Left: Photo of The Hilton, Denver | Right: My desk setup at night
Is it just me, or does it feel like 99th of March? The last 4-6 weeks, honestly, have been the busiest I’ve ever been. However, I am healthy and happy, so I can not complain.
SABA SAYS ::: GO EXPLORE
Sadly, my trips to Australia and Canada have been cancelled. So now, we’ll have to change up the Saba Says Go Explore section indefinitely. Good news is that I’d love for you all to take part. Please REPLY to this email with the first place you’re going to fly when the ‘world opens up’, and I’ll include the most popular answers in the next update. Give me the city, country, and why you choose that place.
SABA SAYS ::: STARTUPS RULE THE WORLD
Ever got lost in a shopping center? Even after looking at the “interactive digital tour guide”. Yeah, me too. This is one of the problems Arway is solving. Founded by 17 year old Baran based out of the U.K, Arway is destined for great things.
Also, I’m thrilled that my Startups Rule The World shirts came in.
Thank you Steve Jenkins for modeling. He just started writing, so check him out on Medium here.
SABA SAYS ::: READ THIS
I am currently reading two books:
Skin In The Game, by Nassim Taleb
The Dictionary
The second one may seem like a joke, but it’s not. The first one, by Nassim, who also is the author of The Black Swan, writes in such a way, I am reading slower than I am, and need to look up the meaning of a word every few minutes. Here’s to getting smarter.
Here are some of my favorite quotes so far:
“Avoid taking advice from someone who gives advice for a living, unless there is a penalty for their advice.”
“No amount of advertising will match the credibility of a genuine user.”
If you read my blog last month, or you’re familiar with Naval, I have to point out that I see so many symmetries between Naval and Nassim. Sure, the form is different (books vs. micro-blogs and tweets), but the underlying sentiments for both seems so aligned. What do you think?
TALKING ::: TECHSTARS
We just launched a new website. Check it out at techstars.com. There’s even a section on Covid if you want some resources. Additionally, we have close to 3000 jobs advertised in our network. Head to the Careers page to read more about it. Scroll half way down and you may see a face you recognize.
This is a challenging time to start a company, but it is also a wonderful time for innovation and entrepreneurship. So, now, more than ever, we need innovative startups. I hope you apply.
POPULAR ::: POSTS
Twitter: Pitch guidance for founders:
Twitter: Advice to freelancers:
Eight (less obvious) Traits of A Great Founder
See original post on LinkedIn
THE ROSE ::: ACTIVITY
Thorn: People, and friends, who are not following the quarantine/lockdown rules.
Rose: The #workfromhome channel on our Techstars slack, where my colleagues talk about things their pets or children did, but start the sentence with “My coworker…”. It bloody hilarious - makes my day.
I also started a trend/activity called for Zoom meetings, where you ask everyone attending to “grab the weirdest thing you can without getting up from your seat”. Try it, you’ll be shocked at some of the weirdest things people have laying around them. (I want to share the latest one I did with my team, but let me their for permission first.)
Bud: I know there’s a lot of anxiety, negativity and unknown at the moment, but there’s also something magical happening. And it’s quite pleasing to see everyone coming together. Hence, shoutouts to:
Jonathan F, for being a great cheerleader, and listener - although you talk 90% of the time.
Kelly K, for being brave and putting yourself out there. Sign up to her newsletter here.
Anthony K, someone I’ve never met in person, for the Office Hours.
Nana, who I met on Twitter and straight up offered content production help. Check out her sizzle here and reach out via nana@8heroes.com
Lyndon J, who continues to offer help online to strangers, and is even sharing his mobile number. What a legend!
Stay safe, and remember, always Do What You Love.