Ah, those wacky entrepreneurs and their enablers. Put them in front of an audience, give them a live microphone, and envelop them in the geeky goodness that is GeekWire Startup Day and … well, they say things.
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray, on how he values but isn’t necessarily a part of Seattle’s technology culture: “I’m not a techie geek. I’m a political geek. When I was five, I wanted to be mayor.”
Koru CEO Kristen Hamilton (wearing a t-shirt declaring “Build Break Learn”) on having the determination to move forward even when much is unknown: “When you’re in a startup, it often feels like you’re running to a cliff … and you have to hope there’s a bridge, or a platform, or a parachute you can grab.”
Unikrn CEO Rahul Sood on the adjustable height of the bar for creating a startup: “You have to be passionate about solving a problem. You have to be passionate about something. Anything.”
Cheezburger CEO Ben Huh on how failing at a startup, especially after coming from a large company, is not literally a matter of life or death: “If you screw up at a startup, the most probable outcome … is that you will get a raise at a bigger company.”
Acumatica CEO Jon Roskill, one of three Microsofties-turned-entrepreneurs on a panel, about the relative freedom to decide and act that a startup provides: “At Microsoft, getting something done felt like lobbying Congress.”
Former Buuteeq CEO Forest Key on finding the right balance in creating a unique brand, based on how much time it ultimately took his staff to explain it to others: “I would go with something much easier to spell.” (Chimed in Acumatica’s Roskill in a nod to Key and INRIX CEO Bryan Mistele, “We might have the panel here with the three worst names.”)
Former Rivet & Sway CEO Sarah Bryar on how her startup’s women’s eyewear brand continues to live on past its June 2014 shuttering, thanks to the asset sale: “You can still find our glasses on Glasses.com.”
Concur co-founder Raj Singh on the value of endless debates with fellow co-founder Mike Hilton over apparently little things like whether to use the term “itemize” or “breakdown” in the product: “That’s startup life, man. You’re supposed to love every pixel.”