This weekend is the Stanford GSB one year reunion. I figure now's a good time reflect on the time since graduation.

Founder Ambitions

When I graduated last June, I aimed to start my own company.  I hadn't settled on an idea but knew I loved entrepreneurship.  My intention was to spend three to six months iterating on ideas, trying to find one I liked enough to build a team and raise funding.

My method was usually something like this:

  1. Find an awesome thesis (usually based on a new technology or social pattern)
  2. Generate product/service ideas based on that thesis
  3. Validate/kill the idea by speaking with potential customers / experts / investors
  4. Do I fall out of love with the idea?
  5. Repeat
I churned through a lot of different ideas and had a great time along the way.  Ultimately, none of the ideas stuck.

I'm a big believer in the importance of entrepreneur authenticity. Right now there isn't a problem/opportunity that I'm extremely focused/passionate about conquering. I definitely don't want to start a company for its own sake.  Thus, I will wait until I discover an idea/problem that I'm crazy about.

Coding

I've continued to push my coding abilities and I'm now confident I can quickly prototype any startup idea I have; that's a really powerful feeling.

I've written a bit on my growth here so I won't say much else...

If you're interested in learning yourself, I wrote this for Digital Trends: Coding for the Rest of Us

Here are a few things I've built:

Consulting

As I was churning through my own startup ideas, I began taking on consulting gigs with other startups. This proved to be great for a few reasons.

  • I love working with other entrepreneurs
  • A wide array of challenges kept me intellectually stimulated and I got to use a variety of MBA skills
  • The income helped me extend my runway
My consulting now ranges from business/product strategy to product management to coding (front end and back end) and I still still love it.

Blogging

I've been blogging regularly since January and enjoying it. It helps me articulate my thoughts and improve as a writer. I highly recommend starting.

Part of my motivation is Iron Blogger, a group of SF bloggers who commit to writing one post per week; if we don't post, we put $5 in the pot.  Once there's enough money we go drinking.  So far I haven't missed a week!

I've also written for Digital Trends - a large, professional tech blog.  I enjoyed that experience and hope to write for them again.

Living in San Francisco

I moved up to SF in August and love it up here.  I'm living in the Mission neighborhood, which is teeming with entrepreneurs / startups.  I've met a ton of awesome people and had a lot of fun. Living up here exposes me to a lot more serendipity than down in South Bay.

I'm very glad I moved up to the city and will likely be here for a while!

What's Next

While I still want to start my own company, I'm keeping the bar very high. I hope to find an idea I love but I'm not counting on it happening soon.

I can continue my consulting indefinitely but am open to joining a company full time.  Again, I'm keeping the bar really high; I need an amazing team with an incredible vision.

It's been an awesome year since graduation and I'm excited to see what the next year brings.