What about? Let’s talk about your business, your challenges, those nagging, sometimes incomprehensible, or seemingly unsolvable problems! What’s not working, and what you could do to make it work. And, most importantly, why you’re doing what you’re doing in the first place.

Every day, I take 1.5-2 hour walks with my dog, Ottó, in the woods. These walks provide an incredible space and time for thinking. It’s during these walks that things often come together in my mind, leading to new ideas 😊 The latest one being:

I’d love to occasionally walk with someone new and have a conversation along the way.

Let’s talk about the things that matter to you, the things you haven’t found a solution for, and where you think I could be a good partner or company. For me, this is an experiment—I’m interested in meeting interesting people, learning about interesting businesses, and exploring interesting problems.

Why a walk, and why the woods? Because it helps you disconnect, it helps you relax, and it fosters creative solutions. I’ve written more about this—click here.

If this opportunity speaks to you, if you’d like to join, if you want to share a bit about your business, reach out to me. You can find me on Facebook, LinkedIn, or you can message me here on the website (just click on the thought bubble icon at the top right). Let’s see how a conversation, a long walk, a few steps together, can bring you closer to your solution. Your own solution.

I can dedicate one day a week to this—Wednesday mornings.

I usually start walking between 6:00 and 7:30 AM, but we can finalize the time.

We’ll agree on the location, but it will generally be somewhere in the Mecsek, on a popular trail.

The walk will be about 120 minutes and roughly 7-8 km.

I walk in the rain too, but that’s up to you :)

If you’d like to come, message me and let me know what business topics you’d like to discuss, and we’ll work out the rest.

The article was translated from Hungarian to English by ChatGPT. Thank you, ChatGPT, for being here.

Come Walk with Me! Let’s Chat…

Serendipity is a strange word, but its meaning is incredibly important. It describes a situation where something unexpected yet favorable and positive happens while the person was looking for something entirely different or working toward another goal.

It’s like walking as a tourist, searching for a famous building, getting lost, and stumbling upon a charming little local market where you discover something magical. Coincidence? It’s not about coincidence but about the ability to recognize unexpected opportunities and make the most of them, to be open to change, and to embrace things happening differently than planned—better than planned.

In a good conversation, you never know what will happen.

In 2022, I wanted to start a new business. As a consultant, a mentor, or something like that… By 2023, I had my first paying client, and I had designed a revenue matrix, a communication strategy, and a business model for myself. And what happened? The past two years turned out to be all about connections and conversations. I talked with company leaders and entrepreneurs about their business challenges, obstacles, and decisions, and also about their personal questions—the things that define the direction of their lives and how they experience their everyday reality.

Then, in July of this year, a new idea was born from a conversation, leading to my forest walks. It’s my best project so far. People came from all over the country—interesting people with diverse life situations and questions. These conversations often brought realizations for them that were entirely different from what they expected. And these realizations led to new questions, which then generated even more questions, and eventually answers, which turned into new insights. These insights led to different decisions, which resulted in different events and experiences. Some kind of change began.

Perhaps because there are no expectations. You don’t need to perform or say clever things. It’s enough to share what’s on your mind, what occupies your thoughts. That alone makes things a little lighter. You feel that you’re not alone, that there’s someone you can share your thoughts with. And that makes you feel a bit more secure. With that security, you let your guard down, and when the walls come down, you see more of the world and get a little closer to understanding what you truly want. And this opens the door to recognizing what really matters to you.

Maybe the people who came didn’t come for this reason, maybe it wasn’t their goal or what they wanted. But there are things you can’t and don’t need to force, like love. You can’t want love; you can only recognize it when you encounter it, then let it happen and embrace it. What’s worth wanting and striving for, perhaps, is to seek opportunities where you might encounter these things.

The activity that fills me with passion, that gives purpose to my days. I’m searching for the feeling. I love these conversations. I feel I have a calling for them. I don’t know what it is exactly, but I want to get closer to discovering where they lead me. What is the thing that, in this stage of my life, will define my days, shape my goals, and allow me to build something meaningful to me—a new business. I’m searching for opportunities. Opportunities for conversations. I believe the real value lies in them—in paying attention to each other, in curiosity, and in honesty.

This is why I’d like to create a new platform for us to talk. Let’s talk about business matters, about where we are, what’s important to us, and what we’d like to share with others. Maybe in a group, or just listening quietly, being present and observing others until you feel like speaking up—when and how it feels right for you.

So let’s sit down on a quiet morning. Join me for coffee or tea. If we have something to chat about, let’s chat. If it’s just the two of us, then so be it. If there are more of us, that’s fine too. Let it unfold as it will. Let’s talk about your business, your doubts, your opportunities—or about whatever comes up. Let’s see where the moment takes us.

I’ll be there. Every Friday from December… Interested?

Serendipity

This morning, in just 3 hours, I launched an English-language podcast with 5 episodes already available on YouTube. I managed to do it all using freely accessible AI software.

Currently, I’ve covered 5 topics in over 60 minutes. Click here to view the playlist. 

Since my language skills aren’t quite up to the task of an English podcast, this is a huge help and step forward for me. I've outlined the entire process of how each recording is made:

Writing the Article: The first step is writing a blog post in Hungarian. This is perhaps the most time-consuming part. Usually, it takes 2-4 hours to put something together, sometimes 30 minutes, depending on how much the topic draws me in. Here, there's no AI; it's all me. If the topic requires it, I use ChatGPT for research.

Article Analysis: I always have the text analyzed to get feedback on how well the messages are coming through. I use ChatGPT with a subscription here. It takes about 10-15 minutes to review the text from various perspectives and make adjustments if needed.

Article Translation: Translation takes 1 minute, thanks to ChatGPT's capabilities, and then another 15-20 minutes for me to go over it and make minor adjustments if anything is significantly off.

Creating Illustrations: I use the Midjourney AI system to generate images, with a subscription. This takes 5-15 minutes, depending on how well I can craft the prompt. ChatGPT helps me write the prompts.

