Promise for High Growth Technology in Tennessee
Today I had lunch with Christine McDonnell, Vice President of Existing Business & Entrepreneurship - Economic Development at the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, and Eric Cromwell, President and CEO of the Tennessee Technology Development Corporation at Bricktops to discuss PodCamp, BarCamp and how all of these organizations (or un-organizations in BarCamp’s case) could come together to improve the situation for technology entrepreneurs in Tennessee. They were both very passionate and enthusiastic about what is being done at BarCamp, and they both have some great ideas of there own on how we could utilize our strengths to really make a difference here.
I understand this plight all too well, as I was launching my fledgling company “Remarkable Wit” (which is now holding its own), I found it very hard to convey the essence of my company to potential funders. Now, I’m kind of happy it worked out the way it did because it forced me to get some real revenue and prove my model in order to survive, but I have a lot more credence in town than many other aspiring hackers/entrepreneurs and I can see why so many start-ups never start up. There really does need to be more communication between those of us in the know, and those who have the means to enable those in the know. I know of a few startups right now that should be off the ground, but they just haven’t gotten their funding secured yet. It’s a bit to frustrating to watch, honestly.
Having lunch with them really made me proud of the work that the BarCamp Nashville Crew has done thus far to promote and celebrate Internet focused communities and companies in Middle Tennessee. I think there may be very good things that come from this meeting, and I applaud the Chamber and TTDC for reaching out to us to seek a way to work together. I’m predicting more great events and forums in the future, held in our beautiful city of Nashville.
I’m really loving 2008.
I just want to thank everyone who believed that I could do this. 2008 is looking like an incredible year for business, and for every “good luck” and “we know you can do it” that I received I humbly offer a single “Thank You” in return.
I’m doing a few things in the next few weeks that I want to highlight:
- Making my first full time job offer to a great guy for the position of Senior Developer at Remarkable Wit. (Fingers Crossed!!!)
- Interviewing Andi Gutmans from Zend, again 
This time for a podcast Remarkable Wit is going to launch on all web technologies.
- Kicking off two incredibly cool projects with Remarkable Wit, and I’ll launch an official site for RW.
- Attending, Hosting and Enjoying “PodCamp Nashville”
- Visiting my new favorite place on Earth, Santa Monica, for the fourth time in five months.
I’ve also nearly doubled my Facebook friends with old high school friends that I am so happy to be reconnected with. Facebook really is fresh.
It’s just such a great time. 2008 is bringing the love.
2008, andi gutmans, entrepreneur, PHP, podcamp nashville, remarkable wit, santa monica, zendBarCamp Nashville Recap Video
Finally, I can put this baby to bed for a bit. It was fun everyone. Enjoy… BarCamp Nashville, The Movie:
BarCamp Nashville and Remarkable Wit profiled on BigSight.org
The fine folks at BigSight.org did a short front page profile on BarCamp Nashville, and outed my new venture. Very cool stuff. We’re also about to close on our first large “Plan, Build, Share” project today, which is fantastic. More on that in the near future.
barcamp nashville, bigsight.org, entrepreneur, nashville, plan build shareRemarkable Wit - Plan, Build, Share
Warning - This is a blog post, not a press release. Please forgive the run-ons or the soapbox.
“Plan, Build and Share” are the service pillars of my new business venture. When I decided to start my own business I knew that no matter what I did, certain things were going to be an absolute requirement. Effective and reliable support, outstanding customer service, and a trustworthy brand are basics that ought to be present in any venture you do. Service pillars of your business are something different. They are the reason people come to you. It is the service you provide, not the level at which you do it.
I thought about why I can’t leave my current profession and do one of the other 30 things I’m interested in. My answer: I’m passionate beyond reason about user experience, revolutionary products, and community dynamics. I would love to execute these things on a mass scale like some of the companies I so admire, but at the moment that would be biting off more than I can chew. I can, however, support the current players involved in these same service pillars and grow from inside the industry. Having said that, I am going to take that approach with MyPossible Inc.’s first business venture, “Remarkable Wit” (RW).
Remarkable Wit is a firm dedicated to internet projects ranging from consumer web properties to industrial applications. We serve as silent partners in projects as well as headliners on a few products of our own. As consultants we help customers find the real value in their idea and create a realistic and attainable goal. As contractors we design and develop very powerful, user focused applications for every market that the internet influences. Finally, we keep the loop open between the creators and the consumers to ensure that the product continues to meet the needs of the consumer.
Let me briefly share just a bit on Plan, Build, Share:
Plan - (experience strategy)
If you want to enjoy outrageous success in business, always consider how the customer feels when engaged with the company. Whether it is through the advertising, the sales process, or the use and support of the product or service. Many companies fail in the most basic categories of adequate support, respectful customer service and appropriate pricing. Those are just the basics of good business, and it’s a shame that some entrepreneurs can rightfully claim them as a unique characteristic of their company.
