The “oh shit” moment

I started working on Rendezvu full time a year ago. When I look back, it feels like a year of rebuilding myself from scratch. That is why I quit my job in the first place. I did not know what I wanted to build and I did not have a clean vision for a company, but I knew one thing with absolute certainty. There has never been a better moment in history to start something. So I devoted myself to learning. The first couple of months were slow. Everything was expensive and I felt like I was always a step behind. So in February and March I taught myself how to code. In April and May I had a brand new idea that I thought would work until I learned the power of a wedge, or in my case, the pain of not having one. Then June arrived, I stumbled on gear, joined an accelerator at Colgate, and finally felt the sails catch some wind. The six months that followed were a blur of building, breaking things, rebuilding, studying the outdoor industry, talking to everyone I could, reading, trying, failing, learning, failing again and growing each time. And then a little spark. A first customer. It came from a cold email I sent over a year ago to someone who is now a mentor and a friend. Our first customer said something I will never forget. He said that “if Ben Katz was willing to give me his time, then I must be building something interesting.” He told me to sign him up. That was it. Our first yes. To most people it is a small moment. To us it is everything. Validation. Proof that someone out there believes in what we are creating. I yelled “Let’s go” and within seconds it shifted into that oh shit feeling. The one where your stomach drops but you are smiling at the same time because this is exactly what you have been chasing. This year has been the hardest I have ever worked and I already know the hardest work is still ahead. And we are only getting started. This is the moment everything becomes real. I spent this past year reading constantly, listening to 20,000 minutes of podcasts, watching YouTube deep dives every time I hit a new challenge, and scrolling through late night reminders about perseverance on Instagram. It is not supposed to be easy. When it gets hard, you are getting closer to the point where everyone else stops. But none of it means anything unless we deliver for the brands we serve. Our job is simple. Help them grow. Help them sell. Make their investment in Rendezvu feel like one of the smartest decision they made. If I walked into Paul Graham’s office and asked for advice, I know exactly what he would say. Do things that do not scale. Go above and beyond for your earliest customers. Give them an experience nobody else is willing to give. And he would be right. We can build fast, but if we do not know exactly who we are building for, none of it matters. We have to understand our users in real depth. We have to walk before we run. It is okay that the money is not flowing yet. What matters is that the people using Rendezvu right now feel it get better every single week. That is the only way to build a real company. So the oh shit moment is not fear. It is awareness. It is the moment you understand that this counts now. This is not a playground anymore. This is the real world with real competition and real stakes. There are winners and there are losers. And I do not plan on being a loser. Rendezvu is going to win.