“One day I was at a coffee shop with my friends when a girl across the room caught my eye. I really wanted to talk to her, but couldn’t bring myself to make the initial introduction… I’ve always had trouble starting conversations—not just because I’m shy, but also because I’m polite. It feels rude to walk up and interrupt someone. So, of course, I did nothing. I realized that problem probably happens millions of times a minute and was inspired to find an elegant way of solving it.”

“Yeah, Justin and I have known each over for a very long time. And even as kids, we’d always kicked [startup] ideas around… Gosh, there were hundreds we didn’t pursue. And the primary reason we wouldn’t pursue an idea—even though many of them were great and had great potential—was because we weren’t passionate… didn’t empathize enough with the problem.

Starting a company is very, very difficult—both emotionally and physically. It takes a toll on you in every way… So, you should never become an entrepreneur because you like the lifestyle or because it sounds cool: You have to have passion. If you don’t, it’s going to be really difficult to survive.”

“A lack of direction. I come across too many young entrepreneurs who don’t have it figured out and say, ‘It’s ok, we’re a startup. We don’t need to have it figured out.’ I don’t know about you, but I know exactly what I’m doing when I’m starting a company. Every phase, every hire—I know exactly what problem we were solving and who our customer is. And, sure, your plan will change 100 times. But you still need to have one at any given moment.”

“Unfortunately, no. [Laughs] But actually, it’s pretty fortunate because I have a great girl friend now. And if I’m lucky, I’ll get to leave work early tonight and have dinner with her.”