Publishing: Posting the Hungarian and English material on my website takes about 5-6 minutes, with an additional 5-6 minutes to share on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Podcast Content: NotebookLM creates the audio content in about 5 minutes.

Transcript Creation: I use the free version of TurboScribe to generate a text transcript of the podcast audio. I can process three items daily, and each video takes around 7-8 minutes to process.

Text Verification: After listening, I translate the entire text with ChatGPT, just to be safe... This part of the process takes about 30 minutes.

Video Editing: Using Apple’s iMovie software, it takes around 5 minutes to compile and export the video.

Publishing on YouTube: NotebookLM creates all the text during podcast generation. Posting it on the channel takes an additional 5 minutes...

All in all, creating a 15-20 minute English podcast from scratch—even without an established topic—takes 5-6 hours. But this includes both a Hungarian and an English article with illustrations, which will later be part of the book.

Incredibly efficient. And you say that AI can only produce generic content? That on LinkedIn, you can spot AI-generated material a mile away? Will an AI podcast be unoriginal even if the source material is human-written? In this case, so what? What about the quality of these recordings? I’m curious too.

If you’re interested, give them a listen, or check them out and let me know what you think.

This morning, in just 3 hours, I launched an English-language podcast with 5 episodes already available on YouTube. I managed to do it all using freely accessible AI software. Currently, I’ve covered 5 topics in over 60 minutes.

Since my language skills aren’t quite up to the task of an English podcast, this is a huge help and step forward for me. I've outlined the entire process of how each recording is made

Inhuman Team

I started blogging in January, writing about corporate matters, mentoring, then about space, and 1-2 corporate projects... then from May, I started writing more frequently about self-awareness, perhaps more abstract topics. Then about my dilemmas... my doubts. My fears. My desires.

About things that define who I am. Things that shape how I live my life, how I build my business, how I am present in my relationships. This is what my blog is about.

This book is an offline blog. The feeling I have about the book cannot be compared to how I feel about my blog. The book is special. The experience of the book goes far beyond its content, even though the same text is available online. Yet...

The book is a tangible thing. When I compiled and printed my own writings, I created a physical object that is tangible, can be flipped through, and placed on a shelf. This feeling is much stronger than with an online publication. The weight, texture, and smell of a book all reinforce the tangibility of creation, creating a lasting memory.

I wrote it. Then I formatted it. Designed a cover. And now I’m organizing the printing.

Creating a book often marks the end of a process, the closing of a chapter. Online writings can be constantly updated and edited. I write something every week... But when we put together a book, it symbolizes something final, something concluded. This feeling, the sense of finishing something, and the creation of a standalone work is... something incredibly uplifting.

But it’s not just about the creator and the creation. It's about the relationship as well. A book creates a very different kind of connection with the reader. Reading a book might offer a slower, deeper experience. Perhaps the attention is more continuous, and maybe people spend more time with a book. Maybe the act of holding the book, of grasping it, helps us feel that those thoughts, even for a brief moment, become part of our reality.

And of course, there's also the fact that the book, as a medium, has a long history, being the main vessel for knowledge and art for centuries. In books, thoughts are made immortal. Books have been part of my life since I was very young, while the internet, digital publications, have only been around for a few decades. Is it any wonder I feel differently about them?

I’ve taken a few steps toward myself. I sacrificed time, energy, and attention to give my thoughts a lasting form. They were important enough to me to make them tangible, giftable.

That's the title. All my writings can be read in a few minutes, browsed through quickly. Ideal for a coffee break or if you retreat somewhere without the internet. If you’d like to take a break from scrolling and prefer flipping through pages instead.

Today, a few copies will be made. For those who are close to me. For those who are in it—either by name, as anonymous characters in a story, or subtly hidden between the lines.

I started blogging in January, writing about corporate matters, mentoring, then about space, and 1-2 corporate projects... then from May, I started writing more frequently about self-awareness, perhaps more abstract topics. Then about my dilemmas... my doubts. My fears. My desires.
About things that define who I am. Things that shape how I live my life, how I build my business, how I am present in my relationships. This is what my blog is about.
This is what my book is about too.

This is a book

Three months ago, I wrote about my anxiety. I received a flood of messages, mostly containing diagnoses, suggestions for treatment, or occasionally a kind, sympathetic thought.

But I also got calls from surprising places—from successful, respected individuals like CEOs, former bank directors, internationally recognized experts… the list goes on. They shared stories of how they too feel or have felt anxious. Some admitted they couldn’t even bear to recall those times, fearing the oppressive feeling might return. Their responses to my writing were startlingly honest.

We live with anxiety, side by side, yet we don’t talk about it. But we are anxious, our children are anxious, our parents are anxious. Still, it remains a taboo. Perhaps we think that someone who suffers from anxiety is weak or a victim, and we don’t want to be seen as victims.

Maybe that’s why it was strange that I wrote about it, because if someone puts this down on paper and makes it public, then surely there must be serious issues. Especially if a CEO writes about it… So, we keep quiet instead.

But we could talk about it. We should talk about it.

Maybe my article touched the organizers, or perhaps it was just a fortunate coincidence, but I received an invitation from the HR Fest team, who also felt it was worth giving this topic some space.

Thank you for the invitation, Éva Uzsák!

Three months ago, I wrote about my anxiety. I received countless messages, mostly containing diagnoses, treatment suggestions, or the occasional kind and sympathetic thought. Perhaps my article resonated with the organizers, or maybe it was just a fortunate coincidence, but I was given the opportunity by the HR Fest team to discuss this topic on stage with András Bán.

Anxiety on Stage

The most exciting project of my year has been the idea of walking dogs with strangers. Three months have passed, and my year has been filled; so far, more than 20 people have signed up, and we’re already more than halfway through.


Nothing extra is needed for this project. And yet, there’s something intangible about it. Something that always makes me feel better after the conversations. A little more, a little better. Two to three hours of talking with a stranger.


These conversations always start so simply. No awkwardness, no anxiety. We connect so quickly. And yet, all kinds of people have signed up. There have been old acquaintances, Facebook friends I might never have met, acquaintances of acquaintances I surely haven’t met, and people I’ve had no connection with, who might have just read something I wrote, perhaps only the post about dog walking, and got curious.


