As we’re dreaming up amenities and experiences for entrepreneurs in South Downtown Atlanta, I’m reminded of the early years, when things were much more challenging and lean.

When I first moved to Atlanta in 2002, our big customer at the time, Noble Investment Group, was kind enough to provide office space for us in a couple of empty rooms at the end of the hall on the 14th floor of a beautiful skyscraper. As part of the arrangement, we were able to use their kitchen with foosball table. Now, while the foosball table might seem like an overdone perk for a cool office vibe, we wore that table out and played for hours and hours.

After a little over a year working out of their office and sharing space, we needed to get our own office and went through the typical startup process at the time: looking at subleases, because facilities like the Atlanta Tech Village and co-working spaces didn’t exist. We found a great little sublease at 550 Farr Rd. that was furnished and ready for occupancy. Only it was missing one critical element: the foosball table.

We had just spent our last dime getting things situated, and I really wanted that foosball table. So I did something that I wouldn’t recommend: I went over to Dick’s Sporting Goods, and at the time, they had an offer where if you signed up for a Dick’s Sporting Goods–branded credit card, you would get $50 off any purchase. So I signed up for a new credit card and got $50 off the brand-new $200 foosball table. Again, not recommended, as it’s a slippery slope to sign up for lots of credit cards and go down that rabbit hole. But while the business was growing nicely, the hard truth is that the faster you grow, often the more cash you need—and we didn’t have enough cash.

After hand-assembling that new foosball table in the sublease, the amount of foosball we played relative to the previous office went down dramatically. It wasn’t the foosball’s fault; the culture evolved, the team changed, and we spent more time doing things like going out to lunch every day as our new activity.

Now, anytime I see a foosball table, I think of those early years and of signing up for a credit card just to save 50 bucks. I’m grateful for those memories and for being able to reflect on how the priorities, resources, and journey have evolved.

For entrepreneurs in the hurricane of building their businesses, remember that this is one moment in time, and that as you keep pushing forward, it too will evolve and hopefully improve. What might be a fun team activity around a foosball table might not be the same vibe the following year. But holding onto those memories—even if there’s a little financial hiccup, like signing up for a credit card to try to keep the foosball vibe alive—makes it that much sweeter. Enjoy the journey today, right now.