Do Cool Sh*t
Quit Your Day Job, Start Your Own Business, and Live Happily Ever After
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Summary
In the realm of daring dreams and audacious actions, Miki Agrawal's "Do Cool Sh*t" is your blueprint for shaking off the ordinary and embracing the extraordinary. With a rebellious spirit and zero start-up capital, Miki launched a farm-to-table pizzeria, ventured into children's media, and revolutionized intimate apparel with THINX. This manifesto is more than a guide; it's a rallying cry for those ready to pivot from mundane to magnificent. Whether you're stuck in a rut or fresh out of college with stars in your eyes, Miki's real-life tales and unapologetic wisdom offer a roadmap to crafting your own story of success and fulfillment. Get ready to question the status quo and ignite your entrepreneurial fire with insights that are as practical as they are inspiring.
Introduction
Have you ever found yourself staring at your computer screen on a Monday morning, feeling that familiar knot in your stomach as you contemplate another week of uninspiring work? You're not alone. Millions of young professionals wake up each day knowing they're capable of so much more, yet feeling trapped in conventional career paths that drain their energy and stifle their creativity. The gap between who you are and who you could become grows wider with each passing day of playing it safe. This book is a raw, honest journey through one entrepreneur's transformation from a burned-out investment banker to a successful restaurateur and social innovator. Through vivid storytelling and hard-won wisdom, you'll discover how to break free from the expectations that keep you small and start building a life that truly excites you. You'll learn practical strategies for turning your passion into profit, building authentic relationships that open doors, and creating positive impact while pursuing your dreams. Most importantly, you'll understand that the biggest risk isn't failure, it's never trying at all.
Finding Your Calling Through Crisis and Courage
The morning of September 11, 2001, changed everything. Miki Agrawal was supposed to be at her desk in the Deutsche Bank building directly across from the World Trade Center, but for the first time in her life, she had overslept. As she watched the towers fall from her apartment television, she felt a profound shift in her understanding of life's fragility and purpose. Her friend Laura, who worked on the floors that were hit, had gone to get coffee when the plane struck, a random decision that saved her life among the 400 colleagues she lost that day. This pivotal moment forced Miki to confront a brutal truth: while others had lost their chance to pursue their dreams, she still had hers. The weight of this realization became unbearable when she volunteered to retrieve documents from the damaged Deutsche Bank building, walking through the rubble-covered floors where life had stopped mid-moment. Coffee cups still sat on desks, covered in white dust, frozen reminders of interrupted lives and unfulfilled potential. The experience crystallized a simple but powerful principle: crisis reveals what truly matters. When faced with our own mortality or that of others, the things we thought were important, like job security or others' approval, suddenly seem insignificant compared to the question of whether we're living authentically. The tragedy taught Miki that having the opportunity to pursue your passion is a privilege that shouldn't be squandered on fear or conventional expectations. This realization led her to create what she calls the "3-W Plan": identifying what you want to accomplish, who can help you get there, and when you'll make it happen. The key insight is that most people know what they want to do but get paralyzed by the gap between their current reality and their dreams. Breaking it down into specific actions and deadlines transforms overwhelming aspirations into manageable steps, making the impossible feel suddenly achievable.
Building a Business with Heart and Hustle
When chronic stomach pain led Miki to discover she was lactose intolerant, she uncovered a massive gap in the market that would become her first business opportunity. After researching her symptoms, she learned that one in five Americans shares this condition, yet when she traveled to rural France, she could eat dairy without any problems. The difference lay in how the food was produced: French farms used no hormones, antibiotics, or pesticides, while American dairy was heavily processed with additives that caused digestive issues. This personal problem sparked the idea for SLICE, a farm-to-table pizza restaurant serving healthy, locally-sourced food to people with dietary restrictions. But having a good idea and building a successful business are entirely different challenges. Miki had never worked in the restaurant industry and had no idea how to execute her vision. Instead of letting inexperience stop her, she created what she calls a "Meeting of the Minds," gathering eighteen experts from different fields, including architects, chefs, brand managers, and native New Yorkers, in MTV Studios for an intensive brainstorming session. The key to making this approach work was ensuring the experience was mutually beneficial for everyone involved. Rather than simply asking for free advice, Miki provided gourmet food, an exclusive venue, and the opportunity for attendees to network with other interesting professionals. This created genuine value exchange where people felt excited to contribute their expertise rather than imposed upon for favors. The brainstorming session produced tangible results: a complete brand identity, menu concept, interior design vision, and innovative packaging ideas. More importantly, it demonstrated a crucial entrepreneurial principle: you don't need to have all the answers yourself, but you do need to know how to bring together the right people and create an environment where great ideas can emerge. Success often comes from orchestrating collaboration rather than trying to figure everything out in isolation.