Women and men came in roughly equal numbers. The majority of the group is from Budapest and its surroundings. Mostly, I’ve been approached by leaders of established companies, with a smaller number of startups. Most came from the service sector, but I’ve also had conversation partners from IT, trade, food manufacturing, and hospitality. The financial background is very mixed, with the largest company being around six hundred million, and the smallest under five million.


It’s a very diverse group. Yet, there was something common among them all. Something that worked for everyone. Everyone wanted to have a chat. Just to talk. To hear another opinion, to get to know another perspective. No one expected us to solve anything there and then. Just to have a nice morning walk. And for that, many traveled 5-6 hours.


Nothing extra. No fancy meeting room, no champagne, no tip-top attire needed. No preparation required. There are no Instagram posts, no TikTok videos about it. And yet, – perhaps, I hope, I believe – something lasting remains in everyone from their own walk. A sentence, a thought, a feeling.


It’s nice to mentally replay the conversations of the past 3 months. It feels good to receive feedback and to look forward to the next week, wondering what will happen. Who will come? What will happen?


Orsolya Balogh traveled a good 2.5 hours to set off with me at 7:30 in the morning. We walked and talked for about 2.5 hours. Then we stood and waited for nearly 2.5 hours while the police investigated, searched with a dog, and documented every little detail of the break-in of Orsi’s car.
Not the kind of adventure I would wish on anyone. And yet, it was great to see how calmly Orsi handled the situation, how she dealt with the insurance, the glass repair, and the trip back. It was heartening to see how, with a single phone call, my friends jumped into action to help. How my friend Norbi immediately came, patiently waited for the police to finish, and then helped us get Orsi’s car back in shape so she could leave.


The conversation, paying attention to each other, offering help. Perhaps we don’t even need to learn these things; perhaps they live within us, come with life, maybe they are part of what it means to be human.


None of it cost any money, nothing special was needed. Just a little openness, kindness, patience, and goodwill.


The most exciting project of my year has been the idea of walking dogs with strangers. Three months have passed, and my year has been filled; so far, more than 20 people have signed up, and we’re already more than halfway through.
This is a simple thing. Nothing extra is needed for this project. And yet, there’s something intangible about it. Something that always makes me feel better after the conversations. A little more, a little better. Two to three hours of talking with a stranger.

Simple

Can a business consultancy operate on the principle that the client pays only as much as they believe the service was worth? Can we trust each other to this extent? What does business rely on if not trust? If we don't trust each other, why do business at all? What else could be valuable in such a relationship if not money? Could it be easier to find value in a working relationship that isn't focused on money but on the original goal of business: creating value and efficient value conversion?

This is the first journal entry marking the start of my new company.

Let me begin by explaining why I want to start a business. What do I enjoy doing today? What would I like to make a living from, in a way that I can pursue it daily with genuine curiosity, a desire to grow, and passion? The answer is simple: I want to do what I am currently doing, just on a business basis.

I engage in conversations and think about business ideas, their planning, implementation, and the challenges that arise along the way. Perhaps I approach this differently than usual—not from the business angle, but more from a perspective of self-examination, introspection, and facing life's difficulties. I explore topics such as the fear of failure, embracing personal desires, understanding our resources, and the distorting effects of ingrained paradigms. I base all this on nearly 30 years of entrepreneurial and almost 50 years of life experience. I strive not to accept established social norms and conformity. I encourage people to think more deeply about their lives and to dare to confront their fears and uncertainties to find their own path, instead of simply following the patterns dictated by society. In truth, I encourage my conversation partners to question things, and as we talk, I do the same with myself.

Primarily myself, and I encourage those who find me for whatever reason to do the same. This is the essence of my writings, videos, and my Wednesday morning dog-walking conversations. Since I ask for no payment (except for mentoring), it has become clear over the past nearly two years that this is what I am called to do, what I want to do. I love it even without money. But if I want to build a business out of this, the business's task is to generate money, to produce profit. But how can I generate money in a way that maintains my value-based approach? And besides...

The fact that I am genuinely curious about others. That's why I can connect. I don’t walk with someone because they pay for it, and while they talk, I’m not thinking about my child, car, or spouse... my benefit from these shared walks is that I get to know interesting people; the value for me is what I hear. I have no expectations; I am interested in what comes out of you. Because this is exactly what can be new to me, what I build on, what I learn from.

If I ask for money, won’t that break this dynamic? After all, if I ask for money, I have to give something in return, even if I'm not that interested in the other person, so my connection is no longer truly sincere and selfless. And if I don’t connect in that way, how can I truly respond to what I hear and not just spout some cliché, textbook wisdom? Is this whole thing a messed-up Schrödinger's cat? No, I won't ask for money, I won't ruin what I love so much.

How much? As much as you think I’m worth. So, I’m happy to talk about your business matters if you feel I’m the right person. All I ask is that you write down the questions and the related important information you want to discuss. And explain how much you think it’s worth, how much you would pay to talk about it!

If I feel I can connect with the problem, that I have relevant experience, that I can imagine adding value to the topic, let’s find a time for a face-to-face meeting in Pécs.

Come to Pécs! Let's discuss your matters, and at the end of the conversation, you pay what you think it was actually worth to you. Less or more than what you initially said? It’s entirely up to you. You decide how much those two hours of conversation were worth to you. All I ask is that you tell me why you think it’s worth that much.

I don’t know how this can work, but I believe that this way, the essence of what this is all about won’t die. There’s no intention, no forcing. It will be about the present moment, about what I give you. What you can take from it. I’m not selling my time; I don’t want that. I’m sharing my thoughts, my experiences. There and then. Whatever comes.

Don’t pay for my past, my website, my fees, my qualifications, or my personal brand!

Pay for what you received at that moment, who I am, what I represent, what this whole thing meant to you during those two hours. That’s what you should value!

Would You Dare?

