When I was deciding between keeping a stable job and starting a company, the reason I went all in was not money. It was wanting to build something I could be proud of, and to give something back to my family, particularly my kids.
That sounds like a line. It has real consequences, and my team feels them.
The Question My Team Asks Me
They ask why I have long conversations with people who will clearly never become clients. They ask why I reject projects the company could make money from.
The answer I keep giving is this: you can always win money, and you can always win a project. But you should act as if the business is your own.
That mindset is not something you start with. It comes from having been on the other side, from having been the person who needed honest advice and got a sales pitch instead. Once you have felt that, you cannot un-feel it.
Advice That Is Not for Your Own Gain
When you reach the point where you can advise someone genuinely in their interest rather than yours, you create real value, and you also create a strange kind of advantage. Very few people are willing to do it, so it stands out.
I have written before that I try to advise every client the way I would advise my mum, and that I answer emails that will never pay me anything. This is the same instinct, and it is not charity. It is the only version of the job I can respect.
Why We Back Small Brands
Supporting small businesses is a core belief for everyone at MageCloud. It shows up in who we work with and in who we put on stage.
When we invite speakers to Ecommerce Camp, we are not chasing big names. We want people who started small and kept going. Five people, then ten, then thirty, then ninety, still pushing. Those are the people with something to teach, because they are still in it.
We want to learn from companies that are still on the journey, because so are we. Come and meet them at Ecommerce Camp.