I Cannot Sleep At Night Until I Have At Least Tried My Best To Bring An Idea To Life! #61 #cong18

It’s now after 4a.m. . . . . . . Am I an extra early riser? Am I a night owl? Am I working in a different timezone? Am I overtired? Am I somewhat jet lagged and trying to adjust? Do I have an idea which won’t let me sleep? Or am I all of the above? All expect one, can you guess? Reminding you about the big names who almost didn’t make it.

1. Yes you can, start believing in yourself.
2.  No it’s not a trick when you hear that, the best ideas develop when you see a future for them or more importantly when you cannot see a future without them.
3. Don’t wait too long or assume someone else will, it hurts when someone else does but competition can be your friend.
4. Many of the best ideas were rarely believed in, don’t give up if your willing to carry them through. It may be a long road but it could be the most rewarding you’ll ever walk.

After 4 years studying Irish and Translation Studies in NUIG, leasing a café at 19, my first pub and B&B at 21, my next 2 pubs, getting married, having a baby, founding What’s Where, delightfully winning AngelHack’s Silicon Valley 2018 Hackathon with my other startup Code2Shop. . . . . . . I haven’t quite figured out how best to describe myself yet. (“,)

You can connect with Aoife on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter or send her an email.

By Aoife Keady

If you feel like no one is listening, your probably talking to the wrong people. Your idea could be the best in the world but it often takes someone with an entrepreneurial flair to tell you to give it a try or maybe your family when they’re sick of you going on and on about it. Start believing in yourself regardless. Ideas come and go but it’s the entrepreneurship in you that can make your dream a reality. Others may question you ‘but do you see a future for it’? My question is do you see a future without it? That’s when you start putting an idea to the test. I love my family and I’m sure you also do but remember our loved ones usually want to protect us from any unnecessary risks. Developing ideas are full of risk. The risk of failure. The risk to your health. The risk of having less time. The risk of financial difficulty due to leaving a secure job and investing in your newfound idea. But what if the risk pays off? You result in bring in control of your own timetable. You get the flexibility to minimise missing family events in the future. Ok your income will probably never be the same again but six, seven, eight figures is your choice if you work hard enough for it. The excitement of entrepreneurship is a feeling like no other. The freedom to work whenever, wherever, however and even if ever when you hit the jackpot. To have a choice to make that all important decision, go on, you’ve stood on the sideline long enough. We all make mistakes, learning from them is the greatest blessing.

I believe so much is happening on our doorsteps and we don’t even know about it. It took me years and several sleepless nights waiting for someone else to do it before I finally took the plunge to create What’s Where and it’s only early days. Listening to people say I would’ve gone if I’d known it was on was actually heartbreaking for me. I’d never want anyone to miss a great event. Online is changing the world but many things are for the better, we need to adapt and help people follow traditional events but through a new media. And let me tell you life has been a risky rollercoaster, my seatbelt has come undone many times and I’ve been flung through the air but through all the pain I keep fighting to reach the gain. Have you heard about some of my well known friends who had great ideas that almost never made it? Would you believe Gmail almost wasn’t a thing? Or iPods, iPhones or Tablets? Dyson Vacuums? Nespresso machines? Even Harry Potter by J.K Rowling was rejected by 11 publishers. Actually have you heard of Tom Brady? Wearing jersey number 12 for the patriots? Winner of 4 Super Bowl awards? Well he fought hard and wasn’t selected by the 2000 NFL draft until the 6th round, the 199th guy to be precise. It may be a long road but if you choose to get on it, you take the chance of reaping the rewards.