Prior to Founding AutonoMe William was a local lecturer teaching adults with Learning Disabilities and Autism for a number of years. It was here that he established his passion and began to see the world through the eyes of people with Learning Disabilities. This helped William see how his skills and experience could further lend it itself to innovating the way we provide support for household activities.
I was born in Bristol and moved away at 18 to study at University after which I returned back to Bristol to settle down and find my own feet. Throughout my time I’ve noticed Bristol has accelerated its progress in recent years making it a great place to be right now. It’s buzzing with activity and each day hosts interesting events all across the city for both work and social activities. So many in fact I find it challenging to keep up with them all, recently requiring me to become more selective. There’s a welcoming, vibrant, inclusive culture at the heart of Bristol’s innovation. It’s these qualities that are really putting Bristol on the map.
It’s incredibly challenging founding and scaling a company so it’s important that your motivation for the journey is intrinsic. You’ll be poor as hell for a long time – accepting that is wise! You’ll also question yourself a lot, so be clear about who you are and what you’re trying to achieve. If you fail initially, it might not be because your idea is bad – it could be the market just isn’t right. It’s important to create your own definition of success – what does success look like for you? My definition has never been based on personal goals but instead, on the positive impact I’m able to make in people’s lives, the bigger the impact the better!
When people ask for advice I always say communication is key – if you can’t communicate your ideas in a way people can digest or understand then you don’t have a business. You’ll need to communicate with your clients, staff, suppliers, investors, mentors, and board all the time. Spend time working on this skill and it will pay dividends. Get good people around you. We’re successful because we have a great team and everyone works really hard. Get in good people who can see what you’re trying to build and make sure they share your vision.
