Upgrade to Pro — share decks privately, control downloads, hide ads and more …

It Won't be a Straight Line - Peers Conf 2017

It Won't be a Straight Line - Peers Conf 2017

This was the most difficult and rewarding presentations I've ever given. It provided a more personal look behind-the-scenes of running a small software business while navigating health issues that ultimately led to my left below-knee amputation.

Garrett Dimon
PRO

May 12, 2023
Tweet

More Decks by Garrett Dimon

Other Decks in Business

Transcript

  1. IT WON’T BE A
    STRAIGHT LINE

    View Slide

  2. I’m @garrettdimon
    HELLO

    View Slide

  3. View Slide

  4. STARTING & SUSTAINING

    View Slide

  5. View Slide

  6. A new work
    fl
    ow to write,
    review, and ship web
    applications.
    A fast & reliable transactional-only
    email platform for web
    applications
    A complete work
    fl
    ow to write,
    review & deploy code.
    Instantly build and ship code anywhere
    in one consistent process for your entire
    team.
    Com
    ing
    soon

    View Slide

  7. 3.92YEARS

    View Slide

  8. 9
    SURGERIES 1 AMPUTATION
    +
    28
    TOTAL HOURS IN HYPERBARIC
    15
    SURGEONS CONSULTED
    16
    WOUND VAC CHANGES
    20+
    PROSTHETIST APPOINTMENTS
    30
    TOTAL NIGHTS IN HOSPITALS
    60+
    DOCTOR’S OFFICE VISITS
    100+
    PHYSICAL THERAPY APPOINTMENTS
    PAINKILLERS & ANTIBIOTICS COUNTLESS
    4
    MRI/CT SCANS
    (AND COUNTING)

    View Slide

  9. 100DAYS


    LOST

    View Slide

  10. 7.3% OF THE LAST


    4 YEARS

    View Slide

  11. 1.75 HOURS
    PER DAY FOR THE LAST 4 YEARS

    View Slide

  12. View Slide

  13. 🖥

    View Slide


  14. View Slide

  15. View Slide

  16. SURGERY #1
    Estimated 3 month


    recovery time.


    JULY 17TH, 2013

    View Slide

  17. View Slide


  18. View Slide

  19. 😧 🤔 😎

    View Slide

  20. LESSON:


    Responding beats reacting.


    Things will go wrong. Focus on
    the aspects you can a
    ff
    ect.

    View Slide

  21. 💩

    View Slide

  22. View Slide

  23. Winston Churchill
    When you’re going through
    hell, keep going.

    View Slide

  24. SURGERY #2
    Let’s go the ER for some pain
    relief.

    View Slide

  25. 💉💉💉

    View Slide

  26. View Slide

  27. LESSON:


    Maintain perspective.


    Not “Well. It could be worse.”


    But rather “I can handle this.”

    View Slide

  28. SURGERY #3
    Skin graft.

    View Slide

  29. View Slide

  30. q

    View Slide

  31. SURGERIES #4 & #5
    Time to get serious.


    Let’s do some debridement to
    prepare for a free
    fl
    ap.

    View Slide

  32. View Slide

  33. View Slide

  34. LESSON:


    Tiny steps are still steps.


    The key is that they’re your
    steps. Don’t compare your rate
    of progress to anyone else.


    (Or to “past you.”)

    View Slide

  35. SURGERY #6
    Free
    fl
    ap.


    Three weeks in the hospital
    starts now.

    View Slide

  36. WHAT IS A FREE FLAP?
    🥓 🍖

    View Slide


  37. “THAT’S NOT GOOD…”

    View Slide

  38. SURGERY #7
    That was fun, let’s do it again!


    (Another free
    fl
    ap.)

    View Slide

  39. 🏥

    View Slide

  40. 🔘

    View Slide

  41. 💓

    View Slide

  42. 🚨

    View Slide

  43. “HOW LONG WILL I BE HERE?”

    View Slide

  44. “We’ll keep you here a few
    more days and then we’ll
    move you to the
    fl
    oor.”

