"Everyone's watching, to see what you will doLoverboy must have attended a Startup Weekend at some point. What else could have inspired such profound lyrics?
Everyone's looking at you, oh"
I've gushed on and on about how Startup Weekend Changed My Life, but really, it's the gift that keeps on giving. We had the third Philly Startup Weekend on April 20–22, and this time I was there as an organizer instead of a participant. Since I can only attest to the second, I can confidently say that 3.0 blew that one out of the water. The quality of the projects was so high that I'm certain Hangplan wouldn't have come close to placing in the top three.
My organizer duties were two fold. One, I had to get designers there. The previous event had so few, and it was my job to change this. This was NOT an easy task. I basically hustled my ass off, telling every designer I could get near about what an AMAZING opportunity it is, annoying the crap out of a few people along the way. But I've come to the conclusion that the majority of people would rather spend a weekend on their couch than bettering themselves. Fine, I can accept that. There's only so much I can do to push people. I was lucky enough to recruit a handful of superstars that really made the event spectacular.
The second part of my duties included creating materials for the event. T-shirts, programs, posters, name badges, slide decks. It was fun to put my own little touch on these things.
The weekend itself was a riot, a blast, exhausting, educational (Mel and 5-Hour Energies don't mix), motivating, inspiring, and satisfying. On one hand, I was glad that I didn't participate this time around. Last October was so freaking intense. I honestly didn't think I had it in me. But on the other hand, I was a bit jealous of the designers who spent a crazy amount of time building something legitimate. I kinda wanted to play too. No regrets though. I had the best time. Meeting new people, getting to know some others, and spending much needed quality time with my partner in crime. What could be better?
Well, I guess I'll find out. Philly Startup Weekend 4.0 isn't that far away. There's a lot to plan. And in the meantime, I'll be helping out with SW Health Philadelphia. That'll give this junkie a fix in the meantime. One thing's for sure, I love this team of misfits that I was lucky enough to join.








