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Engineering Freedom

Justine

Sharing lessons from my entrepreneurship journey to help you overcome fear, avoid setbacks & get off the bench. Go from idea → prototype and iterate quickly.

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Featured Post

Celebrating 365 days unchained 🥂 😏

Hey Reader, Exactly a year ago, I was perched at the edge of a Grand Canyon of decisions. As I peeked over the edge, the cold air rising from the darkness below was crisp with anticipation and work-induced despair. All the unknowns of life after 9-to-5. Behind me, the three-headed work serpent hissing and slithering closer. Its three big ass heads stretching high above, glaring down. Deadlines, career improvement goals, demanding projects, and all the other junk I never gave a rat's ass...

5 months ago • 2 min read

“Justineee! Thanks for joining Indie Mastermind. Tell me about what you are working on and how I can help you.”Ayush, the founder of Indie Masterminds – an entrepreneurial community I joined a few days prior – asked with an encouraging tone, unaware of my simmering frustration.I had just wrapped the experiment for my first business idea that hadn’t worked out. I was at the all too familiar crossroads of not knowing what business problem to pursue next. Ayush presented a challenge that...

6 months ago • 3 min read

Hey Reader, A few days ago, I had an epiphany. It was as clear as a bright orange neon sign flashing the answer 2 mm from your face, a connection I was oblivious to all along. It struck me while watching a YouTube video on language learning that emphasized the importance of cultural immersion. The idea is to soak in the culture— audiobooks, music, movies and communities— like a dry sponge. Allowing the language to seep into every crevice and fold of your brain, even when you don't understand...

6 months ago • 2 min read

Hey Reader, In Feb 2015, I was fired. I avoided as many eyes as possible as I scrambled to gather my things and exit like the floor was hot coal. Then I passed the intern’s desk and felt his eyes like daggers in my ribs. For a nanosecond, the knots in my stomach released. It was the last time I'd endure his backhanded jabs and the intricate knots weaved into my intestines by the culture when I sat at my desk each morning. This was my first job as a Canadian immigrant and a software engineer....

6 months ago • 2 min read

Hey Reader, 8 months. That's how long the good-for-nothing idea fairy took to leave an idea under my pillow for me to work with. I am grateful, but I’ll have to slide her a few crisp bank notes next time to speed up the process. But you know what, I’ll take it. For my first product idea, I documented all the problems I encountered daily for a week.One kept resurfacing. Last September, I moved to a new residential community. Before this, I lived in an apartment. In this apartment, I didn’t...

7 months ago • 3 min read

Hey Reader, Ideas...sigh. I have been in an idea drought for as long as I can remember. I felt when the universe created me, it forgot to add a sprinkle of ideas and creativity. I knew ideas and opportunities were all around me because YouTube, 𝕏 and entrepreneurship forums like Indie Hackers were overflowing with posts of other's success with their ideas. But for me, crickets. I waited patiently for the idea fairy to sprinkle idea dust over me, for one magical idea to sprout a beanstalk out...

7 months ago • 3 min read

Life after quitting: My 9-month update Hey Reader, It's been 9 months, and I wish I had quit sooner. Quitting is not nearly as scary as I thought. Before quitting, my biggest fear was failing and having to go back to work.Though I have not freed myself from that possibility, I am confident I will eventually figure it out. Even though that fear still lurks in the shadows of my mind. It's been an engaging treasure hunt, and I am happy I allowed myself to have fun and take on this challenge. I...

8 months ago • 4 min read

Hey Reader, I have been seriously pondering the question: Why do we end up so far away from our dreams? Neck deep in unsatisfying careers for years, if not decades. For me, it's as if I got here on autopilot. Yes, I choose jobs intentionally, always with a goal in mind. However, that goal was never the MAIN goal, more like a side quest — a distraction. So, what do we need to unlearn? To ensure the main goal stays in focus. Let’s dig in. I was born and raised on the beautiful island of...

8 months ago • 3 min read

Hey Reader, When I began this journey, fear had me by the throat. The fear of being seen, having to go back to work after quitting, not figuring it out, looking stupid, not being qualified enough, etc. My list of fears was as long as the number of sand grains on a beach. They took up so much real estate in my brain that it was hard to focus. But you know the most surprising thing? Once I took the first step, the fear evaporated quickly. Especially once I started stacking small wins. Also,...

9 months ago • 4 min read

Off the Bench and Into the Game Read time: 3.5 minutes Hey Reader, This week I’ll share a short story and discuss the mindset shift to help you get unstuck: Nothing happens while on the bench Starting before I was ready If you don't have courage, borrow it Let’s dive in! My working years started exhilarating. I vividly remember the excitement I felt when I received my first paycheck. It felt like how I would imagine Mario feels when he eats the 1UP mushroom 🍄. However, over time the feeling...

9 months ago • 3 min read
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