I was always annoyed by those stories about successful people who, in the months before their breakthrough, were basically living on the edge, barely able to afford food, because they spent their last money keeping their system alive. They knew that if their company collapsed, the one that made them capable of signing deals, then every sacrifice they had made would have been pointless. They were close to success, but life was still testing them. Nothing was left for themselves or their families. Even the option of borrowing from friends had run out, and they were facing serious difficulties.

We know several famous cases. The people themselves talked about it later, at the peak of their success, describing what they had gone through. And then, one day, it happened. After years of struggle, the buyer appeared – not by accident – and opened the world to their technology or service.

There is one thing these stories have in common. When everything seemed most hopeless, they did not stop for a single moment. They kept their daily routine, kept working, learned to keep a poker face, and act as if everything was fine.

These stories are told by the few who eventually made it. They are the minority. They are the exceptions.

And then there is the other side.

Those who fought the same way, endured the same way, believed in it the same way – and still, that moment never came.

There are no books about them. No interviews.
Only silence remains.

And this is where it becomes truly difficult. Because when you are in it, you don’t know which side you will end up on.

All you know is that today there is no money.
And tomorrow you still have to get up.