"Life is not about how many times you fall down. It's about how many times you get back up."
We've all read or heard this quote at some point in our life.
It may even be cliche at this point.
But it doesn't change how true it is!
This is the quote that came to mind during my conversation with 98point6 co-founder and CEO, Robbie Cape.
All of us experience failures in our lives. It's inevitable. But very few of us experience a failure in the public's eye and still manage to bounce back stronger than before.
Robbie is one of the few.
He shares how during his 12 year run with tech giant, Microsoft, he was offered a prestigious position to lead a new project, codenamed HailStorm. At the time, it was the largest project Microsoft was working on. He was brought into a meeting with Microsoft Founder, Bill Gates, to discuss this new project. All eyes were on the new General Manager.
"Just two months later, the night before I was going on vacation with my family, I was called into David's office (Robbie's boss at the time) and was basically fired. I crashed and burned in this position as publicly as anyone can... It was under a microscope, thousands of people were watching! It was the only time my son, Benjamin, saw me cry. All I thought about was how this can be happening? I made a face plant. I couldn't even think about getting back up! It was my lowest point and certainly the experience that taught me the most"
We can all relate one way or another.
We've all been there, where we feel like we've hit rock bottom and can't imagine a way out of the hole we're in.
It's important to note that life is filled with obstacles. Whether it’s in our work, relationships, personal goals, etc. We will never reach a point when we don’t encounter obstacles. The best thing we can do is know how to better approach those obstacles. And by doing so, turning them into opportunities.
Robbie eventually recovered and went on to found his first company, Cozi Group and after a 9 year run, Cozi was acquired by Time Inc. A few years later, Robbie co-founded 98point6 and is reshaping the way primary care is delivered so that everyone, everywhere can have unprecedented access.
At the time of writing this, 98point6 has raised nearly $130 million!
Great lesson to never quit and understand that where there is a will there is a way!