable. It still stings to share it. Because while not in a survival crisis, I'm not totally in the clear yet. Finances and opportunities aren't back to pre-pandemic levels. That scenario is still a probable reality, if I take my eyes off the wheel. I can't completely relax... yet.
The plot twist is that back then I still appeared jovial on Twitter. Nobody knew.
My point?
That it's a good reminder for us to be nice to one another, support each other. We never know what kind of demons someone is fighting in silence.
Reality is a lot harder and rougher than the polished facade we see often on Twitter.
Watch out for each other, friends.