Why Matters More Than How
Yesterday I looked at my interview calendar and realized: I don't need this.
Not because I'm arrogant, proud, or unwilling to work. But because my "why" has changed. It used to sound like: "Stable job → financial cushion → freedom to experiment". Now — it's different.
New "why": reach a new level of vitality and impact on the world. Not through serving someone else's ideas in employment, but through creating my own products that change people's lives.
Sounds pompous? Maybe. But without this inner fire, I won't pull myself out of the comfort zone.
Discovery of the week: when you have a clear answer to the question "why am I doing this", any "how to do it" gets solved along the way. But if "why" is blurry — you get stuck in endless "I don't know where to start".
I ditched long-term job interviews. Not forever. I just stopped spending time on what doesn't bring me closer to the goal. Instead, I'm looking for ways to make money as an entrepreneur. Fast, flexible, without multi-month hiring cycles.
Why Not Job Interviews (Though I Know How to Pass Them)
I know how to pass interviews. I prepare for technical interviews, solve LeetCode problems, talk about architecture. It's a game I'm decent at.
But here's what happens after:
- Interview → 2-3 weeks waiting → offer → probation period → integrated into team.
- After 3-6 months: I understand the project, start bringing value.
- After a year: I can finally think about my own products.
Three to six months until first results. A year until balance. And I'm not 25 anymore. I'm 37, and I don't have time for long warm-ups.
Hiring paradox: to get money for freedom, you first give up freedom in exchange for money. Time investment pays off in a year. And if it doesn't work out — another round from the start.
I'm not saying employment is bad. But for my current goal it's too slow a path.
I need speed. I need flexibility. I need to try, fail, correct — fast.
What "New Level of Vitality" Means
Vitality is when you don't just exist, but live at full power.
What this means for me:
- Wake up not from an alarm, but from the desire to do something cool.
- See how your products change people's lives. Not abstractly, but concretely: reviews, money, growth.
- Not be afraid to experiment because you work for yourself, not for someone else's strategy.
- Have influence — not through position, but through the value you create.
I don't want to be "a good developer in a good company". I want to be a creator of products that solve real problems.
The difference: - Employment: you're a tool in someone else's system (even if it's a cool system). - Entrepreneurship: you're the architect of your own system (even if it's crooked for now).
What "Impact on the World" Means
I'm not going to save the planet or launch a mission to Mars. But I want what I do to matter.
Examples of impact:
- Someone downloaded my game, played it and exhaled: "Cool, distracted me from the crap at work".
- Someone uses my app and says: "This solved my problem".
- My article helped another developer make a choice they were struggling with.
This isn't a megacorporation. This isn't billions. But it's concrete impact on concrete people. And it gives me energy.
When you're employed, your impact is blurred. You're part of a conveyor belt. You're important, but replaceable. Your value is measured not by results, but by processes.
I'm tired of processes. I want results.
Why Entrepreneurship and Not Freelance
Freelance is also exchanging time for money. Just without an office and with a flexible schedule.
Freelance problem:
- You still sell time, not result.
- No scale: more clients → more hours → burnout.
- You depend on clients. They determine what you do.
Entrepreneurship:
- You create a product once, and sell it many times.
- There's scale: more users ≠ more of your time.
- You decide what to do yourself. You're an architect, not an executor.
I'm not against freelance as a temporary solution. But long-term I need a system where my value isn't tied to my hours.
Simple math: - Freelance: $50/hour × 40 hours = $2000/week. Ceiling depends on time. - Product: $10/user × 1000 users = $10,000. No ceiling.
How I'll Make Money (Without Employment for Now)
I'm not throwing everything in the fire and going to a monastery to meditate on success. I need money now to not starve and pay rent.
Plan for the coming months:
- Quick money: short freelance projects (yes, I said not freelance, but temporarily — ok).
- Product development: finish mobile apps for release, promote Godot game.
- Monetization: sales, subscriptions, ads — whatever works for my products.
- Experiment: try different channels, see what works.
What's important:
- I don't wait for a "perfect plan". I do, analyze, correct.
- I'm not afraid of failures. Failures are data. Data is growth.
- I don't depend on one income source. Diversification is my friend.
Key difference from employment: - Employment: you wait to be chosen to start earning. - Entrepreneurship: you create, launch, sell — control the pace yourself.
Why I Believe This Will Work
Because I have an answer to the question "why".
I know why I need this:
- To live, not survive.
- To influence, not serve.
- To build, not execute.
And when there's "why", any "how" gets solved.
Technique, tools, methods — all this gets solved. Google, ChatGPT, documentation, mentors — the world is full of answers to the question "how".
But if you don't know why, no "how" will help. You'll get stuck in endless analysis, procrastination, and doubts.
Search paradox: - Without "why": you look for the "right" way, afraid to make mistakes, get stuck. - With "why": you try any way, make mistakes, learn, move forward.
What Could Go Wrong (And Why It's OK)
I'm not a naive romantic. I understand what can break:
- Money runs out before income appears. Solution: roll back to freelance or short contract.
- Products don't take off. Solution: pivot, test other ideas.
- I burn out. Solution: return to balance, take care of health, don't forget people around.
But you know what will definitely go wrong?
If I don't try.
If I sit down for another multi-year contract, get bogged down in processes, and wake up in five years with the thought: "What if I had taken the risk?"
I don't want to live in "what if" mode.
Formula: - Tried and didn't work out = experience, data, growth. - Didn't try = regret, stagnation, questions without answers.
What's Next
Tomorrow I won't wake up a millionaire. Not in a month either. But in a month I'll have:
- Launched products.
- First users.
- First mistakes.
- First conclusions.
And I'll have progress. Real, measurable, visible.
Not "I'm preparing for an interview to start working in six months". But "I'm doing, I'm launching, I see results".
This is energy. This is vitality. This is why I get up in the morning.
P.S.
If you're sitting at a similar point right now — between employment and your own business, between stability and risk — ask yourself one question:
"Why do I need this?"
Not "how do I do this". Not "what if it doesn't work out". But specifically "why".
If the answer is clear, if it's sincere, if it ignites you — you'll handle any "how".
And if there's no answer — find it. Because without it, you'll go in circles, analyze, postpone, and ultimately do nothing.
I know my "why": a new level of vitality and impact on the world. For this I'm ready to risk, make mistakes, and get up.
And you?
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