Interview: Holly Hamann of BlogFrog (part 2 of 3)

[Note: This is the first of the Solid Startups interviews. Today's interview with Holly Hamman is the second of three parts. The first part is here.]

JL: Everyone seems to have a personal definition of success.  What’s yours?

HH: My definition of success is feeling that my actions and what I am building in my work and home match my values and priorities. For instance, in my heart my family comes first.  When our home is in balance and the kids are getting the attention and support they need, then I can give to my work.  If I get overworked and things start falling apart at home, I have to stop and re-calibrate.  I want financial freedom, but not at the expense of my relationships. I also feel successful when I am solving a problem worth solving.  There were many days at my big corporate job where I really didn’t know how the task I was performing was related to any problems our customers had.  I was just too far removed.  The start-up space is like walking barefoot – you feel every pebble, stick, piece of gum, and crevice in the road. And you know first-hand what its like for your customers.

JL: What gets you up in the morning?

HH: I like waking up to a plan that I’m executing on.  When I am steeped in a well thought-out process, I wake up knowing exactly what my priority is for the day and what needs to get done. That feels empowering, like I can do anything.  If I don’t have a plan or something to go after that day (even if its about my family), I feel a bit lost, like I’m wasting valuable time.  Some people are probably way better at relaxing than I am J  Intentionally doing nothing is very hard for me but I hear its healthy so I’ll have to learn how to do that someday.

JL: What keeps you awake at night?

HH: Usually the last thought that crosses my mind at night is “what am I missing?”  What am I not seeing or what strategy have we not considered?”.  Those are my thoughts about work.  My kids are young teens (not driving yet) and I can’t seem to fall asleep until I know they are all in the house safe and sound.  There are tons of teen issues that could keep me up at night but I know I can’t worry about them all and I have to simply trust that my kids have been listening to me all these years and will make good decisions.