While entrepreneurship is usually shown as a journey of success and wins, Ankur Warikoo chose to talk about the difficult reality behind it instead. In a rare moment of unfiltered honesty, the entrepreneur and author
opened up about what he called the “toughest phase of his life.” He shared that the lowest phase came right after what should have been a career high.
Responding to a question on X that asked, “During a very dark period, what was the best thing you did for your mental health?” Warikoo took a trip down memory lane to recall his failures in 2016.
In 2016, less than a year after raising $17M from Sequoia India, I laid off 80 colleagues (out of 420) for no fault of theirs.
My terrible decisions and judgment had led us to this point.
I had let everyone down – my cofounders, my team, my investors.
And myself.Going to… https://t.co/dpq0elH5qx
— Ankur Warikoo (@warikoo) December 17, 2025
He wrote, “In 2016, less than a year after raising $17M from Sequoia India, I laid off 80 colleagues (out of 420) for no fault of theirs.” Instead of justifying, he took complete ownership and admitted, “My terrible decisions and judgment had led us to this point. I had let everyone down – my co-founders, my team, my investors. And myself.”
The emotional cost, he admitted, was heavy as he added, “Going to the office everyday was the biggest mental mountain to climb.” Warikoo then shared the three things that helped him survive that period. Simply put, they emerged as his lifelines.
3 Things Ankur Warikoo Resorted To
He continued to share that the first thing he did was reading. The entrepreneur continued, “I read ‘Better Under Pressure’ – the book literally saved me.” For him, it was just a tool that helped him hold himself together when everything felt like it was falling apart.
The second was deeply personal as he shared, “After lunch, I would walk outside the office, listen to ‘Lose yourself’ by Eminem, and cry silently. Every day for 3 months.” The third was meditation. Initially, it was painful for him but gradually, he “moved from being a participant of my thoughts to an observer of my thoughts.”
Ankur Warikoo’s Honesty Earns Applause
His post struck a nerve, especially among founders and professionals who have carried invisible guilt. One user summed it up powerfully, “This honesty takes courage. Failure hurts more when it comes from your own decisions. What matters is not the fall, but the discipline to show up every day despite the weight. Reading, movement, meditation not as hacks, but as survival tools. Many founders feel this. Few speak it. Respect.”
Another added, “Owning catastrophic mistakes, showing up to the same office you broke, and still doing the inner work to rebuild yourself is the unglamorous side of entrepreneurship people rarely post about.” And perhaps the simplest reaction said it best, “Respect for honesty.”
Looking at the reaction, it is clear that Warikoo didn’t just share a story, he said what many feel but rarely admit.
