It’s almost every computer science major’s dream: develop a SaaS product, watch it blow up, and become immortalized in Silicon Valley. At least, that was my dream as Lovely’s CTO. I wanted the software our team created to reach millions of people, retire my family, and leave me drinking piña coladas in Hawaii. The reality, however, has been much more ordinary, yet somehow just as thrilling and electric.
When Isaiah and I first met, Lovely was only an idea: a hypothesis about the relationship market, but one I quickly fell in love with. I approached Holden during our digital logic class and convinced him to meet Isaiah and hear his idea. The decision to join was entirely his. Safe to say, he did, and that was the beginning of our team.
I’ll never forget my first day working on Lovely. I remember thinking, “Finally, this isn’t some meaningless assignment. This is real-world code that people will actually use.” But beneath that optimism, I quickly encountered the reality of balancing a startup, work, and college. There were sleepless nights when, after hours of studying, whatever energy I had left went into building the product. Nobody forced me to do it. No professor was waiting to give me an A. I did it because creating something real was thrilling.
I wanted to give 110 percent of myself to Lovely, but burnout has a way of finding even the most passionate people. I realized early on that I didn’t want to lose my time, health, or identity inside the company I was helping build. So I made room for reading, working out, hiking, and even playing video games, not merely as distractions or ways to unwind, but as sources of inspiration. From reading Plato to simply moving iron, a stray thought can become an idea that I immediately bring back to my team.
Lovely, as it exists today, owes much to that balance. Being the fastest is not always what is best for the product or its users. Sometimes, progress means slowing down, assessing what you have built, listening to your team, and giving an idea enough room to become something better.
If there is one thing I hope future student founders remember, it is this: do not become so absorbed in an idea that you suffocate it, or yourself. Let it breathe. Let it grow. And while you are building your dream, remember to take care of the person building it, in both body and mind.
— Daniel Acosta, Co-Founder