They Got Acquired - A healthy dose of paranoia 👀

Oct. 25, 2022
​Read on web​

Startup 81cents has helped more than 900 underrepresented employees successfully negotiate their salaries — with an average 18% increase.

For founder Jordan Sale, it was meaningful work that paid off both for her members and, eventually, for her, in the form of an acquihire.

The legal process of the acquihire was more rigorous than Sale expected — even for a small deal.

“It requires you to spend lots of time thinking about what can go wrong, which, while a healthy exercise, can also lead to some paranoia,” she said.

Read more on how Sale built the pay equity community and secured an acquihire. 👇

👩🏻‍💻 This female founder built a pay equity community, which led to an acquihire ​

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Behind the business

My life-work balance got away from me the last few months.

I had surgery on my foot, so I couldn't hike, which is how I typically unplug.

I was also on call for jury duty, so I coped with the stress and uncertainty by hustling each week of September, knowing I might not make progress on the business the next week.

I got in the habit of working too much... and because I thrive on the frequent dopamine hits of building a new business, that habit was hard to break.

Going to Founder Summit helped me find balance again. Even though it was a "work conference," I didn't think much about my work. I enjoyed my family in the nature setting, and connected with other startup founders who also prioritize life, family and health. I found myself thinking about what's important to me and how I want to spend my time, not just as a business owner, but as a person.

So when I sat down to plan this week, I took this approach:

1. Blocked out kids & family hours
2. Blocked out yoga, walk & exercise hours

Then, and only then, did I look at what was left: the time I'd have for work.

Rather than figure out what I want to get done and try to fit it into my available hours, I figured out how many focus hours I'll truly have — and from there, identified what I should work on.

I committed about 11 hours to calls and meetings this week. (That's on the high end for me, and honestly more than I'd like, so I need to keep pushing myself to keep this low.)

That means I have about 21 other work hours to strategize and execute. Which feels luxurious and rich, like plenty of work hours.

Here's how I organized that visually using a Google Sheet:

Blue = work

Green = exercise

Yellow = family

The visual piece is important; it helps me be realistic about my execution hours and how much I will actually get done.

I've noticed — especially since becoming a parent — that I often expect too much of myself. I set my expectations high for the week, and then if I don't meet them, I feel like I failed. Which is silly, because the business did move forward, and I get to choose my own success metrics.

So this planning is Step 1 of aligning my work expectations with what's actually doable, in a way that also supports my family and health priorities.

Step 2 is figuring out which priorities belong in those 21 hours, and not stuffing it too full.

See you next time,

Lexi Grant
Founder & CEO
​They Got Acquired​
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