Watched the MRR tick over $8,333. Did the math. We'd hit $100K ARR. The milestone I'd been chasing for three years. The number that would mean we'd "made it."
Expected to feel something. Joy. Relief. Pride. Something. Instead felt pretty much normal. Woke up the next day and there was still work to do. Customers still needed support. Features still needed building. The business didn't feel different just because a number crossed a threshold.
Took me a few days to realize that the flatness was actually the right feeling. The milestone wasn't the point. The point was building something sustainable. Something that works. Something I could keep doing.
If I'd felt euphoric at $100K I would have crashed when the next goal wasn't as satisfying. If reaching the milestone was the reward then what happens after. The flat feeling meant I was in it for the process not the checkpoints.
Now I'm working toward other numbers but I hold them loosely. They're markers not destinations. The real satisfaction comes from the work itself. The customers helped. The problems solved. The small improvements compounding. The milestones are just evidence that the work is working. They're not the work itself.
If you're only happy when you hit goals you'll be unhappy most of the time. The journey is the whole thing. The numbers just tell you you're still on the path.