We don't talk about what we're good at. What we excel in. We don't talk about it because it feels wrong. I didn't talk about it either. I didn't write about it. Why? Why is it that when someone compliments our achievements, my achievements, I respond with: "Oh, it's nothing... you could do it too... it's not a big deal..." I don't say that anymore. I don't even think it. But many people still react this way when I talk to them. Why do we stay silent about our talents?

I've written over 100 pages of articles. I filled the summer, the hot, dry days with writing. What did I write about? The challenges of being an entrepreneur, my internal journey, self-awareness, and how I try to connect with the world—myself, others, or technology. I tried to confront my readers—as well as myself—with my questions, to help find meaning in the chaos of everyday life, to understand a little better what's going on within and around us. To become a bit more open.

Difficult questions, tough life situations. But is this really what I want? To write about this? Life is already so hard as it is. There are so many challenges in starting a business. Are these really the right topics? Do you really need these questions? When my back hurts, and I go to the masseuse, I know it will feel better. Eventually. But while they press on the knots in my back, it hurts terribly. At a certain point, I just want a little caress. Or for them to stop. I scream. Inside. I want to pull my body away, slap them, shake them, and say, "Don't you get it? It hurts!

I just lie there. Focus on my breathing, trying not to whine. I endure it. I know it will get better. I trust it will. I want it to be over. I don't want to be a masseuse. I don't want to do this to others. Or maybe I do, just a little. It's worth finding the knots, the adhesions. If you find them, if you can work them out, everything will be better. It won't hurt to move, to exist, and maybe you'll even be stronger.

I think I'm good at this. I love doing it. I love it because I started with myself, massaging out the cramps and adhesions from my own body. Not all of them; there are still some left. And it doesn't feel good to lie on the foam roller or the ball and try to press out the knots, to relax my shoulders. But is this enough? Is it enough for me? Is this what I want? Is this the goal, or just a step on the path to my goal? What do I want? To be a writer? A motivational trainer? To see my face smiling back from a stack of books in a shopping mall window? Do I want to be a teacher, a master? A modernized Central European version of Buddha, an entrepreneur? An idol?

Yes, to have an impact. On whom? Why? Am I seeking the meaning of my existence in this? To prove that my life has meaning? To read more articles about myself, to see what others write about me? Or do I just want to survive? To survive my death? For my name to survive my death? Or is this just part of understanding who I am in this seemingly infinite world? Because there has to be some meaning!

Maybe it's all of them, maybe none. But does it matter? If someone is interested in this, if someone is interested in me, they can look for explanations, answers. They'll probably find something. I'm interested in what I'm doing. What will I do? What am I doing today? I think a lot about how I work, what happens inside me, and what decisions arise from these thoughts. What thoughts I have, what feelings. Which of these prompt action. How do these actions affect the thoughts and feelings that come next, and what new decisions and actions follow from them? I'm observing my karma. The chain of cause and effect.

I'm looking for talent. And I feel like I see it. I hear it. I feel it. During my walks, in conversations, in online calls, it's everywhere. It's there in the other person. Sometimes it's shining so brightly that it's almost blinding, sometimes it's dimly flickering because it's hidden behind so many things that its poor light is barely visible. But it's visible. This is my talent. I see in others what they don't dare say about themselves. Often, even when it blinds everyone around them like a spotlight. Because what if they said it? If they acknowledged it, embraced it:

Is it even true? What would others say? Would they think I'm arrogant? Boastful? Narcissistic? Crazy? And is it even true, I mean, am I talented? And even if I were, what would I do with it? I can't start my own company, can't get it up and running, it's not big enough, not fast enough, not good enough... I can't use my talent, or maybe I'm talented in something useless?!

It's quietly sobbing, worn out. Just like we did when we felt unloved, lonely, abandoned. Don't do that to it! Let your talent speak within you. That's what I want. To help with that. And it's not about massage, it's not enough to just press the knots. You have to learn this. You have to learn how to dare to be talented. We have to learn to live with our talent.

We long for heroes. We need heroes. We are heroes. And you don't need to fly for that. To walk through walls. It's enough to recognize who we are. It's enough to embrace who we are. It's enough to believe in who we are. It's enough to trust that who we are is enough. Good enough. At least for ourselves. And if we have that, we'll soar. There won't be many walls. And we'll get somewhere.

I think that's my real superpower. And belief is contagious. That's what stories, games, and movies are about. Just think of a good movie. When I watch a good movie, where there's a catharsis at the end, where the hero's journey draws me in, I go along with them a bit. My hand, my leg moves during a fight, I hold my breath while they swim underwater, I also feel relieved when they survive a fall... I tune in. We need more stories where we can tune in to the idea of daring to embrace our talent. To dare to stand up in front of others.

So, what makes me happy lately is talking about this. That's why I walk with strangers. That's why I talk with them about their companies. Because somehow, during the conversation, I'm searching for the talent, and maybe by the end, they are too. In themselves.

I help build and start businesses. How am I doing with building my own company? Is it possible that my real motivation is not to help others build their businesses, but just to avoid having to focus on my own? Am I running away? Trying to avoid starting my new business? Am I afraid it won't succeed? Why don't I talk about my own self-realization? Am I just deflecting with my writings? Playing hide-and-seek with myself? Do I even want to build a new company?

I want to build a business out of all this. By walking with myself, to bring out the talent that I can organize into a system and convert into a business based on what I just wrote. To monetize myself. I want to amplify the talent within me. Amplify it and turn it into business success. And meanwhile, I want to be quiet. I'm not looking for a podium or a stage. Because this shouldn't be about me. My success will be if you become successful. If you succeed and say so.

I don't know yet, but I want to figure out how it's possible. That's what I desire, that's my path now, wherever it leads. And I will write about this path. Wherever it leads, I'll write it down. Let the goal, the path, the failures, the successes be visible. Let this be a story you can draw from if you're in this too. Or if you just want to be.

Let this be a new chapter, the diary of a quiet revolution.

Restart

For years, I couldn’t find my footing in my business. I felt I had good ideas, that I was capable, but execution wasn’t my strength. I needed someone by my side. Someone to help me do what I couldn’t. Someone more experienced. Someone more practical. Someone with connections—because, let’s face it, I had none. I feared it would be a struggle if I did it alone. And it was a struggle because I was doing everything by myself.