Creating Community While Staying Authentic
Building a business is ultimately about building relationships, but traditional networking often feels transactional and superficial. Miki discovered this firsthand when her early fundraising attempts failed miserably. She was putting on suits, meeting investors one-on-one in sterile conference rooms, and delivering formal presentations that left her feeling nervous and inauthentic. The disconnect between her natural personality and this corporate performance was obvious to potential investors, who remained unimpressed. The breakthrough came when Miki realized she needed to raise money in environments where she could be her genuine self. Instead of formal meetings, she hosted intimate dinner parties in beautiful venues, complete with talented chefs preparing her healthy pizzas and wine flowing freely. These events allowed potential investors to experience her product, understand her passion, and connect with her vision in a relaxed, authentic setting where her natural enthusiasm could shine through. One particularly powerful example occurred when Miki met a potential investor at a restaurant bar while he was on a second date. Rather than pitching him, she genuinely celebrated their new relationship and shared her own excitement about her project naturally. This authentic interaction led to both a significant investment and a lasting friendship based on genuine connection rather than transactional necessity. The lesson extends far beyond fundraising: authentic relationships are built on genuine interest in others, active listening, and creating value without expecting immediate returns. When you approach people with curiosity about their dreams and challenges rather than focus on what they can do for you, you create the foundation for meaningful partnerships that benefit everyone involved. This approach, which Miki calls "connecting" rather than "networking," transforms business development from a necessary evil into an opportunity for human connection and mutual support.
Evolving Beyond Success to Social Impact
Success in business opened new possibilities for Miki to address larger social issues through what she calls "doing good and doing well." When she noticed that children at her restaurant never ordered vegetables on their pizzas, sticking only to plain cheese, she saw an opportunity to tackle childhood nutrition in an innovative way. Working with her twin sister Radha, they developed Super Sprowtz, a series of superhero vegetable characters designed to make healthy eating exciting for kids. The impact was immediate and measurable. Children who had never eaten raw vegetables suddenly began requesting carrots because they wanted "super sight" like Colby Carrot, or ordering broccoli to gain the strength of Brian Broccoli. Parents were amazed to see their kids enthusiastically consuming foods they had previously rejected, simply because the vegetables were reframed as sources of superpowers rather than boring requirements. This success led to a much larger initiative: Super Sprowtz evolved into a multimedia company producing books, live puppet shows, television programming, and educational curricula that have reached over 100,000 children. The project demonstrates how business success can become a platform for addressing societal challenges, creating what President Clinton calls the "double bottom line" of financial sustainability and positive social impact. The key insight is that the most fulfilling businesses solve problems that personally matter to the founder while serving a broader community need. When your work addresses issues you genuinely care about, the energy and passion required to overcome obstacles comes naturally. This authenticity also resonates with customers, employees, and partners who want to be part of something meaningful beyond just profit generation. Social entrepreneurship isn't just about doing good; it's about building businesses that remain energizing and purposeful even as they grow and evolve.
Summary
The essence of building an extraordinary life lies in recognizing that everything around you was created by people no smarter than you, which means you have the power to change the rules and create something better. Stop waiting for permission to pursue what excites you; instead, start by identifying a problem you personally experience and care about solving. Create genuine value for others through your solution, and build authentic relationships by focusing on how you can help people rather than what they can do for you. Most importantly, remember that failure is only possible if you fail to learn from setbacks, so embrace experimentation and iteration as the path to creating work that fulfills you while making a positive impact on the world around you.
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By Miki Agrawal
