Forget what the TED Talks say. Forget the Instagram reels with guys in hoodies shouting “just grind harder.” Forget the polished LinkedIn posts that romanticize entrepreneurship like it’s some kind of spiritual awakening.
Building a startup isn’t a hustle. It’s war. And most of us are out here bleeding quietly pretending we’re still winning.
What They Don’t Tell You About Founding
They don’t talk about the nights you stare blankly at your screen not because you’re building, but because you’re frozen.
They don’t tell you about teammates who disappear. About investors who promise the world, then vanish. About friends who cheer you on in public but doubt you in private. About family who ask why you “won’t just get a real job.”
They don’t prepare you for the rage when someone steals your idea or worse, your team. Or the weight of leading others when you’re not even sure you believe in yourself that day.
They don’t talk about burnout — not the kind you sleep off, but the kind that settles in your bones and makes joy feel like a foreign language.
Why I Won’t Quit
Because what I’m building matters. Because I watched a merchant get paid instantly and smile like someone just gave them a bank. Because I believe in an Africa where commerce isn’t gatekept by apps, agents, or paperwork but lives in the conversations people are already having.
And because war shapes warriors.
To the Founders Still Fighting
You’re not lazy. You’re not broken. You’re not weak because you’re tired.
You’re just in the trenches doing work that demands more than motivation. It demands conviction.
Most will lose. Not because they weren’t smart but because the emotional weight crushed them.
Some will survive. Not because they had funding but because they found inner fire.
And a few? A few will lead the rebuild. Because they walked through hell and came back carrying blueprints.
This Is Not for Claps. It’s a Call.
Let’s stop glamorizing pain. Let’s talk about taking breaks without guilt. Let’s build support systems, not just scalable products.
And most of all let’s honor the quiet resilience it takes to keep showing up when nothing makes sense anymore.
This is war. But some of us? We’re learning how to win with scars.
Still building. Still breathing.
Still choosing purpose over peace.