Boarding StartupBus was... interesting.
T-shirts and jeans prevailed, and an abundance of tech gadgets created a semi summer camp semi adult road trip atmosphere. It wasn't until the final day that I became cognizant of the demographics: of 31 "buspreneurs" 5 were female. Fun times.
Jonas kicked the ride off, we introduced ourselves and began pitching ideas. With only one person interested in mine, I searched for another team. Looking for good mix of team and idea was challenging. From a great conversation with David Temple, I decided upon what was to later be named Public Text.
Bringing skills in core business analysis, disruptive innovation, iconic branding, community building and integrated marketing, I helped shape the direction and specifics of the product while the technical peeps began building.
Internal frustration ran high as I wished to help build, and I resolved to carve out time to learn to code as soon as feasible.
With intense focus on creating, the hours passed quickly.
As night fell, I was seduced by screens glowing in the dark... fingers tapping, stars twinkling just outside the windows...
And then, I was immensely disappointed to learn we would stop in motels each night of the journey. The longest I've ever worked without stopping is 40 hours, and I came in eager to exceed that.
We were able to work some in the motel, and I was touched by my teammates insistence that I take a bed.
Awakening early and continuing the process, the next two days blurred to simple hours, one after the other. My entire focus engaged on the Public Text product and managing my ongoing professional responsibilities.
By the time we arrived in Austin for SxSW, we had a website, an app, and a basic business plan. MVP defined. I obsessively wanted to work full out to refine and improve, add functionality and practice pitching.
But alas, two teammates had company responsibilities to fulfill upon arrival (until their departure) and the remainder seemed quite interested in drinking and partying. None aside myself expressed any strong interest in moving the product forward.
As I rarely drink and am burning with drive to create a few things in life, I let go of my disappointment and switched my focus to my current work. And, to building out the idea I gratefully received somewhere along the mostly sleepless journey.
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