Scheduling

How many working hours?
It’s hard to say, because sometimes as an entrepreneur, you’re just “on” non-stop. Good ideas come to you in the shower you’re talking with you friends in the evening and something clicks. I don’t think you’re ever “off.” There are hours you work in the office sitting at a table, and there’s the rest of it: the outings, attending parties, taking part in things, being part of a panel… we do a lot. We always have somewhere to be, it never stops. But when you’re stimulated and there’s the thrill, it’s amazing.

Friends and family?
It’s true that for at least the first 10 years of my company, my friends who graduated and went to work for law firms or the Big 4, or the State didn’t have the same salary. They were making a lot more than me. They probably weren’t working the same hours either but I always had something that attracted people’s attention everyone was always interested in what was going on so it was compensated by the recognition I got from the working society. I think that’s important.

Making the best use of your time?
I’ve always chose to live very close to work, so not spend 2 hours commuting but more 10 minutes total both ways. Which makes a huge difference! You can easily work 2 or 3 hours more than your employees and have as much free time as them.

How to make it last?
I think we’re lucky to be in a very gratifying sector. We’re always launching products. I mean we launch products and they’re widely distributed right away. So, when we finish a magazine, it’s a sprint to the end, the whole team gets tired, we wrap up late… there’s a big group effort. A few days later it’s released, it’s distributed we get feedback right away and that’s very gratifying. Working hard and seeing results 3 years later is tough. That’s when you need to hold strong. For us, even if our line of work can be hard because you don’t plan the news, it happens when it happens, so you need to be ready to react… it is very gratifying when you publish an article and get immediate feedback. When a magazine is released you hear back. I’d say for the whole team: so graphic designers, journalists, photographers, the sales team… when you hear back, when a client says: “I invested and placed an ad, I’m getting responses, I’m pleased, my ad really worked” whoever made the sale is satisfied. Beyond making money, they know they helped a client. A journalist uncovers a story and talks about it, some people disagree, others say it’s great… And all that happens right away. Only a few weeks after your work or your effort. I think that’s very motivating.