INTRODUCTION TO GA & THE SV STARTUP COMMUNITYPEK PONGPAET INSTRUCTOR AT GENERAL ASSEMBLY

@PEKPONGPAET PEK@IMPEKABLE.COM

• Owner at impekable, UI/UX design firm • 2 years in SV • Launched 10+ products • Designed / developed products for Tesla, Accenture, Aruba, iPass • Multiple hackathons (participant, winner, judge) • Created Pictacular - TIME Magazine Best 50 websites of 2013 • Founder, Marketer, Product Manager, Designer, Hacker, BizDev

INTRODUCTION TO THE SV STARTUP COMMUNITY

HI. I’M PEK PONGPAET.�2

PICTACULARINTRODUCTION TO THE SV STARTUP COMMUNITY �3

INTRODUCTION TO THE SV STARTUP COMMUNITY

WELCOME TO SILICON VALLEY.

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Move West & Find Your Riches

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THE DREAM:

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SiliCON VAllY iS All THAT MATTERS!

NDAs«̗«“PEOPlE Will STEAlMY iDEA” WRiTE A BUSiNESS

PlAN = GET FUNDiNG

THE lOUDEST PEOPlE ARE THE SMARTEST!

ONlY DEVElOPERS CAN GET A GOOD JOB AT STARTUPS.

FOUNDiNG A COMPANY iS THE BEST WAY TO GET iNVOlVED.

ENTREPRENEURSHiPiS TOO RiSKY OF A CAREER PATH.TOO HARD TO

GET “iN” OR " 3"'«4/«̝

JUST NEED A CODER TO BUilD MY /1.#4"3«̝

AND OTHER MYTHS

INTRODUCTION TO THE SV STARTUP COMMUNITY

SO, WHAT IS IT REALLY?

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A LOT OF HARD WORK

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COCKTAIL-MAKING ROBOT:

THIS SIGN: THIS ENERGY DRINK:

THIS BILLBOARD:

THESE HIRING SIGNS: AND GETTING THERE LIKE THIS:

0.5%

99.5%

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A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE

•VC funded Companies: ~2,750 •VC dollars: 22B • Total U.S. Companies formed: 600,000

CIRCA 2010

0.5%

99.5%

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A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE

• 40% of VC backed companies fail •Another 40% make moderate returns • < 20% produce high returns

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WHAT CAN YOU DO?

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INTRODUCTION TO THE SV STARTUP COMMUNITY

Get out there, Get Involved, say Hello�13

• Network • Join a meet up group (or 10) • Attend a hackathon • Eavesdrop at a coffee shop • Go to free workshops

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GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY�14

Help other people achieve their goals and aspirations. Generate karma. Bring people together. Give back.

!

To a certain extent, we’re all in this together.

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LEARN, PRACTICE, PARTICIPATE�15

Roll up your sleeves and learn new skills. Try your hand at building something — anything — and share it with people. Think about how to best position your abilities & interests. !

Try to become a creator, not just a thinker.

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WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT?�16

There’s no “one size fits all” experience in startup world. Think hard about what kinds of environments suit you. !

Vertical, company size, team culture, role, time commitment, and product are just some of the factors to consider when pursuing opportunities.

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IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT THE SCENE.�17

Don’t get into the startup world because it’s cool, or because it’s an easy way to make money. (Most of the time, it’s neither.) !

Instead, join a startup or start something new for reasons that resonate with you on a deeper level. What will keep you going when times get tough? (They will.)

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IT’S A MARATHON, NOT A SPRINT�18

You will fail. Probably multiple times. !Don’t get discouraged though — this happens to everyone, and it’s what allows true innovation to happen. !All successful entrepreneurs have been through tough times... but they kept building, kept learning, and eventually found success.

