MS Start Up Forum

Everyday living
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I am sorry if this is not the right place to start this discussion. Please let me know if it is not suitable, and where I may be able to start this discussion…

My life, as for all of yours with MS, has taken a turn that none of us could have been prepared for. I have recently been diagnosed with MS, started my treatment, and recently exited my business (left my job). Personally I see this as a new chapter and want to fight it all the way through and readjust my life accordingly.

Certainly for me, life needs to be reinvented from scratch and we will all deal and cope with MS in different ways but one thing that struck me, whilst I am going through my own process of reinventing myself, is that we probably all understand each other, what we are going through and the challenges we have to deal with in our everyday life, better than most.

Coming from the start up world with an entrepreneurial background, I decided to start this new post, to reach to all of you as I am convinced that we all have tremendous life and work experiences, and wonder if we can start something together with an understanding of each others strengths and weaknesses (physical & mental) but tap into our skills and business experience.

Lets call it the MS start up forum. At this stage its a blank sheet of paper but I am convinced we have quite the talent in this space - lawyers, marketers, entrepreneurs, investors, doctors, sales experts, consultants, historians, shop keepers, scientists, builders, actors, etc… but at the same time we are all facing our own challenges to keep our jobs, stay on top of our projects, work from home, and so on. Why not help each other and maybe even start something together?

I am not sure where to start but maybe the best place to start is to find out who may be interested to join in? Share ideas? Maybe even put a plan together? Maybe someone has already started their own business and wants to grow it? maybe someone has invented something but doesn’t know how to market it? Maybe a lot of us are sitting at home not knowing what to do and how to do it and keen to create something with a group opf people? Maybe someone just wants to chat ideas through? Whatever it might be, I think we should talk!

I was fortunate to have an exciting career to date, and now that I have had to leave my colleagues back, I want to take on my new challenge; from the comfort of my home, with others that understand each other day to day challenges.

Maybe at this stage, I would just be interested to hear from you, if you are up for a new adventure, what your background (skills) are, what you are currently working on (if anything) and get to know each other. Lets take it from there?

I have created an email address for this but maybe you can reply to this thread with your interest but if you need to send personal email out to me please send to [removed by admin - contact author directly if interested]

I would love to hear from you. Please reach out and share.

Marcus

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Hi, this is an unusual thread.?I’m not sure if it is the right place for such a post, which asks for action.

We’re more used to sharing experiences, discussing what we think about various MS treatments, offering support and implementing ideas to see if they help in our day to day living.

I’ll be interested to see what other replies you get.

Pollsx

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Hi Pollsx

I was wondering the same (whether or not this Is the right forum) but then again, it was my way of reaching to an audience that would understand what I am going through around the topic of work and MS, and reinventing oneself, whilst reaching to see if there are others out there that are also keen to start something. The business world has evolved up to meet ups and networking forums and therefore felt that maybe we can start our own, with an understanding of what it means and the challenges of work with Ms.

I find this this a very difficult challenge on top of dealing with MS by itself, and unsure of my next steps, so felt that if others are in the same situation, that maybe we can work something out together.

Lets see, and if it’s not the right forum, then I hope not to offend anyone and the post will disapear.

Marcus

1 Like
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Don’t disappear Marcus. I used to be self-employed and ran a small business, a training company with 30 staff. So MS was

life-changing for me. Adapting to these changes is a challenge. I tried organising events with speakers, debates, but this still

involved travelling and having to be somewhere on time.

A knowledge based business might work - research, editing, report writing and publishing. That sort of thing.

Or online advocacy group might work with targeted advertising. For example a better version of Citizen’s Advice web pages

might work - study existing business models.

If you look at what Virgin Care is doing - getting a slice of the NHS and doing it badly.

Could you do it better?? http://www.virgincare.co.uk/

All depends of what sector you are interested in: private or public.

Fay

1 Like
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Hi Fay,

thank you for your response.

Yes indeed, that’s exactly where my thoughts are too but not quite figured out what direction to take yet, hence the post.

Love the ideas you put on the table already. I will explore these. Whilst my background is in the chemicals (foams) industry I see myself as a problem solver and love finding gaps in any market and thinking of filling that gap and finding a solution, regardless of the industry. Sometimes I think it’s actually an advantage to come from the outside as people from the inside tend to (sometimes) be creatures of habits.

But as you say, the key is to find something that would accommodate the ups and downs, and physical & mental challenges of everyday MS. Services, online are both options for sure.

What direction did you end up taking that suited you?

Marcus

2 Likes
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Not yet at a stage in my life where I need to take a new path - but I wish you success with this adventure and who knows which of us wil be ready to join you when the time is right x

1 Like
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Thanks Angela!

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Have you tried shift.ms?

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No I wasn’t aware of this.

Thank you! Seems like a great resource and forum for this.

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Hi Marcus

I think it’s an excellent idea. I’m not sure how you/anyone who joins you would progress it. I’m sure we all have ideas to make things easier in life for PwMS and by extension, our ageing population. Actually just providing/designing/making things that make life easier is a bit limiting, I realise. there are so many items provided for people with mobility or other difficulties that are horribly institutional looking and ugly, surely there’s a market for better looking products?

Anyway, I wish you luck with your idea and I hope one or two people show some interest and collaborate with you.

Best wishes

Bouncy