But who would be the right person to do it with?

A friend? A stranger? And what if they steal my idea or push me out of the company? And what if I didn’t look for a co-owner but an investor instead? With the money, I could hire the right people. But employees just do the job for the paycheck; I needed someone who believed in the company! Someone with an ownership mindset, who wouldn’t leave at the first better offer. It’s not an easy question, especially when you’re not even sure what you want to do. You just feel you want to do something. Finally. Because the way things are now, it’s not working.

Looking back, my biggest problem was that I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. I had no plan for what I wanted to achieve; I just knew I loved the freedom of being an entrepreneur. And I knew I wanted to do something big, something visible that I could be proud of. The rest would work itself out. And it did. One job after another came along. If there was work, I had to do it, so I didn’t chase new work. If there wasn’t, I was a nervous wreck, wondering where the next job would come from. And I did everything that came my way—branding, books, brochures, websites, online administrative systems, events… And as these jobs came and went over the years, so did the people around me. And all the while, I was dissatisfied, feeling that things weren’t going as well as they could—or maybe that they could be much better. And I constantly felt:

What a soul-crushing feeling that was. I was building my company; we were making progress. Every year, we grew a little, got a little better. And yet, that feeling drained my energy. The feeling of not being enough. I wasn’t enough for myself to achieve great things. In this sense of inadequacy, I decided I needed a co-owner. And I got one. Several, in fact. With the first one, we had a falling out over money after just three months. Because there wasn’t any, and it didn’t look like there would be. Three months. Not long. I worked with the second one for a year, and then, when they secured a big job, they decided to do it on their own. They quit, took off. I wasn’t needed. Neither of them needed me. Did they deceive me? Hm. I don’t remember how I felt back then. It was over 20 years ago. But one thing is certain: the feeling was there. The feeling that I wasn’t enough for my business, for my goals. I needed someone. Someone who had what I lacked.

To build a big IT company. To do something significant. It would be great to have someone who has already done this. Then, out of nowhere, after a meeting, the potential partner asked: "Are you looking for an investor?" I hadn’t been, but now I’m reconsidering 🙂 How awesome is that! I believe in life; I believe in paying attention to opportunities that come your way. Finally, someone who sees potential in me, a leader at a big company, managing massive IT projects, based in Budapest, with an extensive network, a real tech nerd, Excel wizard, project manager, and they even want to invest! A distant relative, but we don’t really know each other. This could work. In the end, we didn’t kill each other over the seven years, but we sure drained each other’s energy.

So, what did I want? A co-owner. I envisioned the kind: someone with a network, who would bring in clients. They had one, but didn’t bring any clients. I imagined someone experienced, who had managed large projects. They had experience with big projects, with corporations, where if an extra person, tool, or any resource was needed, a managerial decision, a set deadline, and some allocated funds solved the problem. Well, in a 10-person company, these experiences mean something entirely different. Perhaps even a disadvantage. That’s how I saw it. So, the connections brought nothing, the knowledge couldn’t be utilized, so all that was left was the money. Between signing the investor agreement and receiving the investment, I brought in 5-6 times the amount into the company. So, no connections, no usable experience, and no money were as expected. Back to square one again! What did I want?

And I wasn’t. I got what I wanted. That is, I could let go of the fear of not being enough. It was time to rethink things. Yes, I was afraid. Afraid that I wasn’t enough alone. I wanted someone. And I got someone. What was in the investor agreement again? I’d give equity for a certain amount of money. I gave away half the company, and the company got money. I wasn’t alone. For the next seven years, I brought in the revenue, built the team, and laid the foundation for Games for Business. I did my job. I had no time or opportunity to wonder if I was enough. All this during the middle of a crisis, around 2010. I wasn’t enough. In fact, I’d say we were too much. Too much for me was the daily struggle with my investor. It was too much for him too. I didn’t want a partner anymore. I wanted peace. I didn’t want to have to explain why I did what I did. I just wanted to do my job. We parted ways. Peace followed. I’ve come to understand how much I learned from him. He even brought work, good work. In the end, I got what I thought I would get.

I’m grateful for those seven years. Now I know I got everything I wanted from him. Even though we weren’t partners anymore. I think I was right. You can’t do it alone. Maybe only in the rarest of cases. Because somehow, in some form, we always do our business with others. The key is who you do it with, why, and in what form…

It’s worth thinking about what we really want. What we’re aiming for, what we specifically want to achieve (see the previous article: Everyone Struggles on Their Own Level). Maybe that’s the foundation of it all. Of course, you can also seek a partner and start a business without knowing it. You can experiment, discover things, be spontaneous. In some ways, I was too. And I paid the price 🙂 in money, time, and stress. Even in recent years, I’ve been constantly experimenting, trying to figure out how to realize my ideas, how to find partners for them, and in what form the collaboration can work well... But the first step is always knowing what I want.

So, if you already know what you want, if you see how your company brings you closer to it, if you know your qualitative and quantitative goals and even know when you want to achieve them, you might still feel like you’re not enough! In fact, that feeling often comes at this point. But before you believe it about yourself, it’s worth running through a few more questions:

What will be the key to your company’s success?

Usually, there’s one thing in a company that makes clients choose you. One important characteristic that is the decisive factor in most successful negotiations. And it’s not the price or the excellence of the product. How often do you see someone else getting the job despite a weaker product or a higher price?

- What do you think will make your company successful?

- What will be the main value you provide to your clients?

What does your company need to operate successfully?

I know, I know, a thousand things. But the point is, do you understand what the 3-4 key elements are that will make you successful? Is a good kitchen or a good location more important for a restaurant? Does a restaurant need an outstanding kitchen if it’s in an outstanding location? Do you need connections if you’re building an online store? So, what’s your situation?

- What are the 3-4 things that can make you successful, that are critical for you? Knowledge, connections, tools, money.

- What do you already have? And if you have nothing but the idea, why would you be necessary for its realization?

Where will you get what’s missing for success?

