We’ve all heard about billion dollar corporations that got started in a garage: Two Stanford graduates rented a garage as they developed a little internet search engine known as Google; Walt Disney’s first film was born in his uncle’s garage; Amazon was developed as an online bookstore right in the creator’s garage in Washington.
Although these stories are inspiring and encouraging, they are often the exception and only part of the story. The exception because most startups fail when built in isolation, and part of the story because the connections made after the ideation phase aren’t glamorous details in the story.
Two Heads are Better Than One
A variety of experience and knowledge can contribute to solving problems, seeing problems before they arise, improving a product or solution, and even growing your idea and expanding your business. Community and connection are vitally important as you begin to launch your idea.
If you want to succeed, you must find your community.
Find Your Community
So how do you find or build community as a launcher?
Start by being authentic. If you try to fit into a mold of what/how you think things should be, you will miss the mark.
Create a mission statement and core values. What is the purpose and reason you are launching your dream? Think about the values already guiding your day-to-day interactions. How are you making decisions? What choices and values are influencing what business partners and customers you want?
Then seek out people who have similar passions, goals, and values. Search in places like Slack, forums, or at community events. You can even plug into shared workspaces like Atlanta Tech Village. Listen to hear the amazing work ATV is doing to built a positive culture and community in the Atlanta tech world.
Launching can be cruel in the competitive, entrepreneurial world. But once you find your tribe, you will have a group of people who have your back and want you to succeed. You can trust they will take you farther than if you went at it alone.