I’ve known stress before. I’m a former infantry soldier who survived a gunshot wound during my seven years in the military. But the strain of building companies is different. The enemy isn’t visible. It’s the endless to-do list, the competition, and the sheer cost of trying to scale in one of the most expensive regions in North America.
Almost a year ago, I launched Caseway, a legal technology company that uses AI to cut up to 95% of legal fees. In our first six months, we onboarded 2,500 users. That success came with a new challenge… A lawsuit from Canada’s legal information institute, making me one of the first Canadian founders pulled into an AI data-use battle. It was the kind of stress cocktail only a BC founder could recognize. My life involved sky-high housing, high-stakes litigation, and nonstop scaling.
A few years back, I pulled what I thought was the ultimate founder hack… I moved into my office.
At the time, I was grinding through 70-hour weeks building a divorce law firm. Instead of wasting time and money on rent, commutes, or apartment hunting, I rolled a twin Ikea bed against the wall and made the office my home. I already owned a property elsewhere, but in this city, where rents rival Manhattan and ambition comes with a West Coast price tag, I wanted to show investors I’d do whatever it took.
Photo: Jon Fehr
The numbers worked. By skipping rent, about $2,500 a month, I poured that cash into digital ads that brought in tens of thousands in new revenue. But the hidden costs were steep. I lived out of a duffel bag, showered at a gym down the street, and never fully relaxed. Every late-night call, every early-morning thump from the upstairs gym had me jolting awake, adrenaline surging. Eventually, office management discovered my makeshift bedroom and gave me the choice… The bed goes, or I do. That chapter of startup life was over, but it left a mark.
Photo: Jon Fehr
Photo: Tiffany Scarlett
Why I Built a Sleep Pod in BC
The breaking point was sleep, or lack of it. I knew my startup edge would disappear if I couldn’t rest. So I did what many would probably call extreme… I imported a $25,000 sleep pod from China and built it into my home here.
It’s soundproof, air-cooled, and lit with soft LEDs and a star projector. Stepping into it feels more like boarding a sci-fi shuttle than walking into a bedroom. But in a city where hustle culture never sleeps and the line between work and life is thinner than the seawall at low tide, this pod became my sanctuary.
Having this sleep pod led to better decisions, sharper creativity, and a steadier hand on the wheel of a fast-scaling BC startup. My team noticed it too. I was calmer, more patient, and more present.
Photo: Tiffany Scarlett
A BC Founder’s Takeaway
The startup scene loves to glamorize burnout. The mythology says if you’re not pulling all-nighters, you’re not serious. I’ve lived that myth. I’ve also learned the hard way that chronic exhaustion isn’t a badge of honour, it’s a liability.
The truth is simple: well-rested leaders build stronger companies. In British Columbia, where startup life collides with high housing costs, global competition, and relentless ambition, taking care of yourself isn’t indulgent, it’s survival infrastructure.
I’m still the hustling founder who once slept at work. The difference now is that, I sleep in a pod. And that’s what keeps me leading, not just surviving.
Photo: Jon Fehr
Author: Alistair Vigier is the CEO of Caseway, a legal technology company that aims to save people and organizations 95% of their legal fees.
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