No, no. You don’t need a co-owner right away… Consider whether what’s missing will be needed constantly? Or just occasionally? And do you think the same thing will be needed in 2 years as today as the company grows? That’s why it’s good to envision that 3-5 year plan. It’s a pain if you bring someone into the company today who won’t be able to help tomorrow. Then they’ll just be a burden, someone you’ll have to negotiate with…

If you’re not co-owners, how else can you bring in what’s missing? There are a ton of options based on risk-sharing. The question here is, how much are you willing and able to risk to achieve your desires? So, the missing knowledge or capability can be obtained from

+ and if you put in the time, you can learn it yourself

++ and maybe you could do it, but you’re just afraid, you don’t believe in yourself…

The eternal question: is it good to go into business with a friend or relative? It can be. Because you already have a foundation of trust (see my previous article: 5 Reasons Why Family Businesses Are Great). BUT! But the important question is whether you’ll be able to distinguish between when you’re talking as friends and when as business partners. Friends or relatives can start a company, but in the company, don’t work together as friends or relatives, but as colleagues. If you can do this, it can work. If not, the roles get mixed up, the problems get mixed up, the feelings and decisions get mixed up… And in the end, you won’t know if you’re resolving a friendly argument or a business problem.

It’s an exciting and important question…

…who you do your business with and under what circumstances. Finding a partner in the business world is just as exciting as choosing a life partner. It matters who you move in with, who has the keys to your place, who you have to discuss the color of the wallpaper with. And in the business environment, just like in choosing a life partner, it all starts with you. Do you know yourself, are you aware of your desires, and do you see your fears?

Give yourself time to understand yourself. Whatever you find within, it’s already there.

Can't Do It Alone

I often think about what well-being and prosperity mean in the context of entrepreneurship. What do we need—how much and what kind—to be well within our own company? And how is well-being connected to prosperity? How do we get there, and do we even know where "there" is?

Around 2013-14, when I wasn’t doing well in my company and couldn’t find solutions to my problems, I tried to talk to leaders of companies who, in my view, were significantly ahead of me. During one such conversation with a company leader in his Buda office, I asked him a few pressing questions that I couldn’t resolve. The guy just smiled and said:

Since then, I’ve overcome a few things; a good 10 years have passed. My company has reached the international market, we’ve become visible, and we’re successful in our niche. I achieved what I wanted; my to-do list was fulfilled, and a dream came true. And somehow, life has brought me to a point where company leaders now seek me out to discuss their problems and questions. As I talk with these leaders and entrepreneurs, a question has started to nag at me: What causes their discomfort? What caused mine? What changed in me around 2013-14? How did I manage to achieve my goals then? What’s the common thread in my story and theirs? These companies are all different—different sizes, stages of development. The leaders, like their companies, are all different. Young, old, beginners, experienced, men, and women. Some are playing it small, others very big, yet they share something in common.

They have stress, problems, things they’re stuck on. They’re trapped in a situation and can’t see a way out, and they’ve reached a point where they’re willing and eager to talk about it. They’re searching for solutions. But what does it really mean to not be well? Is it about not finding the right employees? Or not having enough revenue? Or struggling to finance the company?

Of course, these aren’t simple issues, but they’ll always be there. Some people aren’t well-suited to handle the uncertainties of entrepreneurship, and maybe entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone. But if you’ve embarked on this path not because you were forced but because you wanted to create something according to your vision, then you have the openness, the desire to make it happen.

But do you know why you’re running your company?

This is usually where I start my conversations. What do you want? You, as a person. What do you desire, what makes you tingle when you imagine it with your eyes closed? And if you know what you want, what excites you, what gets you out of bed in the morning, can you say how your company helps you achieve that? How does it bring you closer?

Is that all? Is your company really just about making money? It can be, and that’s fine. If your company gives you nothing but money, and that money allows you to spend your free time on your hobbies or with your loved ones, then great. But if that’s all it gives, the challenges can quickly drain you. Just like an employee who comes to hate their job when they’re only working for the paycheck. In such cases, we try to do the minimum required to get paid.

Inside and out. So, this generally only works if there are few problems. And it doesn’t matter how much money the business generates or how high your salary is. You can quickly come to hate troublesome revenue, no matter how much money is involved... So, what does your company give you? What inner desire of yours finds expression in your business? It’s a tough question, hard to confront, but it’s good to be aware of. Because somewhere, this is the main driving force, something worth checking in on regularly: Am I getting this thing? If you know what you want, if you know how your business life supports you in this, the next question is:

Where do you want to go? If you don’t know this, how do you know you’re heading in the right direction? And more importantly, how do you know when you’ve arrived? Could you rush past your goal because you didn’t know what it was? Can you march on for years without tension or frustration, not knowing when you’ll arrive? I think that only leads to exhaustion and burnout. A friend once told me about their military training: They set out at night with full gear, not knowing where they were going. They didn’t know when it would end; they just kept going. It was much more exhausting than when they knew they had a 30-kilometer march ahead. The same can happen in business. It’s much easier if we know how long we need to push through 12-hour days than if we just plow through endless soul-sucking weekdays. And then there’s the question:

How much money do you want to make? That’s what a business is for—to generate money. That’s why you’re not running a nonprofit, a foundation, or doing volunteer work. A business exists to make money. But how much? A lot? Enough? Whatever the amount, how much? And where are you now? If you don’t know how much you want, how will you know if you’re successful? Because you feel that way? That’s deceptive... If things are going well, you’ll feel great, like you have enough! No matter how much “enough” is. If you’re in a bad mood, if a crisis like COVID hits, if everyone tells you to be afraid, that feeling will grow that you don’t have enough.

And it doesn’t matter how much you have!

So it’s worth figuring out what you want and how much of it you want. Because that’s necessary to know where you’re heading. Where you want to arrive. And you know what? It’s okay if you don’t know yet—just know that it’s worth knowing. If you don’t have an honest answer yet, that’s fine. If the question is nagging at you, the answer will come. Be aware of it, because it can be an incredibly clear and understandable guide in your entrepreneurial life. It helps you understand what well-being means to you as an entrepreneur. What good life means to you.

