In my late 20s, like many ambitious young professionals who grew up believing they could build anything they put their mind to, I started my own technology consulting company.`
Over five years, I poured everything I had into building it. We landed impressive clients, grew to 45 employees, and built a culture I was deeply proud of.
Then the 2008 financial crisis hit.
When I saw the economy starting to shift, I tried pivoting the business toward areas I believed would be more insulated from the downturn, including government contracting work designed to support small businesses. But eventually even those opportunities started disappearing. I remember realizing that one of the very strategies I’d relied on to help us survive was no longer viable.
That was the moment I knew we weren’t going to make it.
