David Perel is the co-founder of Obox Design and a passionate racing driver and designer. David started this web malarkey as he left school and hasn’t looked back since.
My Definition Of Success | Success for me is being able to do what I want, when I want. My brother and I are very lucky that we get to do what we love and that we don’t have to answer to anyone when we do it.
I Am Driven By | Knowing that I get up in the morning and will create something that 10,000’s of people will use is a massive motivation.
The Difference Between Good And Great | People who are great at what they do have a deeper understanding (be it conscious our not) of the craft they’re working in. It also comes down to passion and dedication; the great will have been refining their craft for 10’s of years which is rare and difficult to do.
2014 marks my ten year anniversary in the web game and only now do I feel like I understand the bigger picture of what it is we do.
A Key Talent | There is no one area that I find I’m particularly strong in. Whereas my brother is probably the most talented developer I’ve ever know I am not the best designer, product manager or business developer however I am confident enough in each of those areas that I can combine them to make something worthwhile.
I have always been a slow learner but once I click I tend to get it right, that being said it can take me a long time to click.
If I was to share any advice on this front it would be about patience. It has taken me years to learn my craft, understand the WordPress industry and build the right relationships. We have been through so many peaks and troughs but at the end of the day it was patience (and belief) that kept us pushing towards a successful business.
The Characteristics Of Success | As mentioned above we do have a lot of patience but we’re also not afraid of working hard. Anyone who thinks they’ll create a successful business by working 9 – 5 is living in dream land. When we were building Obox there was a 2 year period where we worked 20hr days non-stop. We felt bad if we left the office when the sun was still out.
We owe that level of work ethic to our dad though as we were always inspired by his ability to pump in the hours to make his company a success. I think that to this day he’s still capable of out working 90% of the people I know. It’s amazing.
Principles I Live By | Loyalty and trust are two important characteristics. We like to treat our trust as a limited resource, it’s hard to earn it but once you have we will remain loyal to the end.
How I Use My Mind | We have huge faith in our ability to execute on projects that we work on and combined with knowing that it’s my brother who I’ve worked with all my life gives me a massive sense of reassurance. His ability to pull through on difficult tasks means I have no room to be average; I need to pull my weight with as much effort.
Another big part of achieving our ambitions is always comparing ourselves to the best in the industry. It’s not good enough to be the countries best; we want to be the world’s best. You have to aim as high as possible and try get as close to that as you can. Anything less is considered a failure and that doesn’t feel so good.
Dealing With Doubt | Self-doubt is inevitable at some point in your life, the only way you can get through that is to keep grinding it out. Surround yourself with people you can confide in and speak to.
Performing At My Peak | Eat well, sleep 7-8hrs a day (when possible) and exercise at least 3 times a week.
Resources I Use To Stay Inspired |
Apps: Fliboard, Yahoo News Digest
Books: American Icon, Creativity Inc.
My Future Dreams And Ambitions | My ultimate passion is to be a full-time racing driver one day. I will never give up on that dream. Business wise I’d like every website in the world to be powered by an Obox product.
The Best Advice I’ve Received | Too many things to mention here 🙂 I have written a post about my most valuable lessons though
Advice On Building Wealth | Don’t pursue the money. Do what you’re passionate about and the money will come as a result of it.
I Am Inspired By | My dad 🙂
