Building it Without the System

I've never been privileged. I've always had to pave my own way toward my dreams.

Want a unique sweater? No problem. You have a sheep, you shear the wool, wash it, dye it, spin it into yarn, and then knit. Voilà, you have the sweater you wanted. I was 12. Growing up during Soviet times, we had to create our own brands; there was nothing in the stores.

Interested in riding? Okay! You head to the stables and start training a workhorse who is probably just as surprised by the situation as you are. You care for the horse, grooming and feeding it. When you decide to take up show jumping, you build the obstacles and start practicing. If you want to spend even more time at the stables, you construct a break room from scratch, decorate it, and bring in a coffee machine. This way, it's comfortable to chat and maintain horse equipment. I was 13.

Most of the time, success isn't about the budget. It's about knowing what you want and being ready to work for it, regardless of your starting point. It's also about enjoying the journey with others. My sweater project was undertaken with my grandmother, and the riding began with the village children. We started with 40 kids, but in the end, only 5 remained.

Creating things is difficult. It’s chaotic and messy. You take risks, and you face failures. I believe not everyone is equipped to handle the turmoil one must navigate before attaining the desired results. The development process is never as polished and seamless as it’s described in books.

Over the last few years, I've seen projects that followed the system to the letter and still failed. In my view, people often hide behind development methodologies, using them as shields. They claim, "We did it professionally, so this is a professional result." Luckily I didn't know about those processes as a kid.

The system doesn't know who you are and what you truly desire. It takes hard work and inspiring company to find it out.