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MEETUPS, MENTORS, CO-WORKING, ANGELS, HACKATHONS, CLASSES, INCUBATORS, VCS

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MEETUPS�20

Plus • Wide variety • Inexpensive • Mostly in the evenings • Great way to meet LOTS of people

Minus • You will meet too many people • It is more social and not very action based

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MEETUPS

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HACKATHONS�22

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HACKATHONHACKATHON

THE SV DIFFERENCE

Plus • Action based • Gain experience • Potentially find a cofounder • Prizes! Minus

• MVP will likely be scrapped after weekend • Requires a whole weekend’s time

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HACKATHONS

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MENTORS�25

Experienced, successful, busy.

!

Tips: • Target a few individuals •Ask short and specific questions • Show you’ve done your research •Don’t give up

Plus •Gives you an extraordinary leg-up •Access to people and potentially funding • Learn from others’ mistakes

Minus •Wrong person takes you down wrong path or wastes your time

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MENTORS

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INCUBATORS/ACCELERATORS �27

Plus • Seed funding • Structure for your startup • Peer network

Minus • Tough to get into • Too many incubators, which one to choose? • Take a big chunk of your company • Commit to a particular locale

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INCUBATORS/ACCELERATORS

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CLASSES/TALKS�29

Plus • Structured learning •Many times in the evening •Great networking Minus

• Some can be pricey • Specific hours of access

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CLASSES

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CO-WORKING�31

Plus • Work with other startups • Build Network • Attend classes and events Minus

• Pricey – Average Desk is $500/mo • Some require seed funding • Can be noisy

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CO-WORKING

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ANGELS�33

Plus •Many do convertible notes •Great advisors •Help with further rounds

Minus • Smaller increments of funding • If you don’t get a seasoned investor, things could get ugly

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ANGELS

VCS

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Plus • Funding! • Great Advice • Will help with further rounds

Minus • You have funding, but now you have more accountability • Lose large ownership stake... and sometimes control of your company • The clock is ticking

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VCS

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TIPS FOR GETTING INVOLVEDFind your people.

Talk to people. Ask questions. Build your network. Find your community. Your personal brand is your net worth.

Treat Silicon Valley as an ecosystem. Give as much as (or more than) you take. Everyone and everything is connected.

Do your research. Learn as much as you can. Go to talks, go to classes, sign up for a course, read blogs online. Never stop researching.

Apply the scientific method to everything. Test your idea, test your interest, test your audience’s interest. It’s all about experimenting to see what works.

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Do your research.Build a community. Keep on testing.

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IT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT, BUT WE’RE A SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY.

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GENERAL ASSEMBLY EST. 2011

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We are creating a global community of individuals empowered to pursue work they love, by offering classes, workshops and full-time immersive programs on the most relevant skills of the 21st century, from web development, to design, to business fundamentals.

OUR VISION

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THANK YOUPEK PONPAET

Email: pek@impekable.com Twitter: @pekpongpaet

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Drop me a note if you have any questions about GA, startup life, etc.

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ONE MORE THINGPrototyping Mobile Apps without Coding When: January 9, Saturday Where: TBD

REGISTER TODAY www.generalassemb.ly/education

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• Front-End Developer (CSS, HTML) • Back-End Developer (Ruby, Python, Java) • UX/UI Designer (inDesign, Photoshop) • Product Manager (Light frontend dev, design) • Business Development (Sales, Partnerships) • Marketing/User Acquisition (Email marketing, social media, SEO, data analytics) • Data Scientist (Hadoop, Matlab, SQL) • Sales (willingness to find and follow leads) • Community Management (Social Media) • Operations (Customer service, Office management) • Other roles depending on vertical (education, fashion)

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COMMON ROLES

• Chris Dixon — http://cdixon.org • Fred Wilson (A VC) — http://avc.com • BetaBeat — http://betabeat.com • SAI — http://businessinsider.com/sai • Paul Graham’s Essays — http://paulgraham.com • Hacker News — http://news.ycombinator.com • TechCrunch — http://techcrunch.com • General Assembly — http://generalassemb.ly/blog • Venture Hacks – http://venturehacks.com • VentureBeat - http://venturebeat.com

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APPENDIX: BLOGS TO READ

• Startup Digest — http://startupdigest.com • General Assembly — http://generalassemb.ly

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APPENDIX: NEWSLETTERS