We started an engagement in good faith with a client and 2.5 months into the engagement, and almost at the end of the advisory deliverables, we were informed that the contract wasn't going to come through due to some legal technicalities
All valid reasons for them ... all reasonable reasons for them .... all too crushing for us and our partners regardless...
This was made ironically more frustrating by messages of support from the client team appreciating the work we had done, how hard we had worked & how much value we had added & how sorry they were & how they wished things were different...
We got caught into the classic startup trap of being 'eager beavers' dying to show value & start without the legitimate paperwork
We've had two days to process this and get over the initial shock & disappointment & pull ourselves up from the misery hole. Who knew losing deals feels so much more worse when its ur own baby than when you work with the Big 4s.
I asked myself if I had a choice, would I have gone back and done anything differently? Truth be told, I wouldn't have changed a thing
We were a 8 week old startup when we got this opportunity and started work and sure they can take away the final contract & payment from us but -
...they can't take away all our learnings though this process ...they can't take away the assets we built as part of this engagement ...they can't take away the confidence we gained ...they can't take away the validation everytime we were appreciated ...they can't take away the sheer belief in the value we can & have already added for them ...they also can't take away the fantastic relationships we built in the process and we hope word of mouth will eventually get us some well deserved Karma...
This is what we signed up for - the uber highs and the horrible lows and we need to just buckle up & keep on keeping on.
My team and our partners - I couldn't be more proud of them and the incredible and professional way in which they have handled this setback and just how after the first shock, they are now working on focussing on what's ahead...and what the positives were❤️
I personally had to learn the art of getting into another client call within minutes of this news & put my game face on & get on with it ... and then again for the next one & the next and keep myself together when thanking the team & when I broke this to them which was the hardest bit
As always, I rely on my one lasting source of faith - Philosophy & the Stoics - for all their infinite wisdom and Marcus Aurelius' indelible words which I share here & my co-founder.
And might I make a shameless plug for Dory (I promise you that decades from now philosophers will write papers on her impact on the art of perseverance 😄)