Life of FBi | Non-Tech Start-up Founder

how much has changed in the last 365 days …

october 24, 2008

had dinner with a big group of friends at this chill lebanese restaurant in surry hills, this really trendy part of eastern sydney. who was there? a pretty good mix of high school friends, university friends, a girl i was desperately trying to hook up with. there were probably about 20 people or so. many of whom would be some of sydney great future lawyers, management consultants, bankers and doctors. where was my life at? i was still sitting one butt cheek in that world, one butt cheek in the world of startups. i mean, i didn’t really know too much about startups back then (that actually makes it sound like i know anything about startups now). i had read richard branson’s first autobiography, losing my virginity, which was much of the inspiration, and still is to this day. i was half way through guy kawasaki‘s the art of the start. i was already using kawasakisms as a part of my natural vernacular.

i was also much more of a party-goer back in the day. i was living with one jacob list, flatmate, in the suite of sin. on my 21st, it was a big drinking night. even though i used to drunk fairly regularly, without ever being seriously concerned about it, my 21st was one of the few nights i had actually got blackout. i also used to blow money like crazy. i was still on the high of my most recent six months at macquarie bank were i was earning decent bank. that round of a dozen shots i bought for my friends, what was i thinking …

especially considering it lead to this …

i will never forget one james clement forner whose car i vomited in. i passed out in the club, had to be assisted out, stumbled to my friend’s car, and thanked him by vomiting in the gap between the seat and the door, i.e. the hardest place in the car to clean vomit.

october 24, 2009

last night i had dinner with a small group of friends, very low key, just in downtown allston. without any intention, but just because of contextual reasons, all young founders of startups, and i’m proud to say, none in social networking. i had come from a kairos society networking event, met a few interesting mit students working on very cool startups, and a few harvard students wanting to solve the energy crisis with a perpetual motion device or make a lot of money by building a social networking app. that was mean, but kind of true.

i had a wellesley girl come over last night, we’ve seen each other a few times. we hung out and she spent the night. i had an early start with a group meeting with my product design and development class. i wanted to sleep in, but two of the team members are risd industrial designers who’d come up to meet at babson so i couldn’t exactly bar it even thought it was early, and my birthday. we working on a product solution to intersection accidents.

i spent most of the rest of the day working, trying to get ready for the blank label launch in a week’s time. our team’s been punishing themselves pretty intensely doing copy, design and dev work like crazy. i guess one thing that hasn’t really changed in the last year is the amount of time i invest in school. last semester i feel i was a little more serious, but this semester has been an absolute shambles. last week i’m pretty sure i failed my first mid-term since art history in year seven.

where i will be on october 24, 2010?