"Why Do We Pull The Rock"

For some funny (or not so funny) reason I was thinking about "struggle" and "conflict" as a founder, and most definitely, as a mediator/coach/colleague.

As I was ripping my own bandaid off for the umpteenth time I kept coming back to why did I persist as a founder? Did I not know any better? (I did). Was I delusional? (not my nature). Was our data wrong? (doubt it). Were our teams qualified? (more or less). Did we work well together? (mostly). Did we fail/learn forward? (methodically). Then why in hindsight did it feel like we had to pull the rock?

Startups are like chromosomes, with conflict and struggle being the DNA coiled around all the proteins (people, tech, culture) which support the chromosomes core structure. People, ideas, technology, execution, learning, iteration, growth all feed your company, yet each of these vital proteins also create conflict and struggle as if they were fuel, or some kind of bad drug that we subconsciously choose to endure. I actually think a better analogy/metaphor is the role of good cholesterol versus bad cholesterol and how they both are vital forces for maintaining healthy blood. More on that in a minute...

(Not so random segue)

Anthony Bourdain is/was a stud to anyone that loved food, travel, music, counter culture; if it was cool he made the rules, whether it was a person, place, recipe, or attitude; he gave us so many reasons for pushing life's envelope. He loved breaking, fixing, building things, having no time for convention, mediocrity, or any kind of asshole. He was an unvarnished entrepreneur, born from the heat and pressure of the culinary world.

If anyone knew struggle and conflict it was sadly Mr. Bourdain, as he freely embraced his demons, adding a hint of delicious fear or possible doubt into everything he prepared. One thing was certain, he always left you satiated each time you read, watched or listened to him! RIP you F'ing genius!

Whether you are a CEO, Head of Product, Head of Sales, or Anthony Bourdain, conflict and struggle is in your DNA, it is the internal battle you live with like good and bad cholesterol, and it is what makes you like Anthony Bourdain (OK, maybe not that cool). We at Endure believe that Chromosomes, DNA, Proteins, are all mission critical for your survival as humans and founders; and that struggle and conflict in a startup are like good and bad cholesterol that need to work together to keep your entrepreneurial blood healthy. Struggle can be good for you where conflict is mostly bad; but they balance and counter each other like many key members of your team counter each other as Founder/CEO, Head of Product or Head of Sales, just to name the usual suspects.

As entrepreneurs/mediators we know how to identify the real issues dragging your team because we lived through them ourselves. We know how founders, product teams, every startup employee, can really disagree, challenge, argue, and battle to be better than the other. Struggle and conflict feel like a 10 ton boulder sometimes! This is actually why mediation in startups is not a signal that the end is here, but more so, acknowledging that the good/bad of struggle and conflict can create real balance in your team, trust vs. doubt, ownership vs. control, success vs. failure.

So, the reason we "pull the rock", is because the rock symbolizes the journey of entrepreneurial invention. Purposeful counter balances like struggle and conflict are constantly challenging us to exercise, push/pull, test, learn, iterate and evolve as founders. Are struggle and conflict good, no, but they are your rock. Give us a call if you want some help making that rock a little bit lighter and easier to manage. Now go be your best Anthony Bourdain!