Hi Folks!
Tom here. A happy July to all of you!
As a startup founder it is easy to focus solely on what you are attempting to accomplish with your own startup. Yet we benefit from attending events focused on other startups and networking, just as much if not more than when submitting applications for funding or focusing inward on what you could get involved in next. Growth occurs in more than any one specific direction.
So few startups succeed (success being defined however you see fit), let’s say it’s 5% or so. As such it can be hard to secure funding, given how others know your venture is more likely to sink than swim. So, I have become used to receiving messages which note that we were not selected for a program after a round of applications or after we met with a specific group of investors.
This is far more a statement on the startup ecosystem than on the status of one’s venture. Advice has been readily given by many individuals. Funding, not so much.
So, on that note, I took a break today from submitting more funding competition applications and attended the Well City Challenge Expo. Link: https://economyleague.org/driving-regional-change/impact-labs/well-city-challenge
In case the link is no longer active, this text was from the event’s description: “Following three intensive months in the Well City Impact Accelerator, we’ll be celebrating the incredible work of the five Well City Challenge pitch competition winners: Hey, Auntie, Let’s Talk Philly, Freedom Greens & Gardens, Shear Balance, and Strides. After hearing from the teams, you’ll have the chance to directly interact with the social entrepreneurs behind these innovative solutions to millennial health challenges. At the end of the evening, we’ll announce the winner of the grand prize of $50,000. We’ll also be giving out prizes to attendees based on engagement during the session!”
So many great companies and individuals were putting forth enough effort to advance their efforts. Bravo!
Attending this event encouraged me to consider applying for this accelerator once again. We applied last year to present at this event, and were not selected. Now that I know what the result of participating in the Well City Challenge can be, we are more likely to apply again when the next application cycle comes around.
Until then, we continue to apply to multiple accelerators and business pitch competitions. Applications and efforts will continue during these blistery summer days.
Great! On that note I will end this post. Thank you for reading. Look online later today in case you want to see which startup received the $50,000.
Please stay hydrated and safe wherever you are given the high temperatures these days.
Take care.
