Last week Josh and I attended the Everywhere Else Conference in Cincinnati. The conference was an excellent opportunity to meet investors, mentors, and other entrepreneurs from around (and beyond) the midwest. The main theme of the conference is “start where you are,” championing the advantages (both business and lifestyle) of running a start-up outside of Silicon Valley.
The two-day conference was set up with a single track of sessions and panels with little to no downtime in between. While the format was a bit exhausting, attendees were welcome to get up, explore Startup Avenue, and meet with other entrepreneurs. Each night concluded with a party (as well as assorted pre-/post-parties) and lunches were a prime opportunity to grab a meal with people you may have never otherwise met.
Through Bonfyre, the social networking app used at the conference, we ended up having lunch one day with James Sposto (Founder/CEO, Xtrant) and Jared Steffes (President, Furywing, inc.), among others. I soon found myself sitting in a neighborhood bar and grille at a table with several top-level entrepreneurs eating our lunches and shooting the breeze.
One of the most talked-about sessions of the conference was keynote speaker and Mixergy founder Andrew Warner’s Entrepreneurs and Their Inner Insecurities, which challenged the audience to listen to and break down their doubts and fears (the “counter-mind”) with the goal of accessing the “true mind.” Andrew is a charismatic speaker who has conducted hundreds of interviews with founders in his quest to figure out what makes the entrepreneurial mind tick. To share what he’s learned (and also likely to further his research), he invited a handful of attendees to join him Tuesday morning for a group discussion over breakfast about the challenges of running a start-up.
Besides the educational and networking opportunities, Buckeye Interactive was present at Everywhere Else to premiere our new child geolocation service, Kid Turn In. The application enables parents to receive text or email notifications with location data when their child’s unique QR code is scanned – perfect for that upcoming trip to the zoo or amusement park. While the audience at Everywhere Else skewed toward younger entrepreneurs, we were able to gain plenty of valuable feedback and suggestions from the parents and guardians that stopped by the booth.
If you missed Everywhere Else Cincinnati, the same group is running another conference in Memphis, TN this February 16-19.
