The first year of Laurens DC, part 2

A new business. What does it mean?
It’s probably one of those symbolic and metaphorical things – meaning something completely different for every single person.

For some people, it means financial freedom. For others, trust in oneself. For some people, it’s a badge of pride towards others.

For me, it meant a lot of weird and unexpected things. Let’s dive in!

Note: If you haven’t already, check out part 1 where I share perspectives on “The Early Days” of my business.

Bureaucratic challenges

Alright, I’m an independent now.

Wait… Uhm… How do taxes work, exactly?
And how do I do social security things now?
What are all these “financial optimizations” that business owners are all talking about?

Well, let’s figure it out, I guess!

It was quite interesting, funny and demotivating at the same time to figure out how the Belgian tax system works.
I always kind of knew that independent businesses complain about it, but now I knew why.

On the other hand, paying taxes is great.
I’m helping a ton of people in need, by crowdsourcing their medical bills and pensions.
And I’m personally contributing to keep those amazing, comfortable Belgian roads in pristine condition!

What can I say? I’m Belgian, somehow there’s some kind of genetic compulsion to meme about our roads and politics.

Students, I welcome thee

One thing remained certain, even whilst I was bathing in that sweet bureaucratic accounting confusion: I still love teaching.

I might not quite be the guy with an epic beard and mustache on a Himalayan mountain top, but the gist of it is there!

Transfering knowledge and life experiences to others on their personal path is a great honor. – Laurens DC

Surprisingly, after simply registering on a few teaching platforms, I received multiple requests from students. Mostly those who got a bit scared for an upcoming exam or test.

But no matter the goal, I’m here to dive deep into the computer thing and help us figure out together how it works, how we can achieve what we want!

It’s truly a deeply fulfilling experience to see people’s eyes glowing up, new pathways in their brain being formed, and motivation taking shape to tackle on new challenges.

Finding less poor clients

As much as I love teaching, a successful financial business year cannot reliable be made on exploiting exam stress alone.

Honestly, when it comes to business strategy, I had no idea what I was doing.
Do any of us?

I didn’t have a plan, I didn’t know about the “market”, I didn’t have a business partner.

But I had an intention, a deeper desire. To contribute to people’s growth, and to create a life aligned with who I am.

And so I looked for work in all sorts of different areas: As a music teacher, as a writer, as a coach, as all the things that would fulfill me and open new doors and challenges.

A lot of things didn’t stick. But some of them did.

I found partnerships with various clients, such as Cegeka (IT solutions & services), Foodbag (Belgian food box delivery) and Alice (Empowering lawyer productivity with AI).

I’ve tailored and facilitated workshops for coaches, designed and hosted training courses, and architected and partnered in software engineering.

I was fortunate to collaborate in various business challenges and meet lots of people with a desire to move forward in their life and business. – Laurens DC

Surprising to some, I’ve also turned down multiple partnerships and work offers.
When things get stressful, it can be difficult to remember the reason I’m actually doing this.

I want to directly contribute, create a positive impact and grow as a person while building a rich and fulfilling life.

On the payroll this unfortunately didn’t work out for me.
So I’ve got to keep this purpose and vision in the front of my mind, in order to find clients that are aligned with my vision and not end up in the same situations.

Looking back

It didn’t go as I had planned.
Of course it didn’t!
And it was beautiful.

I’ve learned so much. About myself, about the “market”, about people.
About the world out there, about software engineering, about leadership.

I’ve met many people on the way and grew more than I could have imagined, on all levels!
Personal, technical, emotional, metaphysical, quantum mechanical.

Big thanks to everyone else involved in this journey!

And a special thanks to Frauke, my coach who has supported me tremendously on the journey! I love good coaches btw.

Here’s to the next year. Looking forward to it!