Founders Need to Have a Hobby

By John D. Evans, CFA, Founder & General Manager at SEIML

That may sound like a soft topic for a July corporate finance post. But it is not.

Founders work long hours. They carry pressure from investors, customers, employees, suppliers and often family as well. The work is exciting, but it can also be physically and mentally exhausting.

A hobby is not a distraction from building a company. It can be part of staying able to build the company. It gives your mind somewhere else to go. It reminds you that life is bigger than the next funding round, pitch deck, customer meeting or cash flow forecast.

For me, that hobby is music. Every Friday at 19.00 Hong Kong time I post my Friday

Night oldies song. It always starts the same way:

“It is Friday Night in Hong Kong and the hits just keep on coming.”

Then I feature a song from long ago – usually something that still sounds good today.

It is a small weekly ritual. A bit of fun. A break from valuations, term sheets, cap tables, court filings, business plans and all the other serious things that fill the week. And that is the point.

Founders do not need to have my hobby. It could be music, sport, hiking, cooking, reading, painting, cars, photography, gardening or anything else that gives you energy rather than takes it away.

But having something outside the business matters. A tired Founder makes worse decisions. A refreshed Founder thinks more clearly.

So this is my Monday note with a Friday invitation attached. If you enjoy old songs, follow me and let me know if you would like to be tagged when the next Friday Night oldies song goes up.

Founders need discipline. Founders need resilience.

Founders also need a little joy.