Hard work? The law of attraction? Is it enough to imagine your well-being and then attract it? Maybe, try it out and let me know if it works. A roast pigeon could fly in through the window; I believe that can happen. Leave the window open, so you don’t have to replace the glass afterward, and wait. Don’t like waiting? Then do something! This way, you increase the likelihood of achieving what you know you want to achieve. Will it work? Who knows? We don’t know what will happen, but we can know what we want to happen. So know, and work for it!

If you’ve imagined the state you want to reach, when do you think you could realistically get there? Immediately? Well, then I understand why you’re stressed :D Give yourself a bit more time; otherwise, the pressure will be too great, and that can either help or hurt. It helped me; it pushed me a lot, but it wasn’t necessarily good for those around me. And I paid the price... So, when do you want to achieve it? Maybe in 3 or 5 years? Let’s say 3. Write down the goals you want to achieve in 3 years!

What should your annual revenue be? What should your profit be? How many clients will pay you this? Who are these clients? How many employees will you have? It doesn’t matter what these criteria are—the question is, what’s important to you in your business. Once you have that, write down where you stand today with these things. This is Year 0, the base you’ll build on. From here, it’s simple—just fill in Years 1 and 2, and you’ve got the main arc of your plan.

I once had a great conversation with a company leader who envisioned building a billion-forint company from services in 5 years. When we put together the spreadsheet and I started asking him how he envisioned the process and where the money would come from, he let go of the plan and significantly reduced the numbers. Is that a problem? No. If you can’t envision the process, you can still reach your goal; the question is how actively you can participate in it and how much will depend on your luck and external factors. Is there a problem with doing it without a plan? Not for me; is there for you? If there is, make a plan; if not, enjoy the process and see what happens...

But are you aware of these things? Have you ever said these things to yourself? Have you taken the time to consciously address these fundamental questions, or did you just get swept along in your business life, hoping things would work out somehow?

If not, then it’s easy for your company to head in a direction you don’t want. It doesn’t serve your desires; it just generates money. A lot, or a little. It matters, but if you no longer love it, if you only see the problems, it will slowly drain the life out of you. And you won’t understand why you’re exhausted.

On the other hand, even if you’ve thought these things through, it doesn’t guarantee everything will go smoothly. But if you have, you’ll be able to prepare consciously for the process, create plans, and check them periodically to see if you’re

 still on track. Whether your company is heading where you want to go.

be clear about what you, as a person, desire

consider what your company can contribute to this

then imagine what your quantitative and qualitative goals are

then write down where you stand with these today

finally, imagine how you’ll get from the present to your envisioned future in the time you’ve imagined

This is the foundation for turning your dream into a tangible goal, for which you can plan a path. Because you might need a plan. Not to cling to it tooth and nail, but to know what you’re deviating from.

But I’ll write more about that later...

Everyone Struggles at Their Own Level

We do so many things we don’t like for the sake of the few things we do. I often hear this: we tolerate 80% of things just to enjoy the remaining 20% that we love. Is the famous Pareto principle, the 80:20 rule, true for our lives? Or is it just another paradigm that sometimes helps us accept things and sometimes gives us an excuse not to act? And if it’s not true, can we flip that ratio? Or could it be 100% good?

I think this 80:20 rule is just another fixation, and sure, you can accept it if you want, but I don’t want to. I think it conditions us to

The Pareto principle, also known as the 80:20 rule, is named after Vilfredo Pareto, an Italian economist who observed in the late 19th century that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population (what a nice ratio… I wonder what it’s like today?). The theory suggests that in most cases, 80% of the results come from 20% of the causes. This principle has since become widely applied in economics and management because it helps identify key areas to focus on for maximum efficiency.

We can apply the Pareto principle to many areas of our daily lives. For example, at work, theoretically, 20% of the tasks we complete bring 80% of our success—if we can recognize which 20%. Or in our free time, 20% of our activities bring us 80% of our joy. This approach can help us focus more on what truly matters and avoid wasting time and energy on less important things. Applying this principle can also help reduce stress by setting priorities, which in turn helps us decide what to do. This makes it easier to sort through our tasks.

Focusing on the most important activities allows us to manage our time and energy better, reducing tension, stress, and the risk of burnout. That’s how I felt during the first three years of Games for Business when I was managing a small team and was responsible for the company’s finances, sales, marketing, creative concepts, and, of course, key clients. It’s impossible to do it all, so you have to decide what’s important, accepting that there will be skeletons in the closet...

Entrepreneurship is tough—it’s tough for everyone. You take risks, take out loans, work 12-14 hours a day, your employee slacks off, and then leaves for a better offer even though you taught them the trade. But that’s how it is. 80% of things suck, but there’s that remaining 20% that’s good. Maybe it will be worth it. Perhaps... And besides, everyone’s in the same boat. It’s part of our culture too. Isn’t that what our religion taught us? There might be suffering, insults, lies, but let’s rejoice because abundance will be our reward in the afterlife... Things will be better later.

But I don’t want to spend my life struggling just so things can be good in heaven. I don’t want to accept that 80% of life is tough, and you just have to push through it to enjoy the remaining 20%.

I accept that there are tough parts of life.

Because yes, not everything is as I want it to be. BUT! But why can’t that ratio be reversed? Or you know what? Maybe it can’t be reversed, but I want to strive for that. Because I have this idea—and maybe it’s just a romantic notion—that 80% of life could be that awesome thing where you wake up and say, “THIS IS IT, this is great!”

So, do we need that 80% to be 100%? Not necessarily. Because it might not be worth it :) This reminds me of software product development, which we did for years before Games for Business. You can create an 80% good product without much trouble. A 90% good product is already challenging, but achievable. However, refining and perfecting it becomes increasingly difficult. I’ve experienced that developing beyond 90%... well, each additional percentage point becomes a blood, sweat, and tears effort. Creating a 100% perfect product isn’t impossible, but those last few percentage points... it might be that what you gain from them isn’t worth the energy you have to invest.

