Something interesting and rather unexpected has been happening for me. At Buffer, we're very close to reaching a new all-time-high level of revenue (ARR). This has been a long journey with many ups and downs.

Our previous highest ARR was on February 6th, 2020. We hit $22,387,856 in ARR. Following this peak, we experienced 4 years of decline. It came from several missteps, indecision, and being too reactive. In order to turn it around, we made significant strategy changes and a ton of operational improvements. In 2023 we stalled our decline, and in 2024 we grew strongly again (12.56% growth). We're on track for greater growth in 2025 (already 10.25% growth since the start of the year).

But here's the unexpected thing that's been occurring for me. And let me be a little vulnerable here. Since getting back to strong growth and profitability, I've felt a little lost. I've been feeling lower motivation.

I've done a lot of soul-searching, I've gone on walks, I have countless journal entries since the start of the year. I've been trying to understand: why do I feel lost, clouded, lower in my motivation? Surely now that we're growing and profitable again, I should feel on top of the world? What is going on?

I don't think I have all the answers yet, but I've made some progress. I think fundamentally, the goal of getting back to growth and profitability was so clear and so important. Removing the existential risk to Buffer of a burn rate was critical to our long-term goals. We were reporting our runway in the monthly All Hands for the past few years, and we recently dropped that metric and reporting because it is now infinite.

We are default alive. It's incredible. But here's the thing… now that we've achieved that, it begs the question: what next? Achieving this incredible milestone is something we're celebrating, and yet at the same time for me personally has created a slight void. We've been chasing this for years, and here we are.

Of course, we have a deeply meaningful mission at Buffer to help entrepreneurs get off the ground and grow. To help them grow through organic social media reach, with tools that make their lives easier and save them time. To help creators go from nothing to habit and results. To help folks build something meaningful that positively impacts the lives of others. To help entrepreneurs turn their idea into a thriving business that can benefit the lives of customers and a team.

In many ways this mission has guided us back to growth and profitability. I'm proud of the fact we got back here by staying true to our mission and values, doing right by the customer, unwinding some of the things we slipped into doing that were not in the best interest of those we set out to serve.

At the same time, the imperative loomed strong; to get back to a place where we could ensure our long-term viability to continue building something impactful for customers and the team. I think at times it has felt like the goal, rather than the outcome. It's now time for that to change, which is invigorating and yet also requires a shift. It's a new chapter ahead for us.

I feel incredibly privileged that we have weathered our downturn, and we are back to growing strongly again. Now we have the opportunity to serve these folks more whole-heartedly than we ever have. We have resources to go much further for them. Not only are we back to growth and profitability, we have reached this place with our independence, we control our destiny and can make the decisions which truly serve these customers. Despite going through declining revenue, we repurchased a significant portion of the company in the past 8 years.

We're here to help creators, entrepreneurs and small businesses achieve their dreams and goals. I love seeing how what we've built helps folks provide value to others and gives them a better life at the same time. I believe we're equipped to continue serving people in a very unique way due to this rollercoaster journey we've been on, the experiences and scars we've gained which can inform our choices, and our long-tenured team who care deeply about our customers.

Whether you've recently discovered Buffer or have followed us, and me for the past 14 years, thank you for being part of the journey. We're excited to serve you.