My Personal Story: Permanent Tinnitus

Imagine hitting $10M in revenue, you are feeling on top of the world. Suddenly, one quiet Wednesday morning, a high-pitched ringing in your ears refuses to go away.

And then a doctor tells you, 'This is likely permanent.' What would you do?

This isn’t just a story, it’s MY story.

2015: I was living the founder’s dream or so I thought. We had just acquired 2 of our largest competitors.

Revenue was strong, but the cost of maintaining that trajectory was hitting everyone hard.

My co-founder developed tinnitus, an incessant ringing in his ears, and I watched his struggle, feeling empathy but not urgency.

After all, I had my own issues: severe back pain from years of stress and neglect.

2016: It was a turning point.

Our team went from 150 employees to just 45—a decision that kept me up at night for 9 months.

It felt like we were staring down bankruptcy.

For 6 months, we canceled every team event, froze resources, and focused solely on survival.

The reality was undeniable:

The culture was sh*t.

Yet, we stayed aligned, pushed forward, and hit $10M. But the relentless grind left its mark on us, on our team, and on what we wanted to build for the future.

It was a hard lesson, but one we’ve carried forward: success can’t come at the cost of sustainability.

2018: I was burnt out and handed over day-to-day operations to focus on branching into a new business.

One morning, while trying to have a slower workday, the ringing started in my ears.

At first, I thought it was temporary.

But after a series of tests, the doctor confirmed it: tinnitus.

PERMANENT.

It was the most terrifying wake-up call of my life.

I realized the life I was leading—constant hustle, zero support, and neglecting my health—was unsustainable.

Worse, it was damaging my body in irreversible ways.

The Turning Point:

That day, I made a decision. I refused to let stress control me any longer.

Instead, I built what I call my "personal board of A-players":

• Coaches who helped me rethink my priorities and strategy.
• Consultants who guided my business operations so I could step back and focus on recovery.
• Therapists who helped me unpack the mental toll of constant pressure.

With their help, I took deliberate steps:

• I overhauled my schedule to prioritize rest and strategic focus over back-to-back meetings.
• I rebuilt my diet, reduced alcohol, and even experimented with fasting.
• I invested in my sleep, mastering techniques to maximize recovery.
• I traveled for eight months, focusing on creative projects and giving my body and mind the chance to heal.

Through it all, I learned a vital lesson: You can handle stress, or stress will handle YOU.

Let’s be honest, this process takes years and neither do I or you expect it to happen right away.

But years of hard work take one day of action to actually begin.

Let’s start with the first step.

1. Build your support system: Stop doing everything yourself. No successful founder takes care of every step of the business and his/her life. NONE.
2. Help won’t come on its own. Look for the experts who can guide you in key areas of your life and company.
3. Redefine productivity: Don’t equate busyness with success. Ask yourself what you want to achieve and then decide what you need to do to get it.
4. For example, if you want to launch a new product spend your time doing your market research and investigating at a detective level the exact need you aim to solve, instead of being part of a design meeting.
5. Prioritize recovery (but actually do it): I know this sounds obvious and cliché, and there is a high chance you know about this concept but haven’t taken real action.
6. Are you ready to lose organs along the way? Burnouts are sometimes severe and leave permanent marks. This is no joke.
7. Learn to listen to your body (I know what I’m talking about.)
8. Fix your sleep, eat healthier(but really), and integrate downtime into your routine before it’s too late. I like to think of sprint and recovery cycles like a high-performing athlete.
9. Recognize the warning signs: Burnout doesn’t announce itself loudly, it creeps in. Are you constantly tired? Does your body ache all the time? Sleepless nights? High anxiety? Heartburn? Low libido?
10. Urge to abuse alcohol, recreational drugs or fast food? Do you have a mental fog?
11. THOSE are the signs. (If you said YES to at least one question, it’s a great moment to schedule a doctor’s appointment.)

You know it, I know it: Founders are incredible problem-solvers.

Paradoxically; we tend to neglect the most critical problem: ourselves.

The truth is, you can’t fix permanent damage, you can only prevent it.

Don’t let stress rob you of your health, relationships, and future.

If I could turn back time, I’d act sooner, before the damage became permanent.

You don’t have to wait for a wake-up call like mine.

Book a 1:1 session with me now, and let’s create a personalized framework that empowers your business growth while safeguarding your health and happiness.

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