Now that's fishing!

This doesn't really have anything to do with anything (except fishing) - but it's a pretty wild video. It's definitely cuz he had the rally hat on.

Anyway, off to the East Coast tomorrow for 11 days. A week in Boston and a few days in NYC.

Today we talked to a UI/Web designer that seems interested in lending us a hand. He's a long time friend - and pretty kickass at what he does. I'll send out more details as things progress.

Wait, Not Everyone Thinks We're Geniuses?

One of the most frustrating experiences is when people don't get your idea. Normally, this happens very early on in the process, with, well, maybe the first or second person you ask. And this is how it goes...

You - "Yo, I have this sweet idea for an ice cream glove"

Anyone else - "Um, that sucks. That's the dumbest idea I've ever heard"

And then you're bummed out for a bit and you move on. But with this idea, we didn't have the "that sucks" moment until further along. And it was actually harder to take at that point. We had already committed so much to the idea that we were quite letdown when we gave the pitch and were met with less than enthusiastic responses. "Nobody is going to use it", "How would you even get users?", "Everyone is trying to solve that problem, why is your way any better?". Yea it stung a little. And at times we'd go back to the drawing board and refine the offering. But the goals of our offering always remained the same.

What we learned from all of this is that you're never going to have an idea that everyone is going to love. But all it takes is one person who likes your idea and wants to invest in it - whether it's with money, relationships, or support. Even the ice cream glove had support.

Goings on in Tech Country This Week

Here are some events going on this week in the Bay Area. Most, if not all of these events, have corresponding or sister events in other cities throughout the US and overseas.

• VC Task Force is hosting Semantic Web: Discovering Frontiers of the Next Web, tonight, but it's not free (buy tickets here)
  
  
• VC Task Force has an Elevator Pitch Roundtable tomorrow, November 7th. Ready to pitch your company to investors, this is a good place to start (buy tickets here)
  
  
• Entrepreneur College @ Wilson Sonsini on November 7th - Biotech Session: Acquiring Your Core Technology (following week - Intellectual Property) register here.
  
  
• There is a live interview with Guy Kawasaki (his blog) and Fake Steve Jobs tomorrow night, November 7th, at LinkedIn (RSVP here)
  
  
• Lunch 2.0 - Zazzle this Friday, November 9th (RSVP here). Also, Google Chicago and Google Seattle events on Friday, November 9th (announcements here)
  
  
• SF New Tech Meetup - Wednesday, November 7th - Mobile New Tech @ Mighty. Should be a pretty kickass event, with a great lineup of speakers and sponsors. Get your tickets here.
  

Other event websites that aren't necessarily happening this week:

• Silicon Valley New Tech Meetup - November 6th (today)
  
  
• Bay Area Entrepreneur Meetup - December 8th
  
  
• VC Task Force
  
  
• Tech Venue calendar of events
  
  
• Astia - addressing women's access to capital.
  

The Evolution of an Idea and some Persistence

When we started developing the idea for this business, it was a great deal different from what it looks like today. I actually started thinking about this idea about 4 years ago. I moved to Bangkok in 2004 and was surprised how difficult it was for me to find people to meet, things to do, places to visit, and other things to keep me busy. Sure, most of the travel websites had good pieces of information here and there, but as a whole, it really wasn't suited to what I wanted.

I began developing a travel guide that was dedicated to Bangkok and that came from a perspective of someone who wanted to travel with an intimate knowledge of Bangkok. I wanted to offer restaurants that weren't tourist traps, sights that weren't lame, and bars where the locals actually hung out. I figured I'd begin with some of the major tourist destinations (Bangkok, Tokyo, Hong Kong, NYC, Paris, London, etc.) and go from there. I ended up going to business school later that year and shelved the idea.

Through business school, as I participated in entrepreneurship classes or met people thinking about starting their own businesses, I always gave my pitch for this travel idea. There were takers here and there, but nothing really panned out. I had actually started working on a niche travel website with a colleague from b school while on exchange in Hong Kong. Again, it just sort of died.

Rajiv and I began to play with this travel idea at the tail end of business school. He is as passionate about travel as I am and he was really frustrated when he began planning his trip to Europe post b school. He didn't know where to stay, where to visit, or what to do when he got there. We talked and began to develop an idea. The turning point was when we both reached a similar epiphany, the same day, with our idea. At that point - we knew there was something there.

