Levelling Up: Trading comfort for a new challenge

Well, here we are again. Another “new challenge” post. I guess I have a thing for these...

Leaving Aragon wasn’t an easy decision. Honestly, it’s a fantastic place to work: genuinely talented people, a team culture that makes even remote work feel connected, and a shared focus on building products that actually matter. Working in the DAO and governance space is weird - half the time, it feels like you’re building things for people who don’t realise they need them… until suddenly, they do. And Aragon is right there, shipping tools that push the space forward.

So why leave? If I’m honest, life at Aragon was just… comfortable. The org is mature, the direction is clear, and things (for once in crypto) are actually predictable. For most, that’s the dream. But over time, I found myself boxed in on the frontend, rarely dipping my toes into the backend or the messier parts of building product. The learning curve started to flatten. I realised I missed that sense of not knowing what the hell I'm doing half the time... that chaos that is there in a startup.

So, here we go again. Back to zero.

I’ve joined a stealth DeFi startup (can’t share the name yet, sorry) as lead full-stack engineer. When I say “from the ground up,” I mean literally zero product, nothing to inherit, everything to build. Of course, this is terrifying and risky, but just as much enticing. This will be working on the sort of thing that got me excited about the space in the first place. And this time around, I’m not just writing code. I get to help shape the team, the culture, and maybe even the product vision (for better or worse).

There’s something addictive about that type of place for me. I wrote about this in my Back to Scrappy post a while back, and it still rings true. I’m at my best when I’m a little bit out of my depth, forced to learn and adapt in real time, with just enough crazy to keep things interesting.

Working just outside of that zone and not being truly ready is where it's at! So, here's to trading predictability for possibility, and to chasing that feeling of building something from scratch.

Wish me luck. 🚀

P.S. If you’re considering a similar jump, or just want to swap stories, my DMs are always open. And if you’re at Aragon - thanks for everything, and keep doing what you do.