NOLAbound Blog
NOLABound Day 2 Notes—Start-Ups, Safety, Economic Development, and Education
Day 2 of the trip was really informative, as we got to tackle a lot of the difficult issues facing the city in safety (crime) and economic development. We also discussed some of the large improvements in education through charter schools and the big journey still ahead to get NOLA education where it needs to be. We also got to start the day by visiting another really successful tech company and learning straight from the CEO, which was awesome. (I also got to try alligator soup, which I was not particularly fond of.)
Before I dive into my notes on each event, I wanted to say that I’ve been really impressed with the amazing group of people I’ve met. Everyone is cool, interesting, positive, and super talented. The group is very diverse, including people with roots in Louisiana and some there for the first time, like me. Among the awesome people I’ve met are a full time traveler and author, film producer, fashion designer, interior designer, 2 doctors, video engineer, sustainable product designer, and several tech entrepreneurs. It’s awesome to see a mix of people interested in digital media, arts, biosciences, and sustainability, and everyone’s really dedicated to finding ways to help NOLA out.
My full notes on the day’s events are here.
posted: March 17, 2012
New Orleans is Magic—Notes on Day 1
Today was jammmm packed. I got an amazing sense for the vibrant tech culture and amazing recovery of New Orleans across its arts, digital media, and biosciences sectors. What a day!
We started the day at a beautiful museum, which went from 9 to 40,000 pieces in 100 years. We ate breakfast at a HUUUGE 30 seat board room table, and the museum was filled with “Art in Bloom” exhibits combining art and flowers (not so great for my allergies).
Having cameras around us the whole day was a bit strange (I felt like it was reality TV), but for the good of the documentary and spreading the word, we are all good sports.
Random/general thoughts/impressions/learnings:
Lots of people drive from state to state all the time (not like LA)
It’s my first time here, and I’m getting a nice sense of what the south feels like (and enjoying it).
Everyone talking about culture and magic
Huge tech growth
“Silicon Prairie” name of tech in Midwest (Iowa)
Fleur de lis everywhere jewelry and streets
Lots of y’all
Trees with beads hanging on them
Old streetcars
Gas-burning house lamps
You can read my full notes here.
posted: March 15, 2012
Thoughts Before I’m NOLABound
Whenever I’m about to do something new, I try to minimize expectations. That allows me to keep an open mind and be pleasantly surprised.
I am thrilled to be going to New Orleans on Wednesday as part of the NOLABound program, and I know it will be a trip of a lifetime. Even so, I’m trying not to get carried away with “expectations” and simply remain open to new experiences and ways of thinking.
One of my professors recently taught that Happiness = Reality - Expectations, so hopefully my method will bring some happiness too.
But if I said that I hadn’t been thinking about my trip for weeks now, I’d be a liar. Anyone who’s spent some time around me must have heard me saying “Nawlins,” “crawfish,” “alligator,” and “gumbo” an inappropriate number of times. I’m really curious to hear the accent (if any) for myself and maybe pick up a phrase or two of local slang. I want to know which New Orleans stereotypes are true and which are overhyped. It’s true that as a francophile I’m looking forward to checking out the French Quarter, the French food, and the French music. Bien oui! And it’s true that as a newbie jazz fan, I’m looking forward to some real musical education and hearing what music the locals are into.
I’m also really looking forward to seeing how I can personally help the New Orleans entrepreneurial scene grow and thrive, using perhaps some lessons I’ve picked up from my time in Silicon Valley and Silicon Beach to help Silicon Bayou (still not sure how I feel about all those names). I know what trends have been hot in California, and I’m curious to see what the scene and people are like in New Orleans.
Specifically, I’m curious about what the lean start-up trend has meant for New Orleans start-ups and how the general entrepreneurial process compares. I’m curious about what industries/spaces/problems are hot, which start-up resources are plentiful, and which are missing. I’m also very interested in how New Orleans views the (tech) world, and if it suffers a little of the same Silicon Valley envy that Los Angeles unfortunately suffers from (constantly comparing itself to its northern cousin). I think each city should emphasize its strengths and unique taste of entrepreneurship, and I hope to discover what that is in New Orleans (and what Los Angeles stands learn from New Orleans!).
Most of all, I’m looking forward to bonding with my NOLABound tripmates and exchanging ideas and experiences. We’re all so different and come from such diverse walks of life, and yet I can already tell from our conversations over the past week (on Twitter) that we all share something common to entrepreneurs: a positive attitude and a desire to learn, explore, and help others. I can’t wait for Wednesday!
posted: March 12, 2012
My top priority is my family, and the thing I love most about Los Angeles is that it’s where I grew up and where my family lives. I’m also an Aquarius and absolutely love the ocean (I’m proud to be a certified Rescue Scuba Diver), and so the proximity to the Pacific Ocean is a very special part of Los Angeles for me.
The only other city besides Los Angeles where I’ve lived is Palo Alto for my studies at Stanford. What I loved most about Stanford was its intensely focused entrepreneurship and technology community. After college, I moved back to Los Angeles to be with my family and have lived here ever since (it’s the city where I’ve lived the longest). Because of my family, the ocean, and the rich mixture of cultures and industries here in L.A., it’s definitely my favorite city so far (and likely similar to New Orleans in those same ways).
I hope to be able to contribute my entrepreneurial and international perspective to the group and learn about the city and its culture. Ever since falling in love with French language and culture, It has always been my dream to see New Orleans and walk its streets, and NOLAbound will allow me to combine my artistic love of the city’s culture with my professional love of entrepreneurship and start-ups all in one place.
My opinion is unfortunately not based on primary data but on novels, academic research, and media coverage of the city. I want to participate in NOLAbound because I want to see and feel for myself what New Orleans is all about and learn more about its entrepreneurial community, which we don’t hear much about in Southern California. My opinion of New Orleans is that it’s a city centered on art and culture, thriving and coming out of Katrina with grace but also a certain amount of difficulty.
The most important issue is that many people think New Orleans is a place for tourism, not a place to live or start a business. My friend Gabe Hesson (who told me about NOLAbound and gave a speech at UCLA about New Orleans) has infected me with his love of the city, but if it weren’t for him, I would know little about it. Thus, New Orleans can gain the most by expanding the scope and breadth of its public image by showing its entrepreneurial initiatives and diverse industries so people see it as a place to start a business.
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