BUBBLE, BUGS AND INTEGRATIONS

This month I've been working on building my MVP in Bubble. I'm definitely looking forward to the day I can afford hiring a back-end developer. I feel like I'm spending 5% of my time designing the front-end and 95% of it fixing bugs trying to get all the functions to work properly. At one point Bubble told me I had 154 issues after moving some pages around 😅... I keep telling myself that at least I should have discovered most bugs by the time the MVP is done. (I know that's only an illusion, but it helps to think that way)

It's taking longer than I thought, but I'm also realising how complex it is. Creating a simpler version is difficult, because you can't really launch a project management software if it's not possible to do a full project with it. And creative projects can be quite complex. So one of the things I've been looking at is creating integrations with other software. In that way I can get all the functions needed a lot faster. This month I've talked to a handful of great companies that could make sense to collaborate with, which I'm really excited about. It may take some time to build, but I'm still optimistic - it looks promising. Also Bubble’s support team are amazing! 🙌

SUMMER, ENTREPRENEURS, NO TIME OFF AND MENTAL HEALTH

For most people summer means having time off work and going on holidays. But if you're a freelancer or an entrepreneur, that's not always an option. And we don't talk enough about that. Having time off is great for your mental health and creativity. Personally, the last time I (financially) was able to take time off to travel or even just stay at home for a holiday, was when I was 24 (and I just turned 33). Once in a while I do feel the consequences of that. I don't always feel like I have energy to give enough of myself to others in personal relationships. Not because I don't want to, or don't have a high enough self-esteem, or due to being shy, or whatever people might think. But simply from, occasionally, feeling slightly burned-out caused by the lack of holidays in years.

Don't get me wrong, most of the time I'm feeling happy, so I’m not complaining about it. I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me – that's not the point of bringing up the topic. Being a freelancer or entrepreneur is a choice, and there's a lot of great things about it. I love what I'm working on. Worst case, if the company fails, I'd still have created a software that would make my freelance work more enjoyable, so I'm okay with taking that risk. I'm learning a lot in the process, and it gives me the intellectual and professional challenges I've been missing. I'm also realising that I'm capable of doing more and better than what I hoped for.

I think the subject of mental health is important, because growing up I've seen close up in my family what not taking care of one's mental health can lead to in the worst possible scenario. It's a scary topic to talk about, but I truly believe being able to talk with other founders and freelancers about it, does make it easier to handle. Feeling burned-out once in a while is normal, and sometimes it is tough to be an entrepreneur or freelancer. Let's not make it more difficult by pretending something else.

Also with my newsletter I want to be transparent about what the process of starting a company is actually like, without painting a sugar-coated picture. Let's be honest, all I want right now is to travel to a place like this to spend a month alone, doing nothing but swimming and reading books:

Hopefully next year 🤞