We bootstrapped for a year in San Francisco, which was tough, and when I raised our first round, it mainly went to cover expenses I was already paying personally.

In the early stages of fundraising, it's common for the entire team to focus on raising funds, which can slow down company operations, so it's important to balance fundraising with maintaining business growth.

I raised 1.6 million and obsessively built the company for three years, achieving 8.4X growth in one year, which led to a position where I didn't need the money when I went to raise again.

I had to make tough decisions during a crisis, including shrinking the team and raising funds, which ultimately extended our runway and allowed us to launch successfully despite market challenges.

I made the mistake of comparing my startup to competitors who had already raised money, which led to unrealistic expectations about my own fundraising efforts.

In the early days, we struggled to raise money, which taught us to focus on solving real problems and to build an efficient, profitable business from day one.

The most important aspect of fundraising is to get it done so you can focus on building your company.

In the early days of a startup, survival is crucial; as CEO, you're either making money, saving money, or raising money.

Not having a lot of money forced us to innovate and focus on making every dollar count, which ultimately helped us grow faster than competitors who had more funding.