After 5 months of working on the final idea - we're in a completely different place than we were when we started. Some of this came from market research, seeing what competitors were doing, and most importantly, watching the changing internet environment.

Social networking, open social, facebook, and others have all played a part in how we have morphed our initial idea into a strong offering. We hope you guys eventually feel the same way. It's going to add all of the great pieces of the internet, as it exists today, along with some age old technology. Unfortunately, we have to keep it quiet for now.

Bottom line: If you have an idea you like, be persistent and be open to change. I think a successful business is probably 60% persistence and 40% other stuff.

What to do...?

This is a follow-up to the job posting I wrote about last week. I had assumed the story was over. Anyway, after the last post, I wrote an email to the company in question telling them that I had respectfully decided to look elsewhere. I told them that I felt that I had been overly accommodating. Anyway, I received an email today, a good five days after I sent them an email. They want me to come in tomorrow to meet with the CEO. I was a bit surprised, but I guess they realized the coup they were attempting. I haven't figured out how to respond, but I'll definitely keep in mind how lackadaisical their responses continue to be.

Before I came back to the Bay Area to start this company, I was in China interviewing for jobs. I decided I wanted to work internationally and China was a great place to start (economy, opportunity, upside, Olympics, etc). I got an offer from an IT outsourcing firm that I really liked in Beijing and had a very difficult time turning them down. I liked the company, the people, their business model, and the upside prospect of joining. I figured though that the timing was too perfect though for me to come back and start this company, so I did. I remained in touch with them (Ethos Technologies) and recently met with them when they were in the Bay Area.

They want to open up the US market (they are currently in the European and Japanese markets). With my relationship at Net Services Venture Group (for deal flow), who is incubating our company, Ethos's previous knowledge of me, and my interest in finding a part time job - it was really a win, win, win. So, on Friday, I accepted a part time position in business development. If you have a company or product, looking for outsourced development work, give me a shout.

Now, what to say to this other company?

Top 10 (Mostly Tech) Blogs

Here are my top 10 blogs that I frequent most days. They are generally tech/startup blogs, but there are a few others thrown in too. Most of these mention similar stories but often have varied takes, which gives you a good understanding of the real story.

1) Tech Crunch - this is where you want your company written up
2) Mashable
3) Read/Write Web
4) Venture Hacks
5) Marc Andreessen's Blog
6) Venture Beat
7) Engadget
8) Ars Technica
9) With Leather (a sports blog)
10) What Would Tyler Durden Do? (yup, my daily dose of gossip - which usually makes me feel better about myself)

I never get bored by this, but...

I never really get bored by the views in SF (this was taken on Sunday - a beautiful day here), though there are plenty of other things that do bore me out here. One of those is the me first attitude that seems to permeate a lot of life out here. I'm not saying all of it is unfounded. The Bay Area is definitely a hotbed of intellect and technology, with great companies, schools, and people who have settled here.

So yesterday was Halloween. The only thing that really spooked me yesterday was the job offer I was given by an unnamed company here. I've been looking for a part time gig to help support me while I build this company. I'm not looking for a job that will pay me what I could get on the open market, but I'm looking for something that will be interesting, challenging, and enjoyable - and really provide a benefit to a company that could use it. I thought I found what I was looking for when I went on a few interviews last week with the company in question. I had some great conversations and was offered a job. I began the negotiations when they offered me a rate that was, let's say, on par with collecting cans for their redemption value. I have nothing against doing that for a job. In fact, I'm now considering it. But there's a difference between collecting cans and using my experience and education to help a startup develop their strategy, assist with marketing, and develop business. I'm not saying it's rocket science, but it's eventually contributing to their success and in turn, their bottom line.

So I countered with what I felt was an overly accommodating offer - because I thought that in addition to helping them, I would be getting some real world experience. I expected a bit of a negotiation and some flexibility. But there really wasn't any. Their first offer was also their last. Given the fact that I really need some financial support for the company - I was willing to do what it took - whether it was an equity exchange or some other way to make both of us happy. Nope. Didn't happen.

I called some friends and family to make sure I wasn't being stubborn - and falling into the "me first" attitude I was talking about. But even my big bro T.O. agreed. And damn, he's my biggest opponent of doing this startup and not having an income. I had to keep a little bit of pride. And so, I'll keep you posted on the job front.