Reboot

Chapter 7 Ready?

My parents were pottering around me. I was glued to my laptop: the final details of the deal were coming together. My mum and dad are avid gardeners and, although I was only living in a rental, they assured me the garden would be worth it: it was easy work, and they were having a relaxing time landscaping the courtyard, which had been neglected by years of renters and a somewhat cost-conscious, nonchalant landlord. I stopped for a minute to percolate a thought, poured my dad a cold beer and took it to him. As he looked over their progress he said, ‘You know, no-one has done this because they couldn't see the start.'

It amazes me how parents have this ability to drop an absolute gem of insight over a mundane moment on a Wednesday afternoon.

I would revisit this moment many times in the years to come, when I was stressed and in the thick of things: If I could just see the start, I could move forward.

All in all, it took us nine months to go from tossing around ideas on the beach to launching. In some ways that's quite quick — but it could have been even quicker. We definitely got snagged on things we need not have. When you have spent time passionately dreaming out every detail of the business or project you want to launch, it can be tricky to decide which parts of it you will need to forgo at launch — because if you choose to launch only when everything is perfect, you are likely to either:

• never launch
• invest too much in things that you end up scrapping because ...