You simply should not be offering a service that you cannot properly support. You should not sell anything if you don’t plan on carrying the ’sales charm’ through into customer service. You should definitely not engage in a business where ripping off customers with price gouging is necessary to stay in business. You should provide a great product, great service, great support and price it all appropriately. Experience strategy says that the primary focus is on creating a mind-blowing experience for the customer. This perspective helps you take your vision and scope it properly for maximum effectiveness and minimum risk.
Build - (product architecture and development)
Most products, especially technology products, are about luxury and quality. Beyond food, clothing and shelter, people really don’t *need* anything you are selling. However, people want lots of things that they don’t need. Therefore, the successful product must meet a strong want of a well defined market. That product should also be crafted to the highest quality that you can reasonably provide. There is no longevity in a product with crappy quality. Product architecture ensures that someone vision actually resembles the picture that they have in their head, rather than becoming a nightmare.
After architecture, personnel, workflow and interaction are key. You must have the best people doing the best work in the most efficient way in constant communication to avoid getting confused. Creating this environment as well as succeeding are very difficult tasks, but they are tasks that I am quite obsessed with and look forward to completing with RW.
Share - (community farming)
Today’s successful company is thinking less about making a profit from their customers, and more about building a long term relationship with their customer that has continued benefits for both parties. Successful communities are the result of a fine tuned ear. You have to listen well, read trends and predict the wants of well defined groups of people. Growing a strong community is much more about listening and implementing than it is about leading. In short, growing a community is about constantly serving the community. Community farming is a philosophy that we put in action through constantly evolving methods of communication between creators and consumers. The goal is that these roles switch between customer and company often throughout the life of the relationship.
Creating the forum and being it’s caretaker is the work of the community farmer. Communities are always looking to be grown, but they need the fertile soil and nourishment to grow. This is an area that I have succeeded in several times over the last few years, and I look forward to growing more communities through RW.
That in a nutshell is what I will be doing. Of course, this is very conceptual and even slightly abstract. This is just done for those who have been interested in what I’m doing and might stumble upon this post.
marcus whitney, plan build share, remarkable witPassing Through Limitation
Jessica and our friend Marc had meditation and yoga practice in our mini studio this morning. It was the third day in a row that Jessica and I have gotten up around 6AM and meditated for 15 minutes and then done some yoga. This morning, I made friends with my body’s resistance and had huge breakthroughs in both meditation and yoga. I just thought I’d share some, because I feel incredibly empowered by today’s lesson.
This morning I remembered that a goal which in the present seems near impossible, becomes very possible with constant focus and practice towards achieving it. Early frustration, lack of patience and self doubt are the pillars of limitation. To pass through the limitations and achieve your desires, one only needs to focus on the benefit being received during the journey. In every moment you have the power to melt away the frustration, realize ongoing instant gratification and find countless reasons to love yourself. Today, I’m one practice closer to realizing a full lotus, and I don’t care how many more practices I have to do, I really enjoyed getting closer today.
Getting Very Excited About BarCamp Nashville
When Dave and I set out to start BarCamp Nashville, I was completely skeptical about the type of support we would receive. I thought we would need to bring in big name speakers from around the country to generate a decent turn out. Instead, I found tech entrepreneurs, developers, designers, podcasters, musicians, bloggers and just regular people are pumped as hell to get together and geek out. It’s a pretty interesting phenomena how the digerati circle has expanded through MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn. Can’t wait to announce our speakers on July 31st.
barcamp nashville, Dave DelaneyBlogging Again.
Yup, back at it. I have a lot to get off my chest, and I also need a redesign. Let’s see what we can whip up in the upcoming weeks.
blogging againOh Boy…
I’ve got a lot of code to write.
startupA Group Of People That Inspire Me Beyond Words
Clint Smith, Will Weaver, Annie Kinnaird, Kathleen Southall, Allison Davis, Bo Spessard, Sara McManigal, Jairo Ruiz, Kim Hatcher, Jesse Worstell, Suzanne Norman, Rachael Kahne, Gina LaMar, Greg Thornton, Grey Garner, Erik Jones, Jessica Saling, Jake Cable, Jim Hitch, Christina Griffith, Dean Shortland, Steve Turney, Patrick Copeland, Taylor Schena, Matt Thackston, Alex Ezell, Kris Wetzel, Jenn Ross, Kendrick Watts, Leigh Bernstein, David Weintraub, Laura Key, Erin Shea, Cliff Corr, Hilary Smith, Dave Delaney, and Jason DuMars.
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