How I accidentally founded a tech company (and horoscope!)

Hi everyone,

A few months ago, I officially started working for myself. A big step into the unknown, I know, but I’ve been preparing for this for at least two years: daily social media posts, back to university, writing books. All so that one day I could be a solopreneur helping other people achieve their goals.

Goodbye corporate life; hello uncertainty.

In the beginning, my goal was to start my executive coaching practice. With eight years of experience in the banking world, coaching and mentoring people eight or ten times my pay grade (maybe one day I will tell that story!), I thought this was a natural fit for me.

I like people. I like self-reflection. I like making a difference—all in one career.

But then, once you close one door (my old job), new doors open unexpectedly.

When I started coaching, I realized there were no real software solutions for all the assessments, diagnostics, exercises, and teachings you had to deliver.

• Need to rank your most important motivators? Take out pen and paper and write them down.

• Need to assess your LinkedIn profile or CV? Sure, ask AI and then manually prepare a reply.

• Need to teach someone about executive communication? Go find that old presentation or book and try to remember it.

All of this happens while you are supposed to be present, here-and-now, with your clients. Not an easy multitask, even with ADHD!

So, six months ago, I started creating software for each little problem I found. A dynamic little UI here that I can share during a meeting—a quick assessment there to help a person find their hidden superpowers.

Little by little, I created two dozen of these tools, all to help me deliver the best experience and value for my clients.

But then something happened. As I showed them around, people wanted to use them on their own. A client liked the prioritization tool, another coach wanted to use the value compass tool in their sessions, and then a corporate client asked if they could buy a personalized version.

So, I accidentally started a tech company.

The doors left unopened

We often look at uncertainty as a negative thing, but we rarely think of it as an opportunity. Who knows what the future will bring? I do not know, you do not know.

But we can be sure that it might be amazing! Why then not try??

Case in point: last week, I became an AI vibe coding instructor! I was invited to two events—for Harvard and Yale alumni—to teach how to vibe code a client relationship management system from scratch, working end-to-end, completely secure, and customizable.

Who knows, maybe I will become a professor next? I can already see my future newsletter title: How I Accidentally Became an MBA Professor. 

Be brave, be foolish.

🌟 Your "Be Brave, Be Foolish" Horoscope for the Week

We all have our own unique ways of playing it safe. Here is your cosmic permission slip to do the exact opposite this week:

• Aries: Your bravery is never in doubt, but your patience is. Being "foolish" this week means launching the thing before you feel fully ready. Press publish on that messy first draft.

• Taurus: You love stability and a solid foundation. Your challenge? Invest an hour of your precious time into your most impractical, wild idea instead of the safe, predictable task.

• Gemini: You have 100 brilliant ideas before breakfast. Bravery for you means being "foolish" enough to commit to just one of them and seeing it through to the end of the week.

• Cancer: You fiercely protect your creations until they are perfectly safe to share. Be foolish: show your unfinished, vulnerable passion project to someone who can help you grow it.

• Leo: You love to shine, but sometimes that means hiding the messy effort it takes to get there. Be brave enough to let people see you try, fail, and learn in public.

• Virgo: Perfectionism is your superpower and your shield. Your foolish leap? Ship something that is only 80% perfect. Let go of the control and see what happens.

• Libra: You are the master of consensus and gathering feedback. This week, be brave enough to make a unilateral, risky decision without asking anyone else for their opinion.

• Scorpio: You like to move in silence and keep your cards close to your chest. Your foolish act of bravery is to pull back the curtain and talk loudly about what you are building.

• Sagittarius: You are always chasing the next horizon. This week, the most foolishly brave thing you can do is say "yes" to an opportunity you feel completely unqualified for, and trust you will figure it out.

• Capricorn: You have a flawless five-year plan. Toss it out the window for exactly 24 hours. Follow a sudden, random spark of inspiration just to see where it leads.

• Aquarius: You are naturally eccentric, but even you dial it back for the corporate world. Be foolish: lean all the way into your weirdest, most futuristic idea. That is where your genius lives.

• Pisces: You are a visionary, but visions don't build themselves. Your brave step is to pull your head out of the clouds and do the unglamorous work: write the code, send the cold email, or build the ugly prototype.