Ashish Patel is a 2:30 (5:42/mi pace) marathoner with the goal of breaking 2:30 while balancing his training, his time with his family and being the CEO of his own company. He trains in Austin, Texas.

What is your "day job"?

I’m the CEO and founder of Simpat Tech, a software development company I started in 2015. Simpat focuses on custom Microsoft development with a focus on B2B software solutions.

We currently have offices in Austin, TX, and Monterrey, Mexico. I bootstrapped the company from the ground up, and with the help of my partner in Monterrey, we’ve since grown to a team of 30 people.

In 2020, we were ranked #812 on the Inc 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in the US (#812), as well as by the Austin Business Journal’s ‘Fast 50’ list, which recognizes the fastest-growing companies in central Texas.

Because I run my own company, my day-to-day responsibilities can change in a minute. On any given day, I might be dealing with an issue in a project, hiring new team members, helping to close a sale, managing employees, etc.

What is the most rewarding aspect of owning your own business?

Our mission at Simpat is to transform industries, organizations, and people with world-class, quality software. My favorite part of our mission is transforming people. While I value being able to transform the lives of Simpat’s clients, I’m especially moved when we’re able to transform the lives of our people. Having the ability to improve the lives of our employees has easily been the most rewarding aspect of this journey.

One of the ways we transform our employees’ lives is by offering them experiences and career paths that are rewarding to them and also unique in our industry. I believe the way we’ve taken care of our people has been the key to our success as a company.

What is the most challenging aspect of owning your own business?

Running a company means adjusting to a certain amount of uncertainty. Transitioning from a stable job at an established company to starting and growing a company isn’t easy - and it certainly isn’t something you learn in school.

Over the years, I’ve had to find ways to deal with stress and anxiety. Running has been a big part of my coping mechanisms, as has meditation, which Matt introduced me to two years ago.

What does a typical day of work + family + training look like for you?

My typical day on a weekday looks like this:

Wake up at 5 am.
Make breakfast for my sons.
Stretch and core.
Start running around 6 am. Depending on the day, it could be a workout, easy day, or mid-long run.
After finishing the run, I’ll do a quick cool down and start helping my wife get my sons ready for school. Some days, my wife Kelly will start running right after me.
After dropping off my eldest at school, I head to the office. Some days, I’m traveling, while other days I’m on-site with our clients.
I get home around 5:00 and focus on my family. We eat, bathe the kids, play and put them to bed.
Some days I have a second run, and run after the kids go to sleep.

On the weekends, I do my long runs.

What is the hardest part of owning your own business and having a family while training for a big goal?

The most challenging aspect is managing the balance of family, fitness, and business. All three are important to me - in that order, specifically - but they also play off each other. Without success in one area, the others would suffer.

Running allows me to clear my mind to be more present with my family and business.
My business gives me a way to provide unique experiences for my family.
My family keeps me motivated to maintain balance; my wife’s support has been an integral part of my running success.

Ultimately, training for a goal that requires a significant amount of time, dedication, and sacrifice, while also trying to maintain balance in other areas, forces you to focus on quality - not quantity.

Your goal is to break 2:30 for the marathon, and you came very close running 2:30:XX. What was it like to come that close?

While it would have been nice to have gone 8 seconds faster and gone under 2:30, I was incredibly happy I had the race that I had after having a poor two weeks of preparation.

I went into the race with no expectations and found myself in a place where I could go sub 2:30 halfway through. I had to spend the rest of the race convincing myself I can be here and was able to keep it together.

How did you feel immediately after crossing the finish line? And how did you feel after some reflection?

Extreme joy. I had no idea I was capable of getting so close to 2:30. Going into the race, I had been sick and didn’t really feel mentally prepared.

Matt did an incredible job preparing me for the race mentally as I worked through being sick and dealing with anxiety.

What keeps you motivated and going for that goal?

The feeling of accomplishment after achieving a goal that required so much sacrifice and energy is the primary reason I stay motivated.

My drive to be successful and the fear of failure I have is what’s kept me motivated to be better in running. Honing that drive through running has driven my motivation to be better with my business.

I’m also motivated by the fact that I’ll soon reach an age where it’s likely that I won’t be able to run any faster.

What’s your favorite part of being part of Boulder Underground?

I never had a dedicated coach for running before BU. Removing the energy required to coach myself has been one of the best parts of the experience, since I can redirect that energy back into my family and my business.

My other favorite part is Matt’s methodology and the results that have come from it. I’ve been running faster in my late 30s than I ever have before - and I’ve been doing the least amount of miles I ever have.

I also haven’t been injured for more than a week or two, which is a dramatic change from before BU.

What growth have you seen in the last year?

The last year has been rough with COVID. Without having any specific races to train for, I haven’t seen as much growth in my training. Most of my growth this year has been personal.

COVID has forced me to mature as a business owner, and forced the business to mature as well. Going through the struggles of COVID has been incredibly challenging, but looking back, I’m grateful for how the experience has allowed me to grow.

What has been challenging?

Over the last year, it’s been challenging to find the motivation to train hard. While many people are focusing on time trials, I haven’t found these types of efforts as exciting. Maybe that’ll change as we get closer to a time when racing resumes.

What are you looking forward to over the next months and year?

I’m looking forward to getting back to a serious race goal with a structured training program, and to the feeling of knowing I’m the fittest I’ve ever been. I signed up for Grandma’s Marathon, because I feel strongly the race will be held.

You can follow Ashish and his family/running/CEO balance stories on Instagram @ashish.simpat.

MINI FEATURE | Ashish Patel: Q+A