Paul's ponderings
By Paul Buller
Paul's ponderingsMay 16, 2019
Bikes and fossil fuels
Our interesting story: part 5 of 5 (the magical 2018)
There was something almost magical that happened in 2018. In many ways the barriers and challenges that arose over the previous years all seemed to melt away, within one year; in fact, within about six months. Many challenges still remain, both in business and in life, but the catastrophic challenges that had plagued us for so long were gone.
Only in hindsight does one begin to grasp that sometimes hardship, challenges, suffering, difficulty in life is not destructive, but constructive.
I can only imagine what challenges, and delights, await us in 2019 and beyond.
Our interesting story: part 4 of 5 (the lawsuit)
Yes, we got sued. Yes, the lawsuit was launched well before we were cash flow positive. No, that doesn't make sense, but sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. When I'm already dealing with my wife's health trending in a very negative direction, and our significant financial stresses, this was one additional stress I seriously could have lived without.
In this episode I share some of the impacts that a litigation can have on a pre-revenue company that's still very much in its infancy. And, the effect it had on me, personally.
Our interesting story: part 3 of 5 (financial stress)
Ask any entrepreneur and money is probably one of the most stressful aspect of their business. Money is the means by which we feed our families and put a roof over their heads, so instability in our finances can add a whole lot of stress to life.
In this episode I share some of the financial stress we faced from 2013 to 2018 including a major economic downturn in Alberta leading to my lack of income, lack of investor interest in our project, and a whole lot of stretching of our personal finances. During this time Denise was also occasionally on long-term disability, which doesn't pay well.
Our interesting story: part 2 of 5 (flirting with death)
In part 2 of 5 describing our interesting story (so far...) I talk about the close call my wife had with death. Her heart health issues turned a corner on April 16, 2013 when she had a catastrophic cardiac arrest. Miraculously she survived with no lasting impacts, but that was far from the end of that story.
For the next five years her health slowly, steadily, trended downward until she was nearly at death's door in the spring of 2018.