Kevin Koym

Coalescing a Community to take on World Challenges

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This afternoon I’ve been allowing myself to look back at some of the ideas that I think most revolutionary for dealing with some of the problems/opportunities that the world faces right now.  It was while reading about halophytes, plants that can deal with salt water, that I came across a project that sheer audacity had me think to go deeper.  The Sahara Forest Project, yes, that is “Sahara Forest” not “Sahara Desert”, is a great example of how a small group of empowered individuals are using their intelligence and vision to take back the desert and turn it green again… a truly audacious vision.

The question, as I ponder the work that we’re doing at Tech Ranch Austin, is how to go further in supporting entrepreneurs to take on some of the most pressing needs. What’s needed to cultivate a community of entrepreneurs that not only take on building innovative startups, but they are empowered to take on the greatest challenges that face the earth… and through using their intelligence, vision, drive, whit, and passion, build the businesses that tackle these challenges?

We’ve stated seeing results from around the Ranch, with startups like OmniWater– with a technology that can purify water from the most harshest of conditions.  Wayne Wolf’s vision is a device, on the back of a 18 wheeler truck, that could be dropped into any area of the world to provide drinking water in disaster situations. Wayne’s company was an early startup at the Tech Ranch, and has recently gotten funded preparing them to go to the next level of growth and opportunity.

Secondly, Erine Grey, Founder and CEO of Aunt Bertha has been building a website that makes it easy to find food, health, housing, and employment programs for those in need.. .but instead of this being the non-profit model of the past, he’s building a business that makes it profitable to help those in need.

The Tech Ranch Community is emerging with entrepreneurs that are taking on audacious problems…. and I ask myself and our community- how do we go farther faster with greater impact?

I am proud that Tech Ranch and its community finds and supports these entrepreneurs that are pushing the boundaries for real world solutions. Starting a company isn’t easy. Every entrepreneur deserves support in the work that he/she is doing to better the world.  Its time to go beyond the loss of vision that has plagued the United States too long due to political strife and focus our attention to cultivating a community of entrepreneurs with the mutual support and the audacity to change the world for the better. Its time, this year, this day, this moment to go to the next level, and challenge ourselves further.  I ask for your contribution to this challenge. Time to build a greater future together.

Entrepreneur: your light, and your responsibility

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Entrepreneurs…. this is a call as a reminder… there’s no small game to play with regard to being an entrepreneur.  I’ve often been told of the following quote from Marianne Williamson (often attributed to Nelson Mandela) where Marianne tells us flat out to stop playing a small game.  In the words of a spiritual butt-kicking, here’s her quote.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Now there’s another side to this… and anyone that’s been a successful, reflective entrepreneur knows that this is true.  There’s no place to hide when it comes to not playing small.  Whether or not you get the spiritual side to this quote above, there’s the cold hard facts, in a business context, that if its to be, its up to you, the entrepreneur.

Building a business, or a socially focused non-profit, or whatever your venture might be… there’s no place to hide whether or not you get there.  I’ve often thought that this could be a perceived downside to the quote above.  Marianne is calling us to a higher level… yet, if an entrepreneur doesn’t make it to his / her goals, there’s a litany of reasons that they did not make it… but the buck stops with the entrepreneur.

Listen to Marianne. Reach for the skies.  Pull out all of the stops.  Your playing small does not serve the world.  And realize that if you make it, or not, is your responsibility.  Show your light. Don’t hide it. Be willing to risk not making it.  Be willing to be responsible for whatever happens, good, bad, or ugly.  Once you’ve felt the power of the stretch feeling of going for it, then and only then will you understand as well the power of being responsible for making things happen. And once you’ve felt this feeling, you’ll be drawn to turn your light on even brighter.

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