    View Slide

  45. View Slide

  46. View Slide

  47. View Slide

  48. PHYSICAL THERAPY!
    It’s kind of like paying
    someone to torture you
    several days per week.

    View Slide

  49. 🏋

    View Slide

  50. 👩💼
    👨💻 👩🎨👨🍳👩💻
    👩⚕ 👨🏫

    View Slide

  51. LESSON:


    Pain and discomfort are part
    of the process.


    Go right up to your limit. Push
    past it. Su
    ff
    er a little. Then do
    it all over again.

    View Slide

  52. SURGERY #8
    Liposuction!


    That makes 8 surgeries in
    about 3 months.

    View Slide

  53. 🏃 ⛹
    🚶
    SOMEWHAT TOLERABLE
    🚵
    🏋
    TOLERABLE WITH LIMITATIONS
    🏂
    ONLY WITH PAINKILLERS
    NOPE

    View Slide

  54. SURGERY #9
    Fuse or amputate?


    View Slide

  55. View Slide

  56. View Slide


  57. REGRET?

    View Slide

  58. View Slide


  59. 👪
    SAFE &


    RESPONSIBLE
    FOLLOW MY
    HEART
    VS.

    View Slide

  60. View Slide

  61. View Slide

  62. IS FUSION GOOD ENOUGH?
    Settle on getting by with
    moderate chronic pain or take
    risks to gain functionality?

    View Slide

  63. 🤔

    View Slide

  64. View Slide

  65. View Slide

  66. 🏂

    View Slide

  67. View Slide

  68. 👋

    View Slide

  69. LESSON:


    Don’t count on data and logic
    to provide the right answer.


    Too often we try to be 100%
    con
    fi
    dent about decisions that
    require a leap of faith.

    View Slide

  70. SURGERY #10
    Left below knee amputation.
    AUGUST 29, 2016 (3 YEARS AND 12 DAYS LATER)
    THAT WAS 8 MONTHS AGO.

    View Slide

  71. View Slide

  72. View Slide

  73. View Slide

  74. LESSON:


    It’s ok to let go.


    Just because something is
    holding you back, doesn’t
    mean you have to hold on too.

    View Slide

  75. STUMPTASTIC!
    Plenty of challenges.


    Zero limitations.

    View Slide

  76. View Slide

  77. “Daddy, can you run yet?”
    😊

    View Slide

  78. “You can’t beat me!”
    😛

    View Slide

  79. “Daddy, you’re cheating!”
    😡

    View Slide

  80. View Slide

  81. View Slide

  82. LESSON:


    It’s about progress—


    not aspirations.


    Focus on how far you’ve come
    because our journeys never end.
    You’ll never reach a
    fi
    nish line.

    View Slide

  83. Bill Gates


    (Probably)
    Most people overestimate
    what they can do in one year
    and underestimate what they
    can do in ten years.

    View Slide

  84. View Slide

  85. View Slide

  86. View Slide

  87. LESSON:


    Find your people so they can
    nudge you along safely.


    When you’re in the thick of it, it’s
    di
    ff i
    cult to know if you’re pushing
    yourself too hard or not hard
    enough.

    View Slide

  88. 🏃 ⛹
    🚶
    NO PROBLEM
    🚵
    🏋
    SIMPLE FOOT CHANGE
    🏂
    GETTING THERE
    SURE, WHY NOT

    View Slide

  89. View Slide

  90. View Slide

  91. View Slide

  92. View Slide

  93. View Slide


  94. 👡 👢
    👞
    👟
    👠 🎿

    View Slide

  95. LESSON:


    We’re all adaptive.


    Yes. You too.


    (And a whole lot stronger than
    we realize until we’re tested.)

    View Slide

  96. Sir Edmund Hillary


    First to summit Mt. Everest
    It is not the mountain we
    conquer, but ourselves.

    View Slide

  97. 🏔

    View Slide

  98. start_sustain


    garrettdimon


    garrettdimon.com
    THANKS
    g
    T
    T

    View Slide