Maybe that’s the secret to a happy life too. Finding that balance where you reach a level of perfection that no longer requires you to make things better because you understand that the energy for improvement takes more than you get in return. And at that point, you can let go of the pursuit of better. Because what you have will be more than good enough. It will be the best good, even if it’s not 100%.

There’s something thrilling about being able to stand—and not just stand, but move forward—on this very thin line, this tightrope in life...

And maybe it doesn’t matter whether it’s 20, 60, 80, or 90% good—the important thing is that the ratio feels right for you, that it’s not a compromise or mere endurance, but a good that truly is good enough.

Raised to Endure

I believe my business career truly took off when I started going on long-distance hikes: first the Kinizsi100, then the GR20 in Corsica (I’ve written about this before, click here). These experiences taught me about planning, perseverance, adaptability, and humility. Since then, I’ve fallen in love with mountains and forests, and whenever I can, I go hiking. These days, I have plenty of time, and ever since Ottó came into my life, daily walks have become a routine.

I’ve been reading up on the topic, curious to see if there’s any research on the impact of walking and spending time in forests on our thinking. And there is 😊 In recent years, more and more studies have examined the benefits of spending time in nature, particularly walking and “forest bathing.”

Researchers at Stanford University found that walking boosts creative inspiration. In four different experiments involving 176 college students and adults, they showed that walking increases creative output by an average of 60% and significantly enhances creative and divergent thinking (the ability to generate a variety of solutions). In one of their experiments, participants were asked to come up with alternative uses for an object, and those who walked came up with far more novel responses. However, walking did not improve tasks that required focused thinking.

So, while you might not want to solve math problems while walking, it’s definitely worth pondering your problems and considering different solutions.

But why is it better to walk in a forest rather than on a treadmill in an air-conditioned gym? There’s a perhaps less well-known term: Shinrin-Yoku, or forest bathing, whose benefits have been increasingly supported by scientific research. This traditional Japanese practice involves immersing oneself in nature and engaging in recreation. The goal is to consciously enjoy the natural environment using all five senses. The Japanese Forestry Service first described the concept in 1982. Shinrin-Yoku means absorbing the forest atmosphere, and numerous studies have documented its positive effects. The list of associated benefits is long:

Positively affects the presence of cancer-fighting proteins

Reduces sympathetic nervous system activity (fight or flight)

But perhaps the most important benefit for someone living a city life, especially if running their own business, is stress relief. Stress that grinds you down, makes it hard to breathe, and silently eats away at your body and soul. Research has shown that forests

And how much time do you need to start feeling these benefits? A research team at the University of Exeter found that spending just two hours a week in a forest significantly improves health and psychological well-being.

So, two hours a week, two hours of walking in the forest.

You can probably find a forest near any city, and you can probably spare two hours a week. I have the Mecsek right here, and luckily, I have two hours every day.

The Impact of Forest Walks on Problem Solving

Have you ever done something that everyone around you unanimously said, "No, don't be foolish!"? An incomprehensible decision in your life, career, or business? Something that is different...

I think I’m put together in a very peculiar way. And I don’t even know what I would prefer: to say that people, in general, are put together in strange ways, because then I’d know we are all like this... Or to think that I’m the one who’s different, and the others are not, because then I could feel special. Special, in my own peculiar way.

How true is it for us, humans, that we want to belong somewhere while also wanting to stand out, to be different? Because nowadays, normality is boring. But how can we stand out if we don’t belong somewhere? After all, you can only stand out from somewhere. And if you’ve stood out, do you still belong somewhere? What kind of standing out is it that doesn’t elevate you so much that you no longer belong where you stood out from? And if you’ve stood out, does that mean you belong to those who have also stood out, so you’re like them? But if you wanted to stand out, did it, but then you’re like the others who stood out, and you truly want to stand out, how far do you have to rise to be so outstanding that there’s no one around you anymore because you’re so different, so special?

And what will be there? Loneliness? Emptiness?

For me, belonging somewhere is a fundamental need. I long to belong somewhere. To a partner. To a family. To friends. The feeling of belonging gives a sense of security, good self-esteem. Isn’t it great when in your favorite café they know exactly how you like your coffee? You feel like it’s your place. Maybe this doesn’t need much explanation, the feeling is there within us, the warmth, the relaxation, perhaps even a little smile appeared while reading this, as that inexplicable soft warmth passed through us. It’s good to belong somewhere. It’s good because then I’m not alone. Yet this feeling can come so brutally. Just out of nowhere. After a conversation where you weren’t heard. When no one says hello back. When they call you stupid for what you bought, who you voted for, how you dress, your hair, and basically everything else... at that moment, they take away a tiny piece of your belonging. And those who say it together know they belong together. You freeze, you die a little, you want to run away. Do you run? Hmm. Maybe. Or you go back among them. To where you were hardly anyone, and you try again. Maybe you buy a different car if you can afford it. If you really want to be with the others, maybe along with the car you’ll have some debt and a few tough years. But maybe then they’ll say, "You’re cool, buddy." So, maybe you’re kind of there, kind of not, but you’re happy enough if they’re not picking on you. Maybe you’ll even pick on someone else, and if you’re lucky, the others will pick on that person with you. You’ve arrived. This was how it was in kindergarten too. But you’re over 40. You don’t want to stand out, that’s not good, that’s visible.

Am I different? I like doing things differently. I think that’s another fundamental need of mine. Maybe I think differently, maybe I see opportunities in different things, maybe I make different decisions in my life. Because I want to do something that not many others do, or only a few. I’m not interested in traditional, risk-free business ideas. I seek the new. I love discovering possibilities, and I try to exploit these new opportunities. I like doing everything differently. Saying things that others don’t even want to admit to themselves. Making people think. What’s with this big desire to be different? What does it give me? I understand what belonging gives, but this desire to be different?

Come Walk with Me! Let’s Chat…
2024.07.08.

2024. BALAZS VENDLER

All rights reserved.

Come Walk with Me! Let’s Chat…2024.07.08.

2024. BALAZS VENDLER

All rights reserved.

Come Walk with Me! Let’s Chat…
2024.07.08.