we need your help.
hey guys, it's Jay.
every year, SXSW (South-By-South-West) in Austin, TX, holds a massive conference. one of the tracks of the conference is "Interactive" and hosts a ton of programming for technology, entrepreneurship, and more.
the community is able to submit panel ideas and then solicit votes from the rest of the world to support those ideas. a mixture of community voting + SXSW internal scoring determines a large portion of the programming.
Last year, we hosted a great panel, and even recorded it as a podcast episode (below).
Eric and I have submitted two different topics for consideration, and we'd appreciate your support in voting.
SXSW will require you create an account, but it's painless and the spam isn't that bad. if you get an email from SXSW, forward it to hello@upside.fm and we'll click "unsubscribe" for you if you'd like.
more information below, but we'd really appreciate you voting for both before August 23. thanks!
the topics up for discussion...
Connecting Tech Communities Outside Silicon Valley
As we've studied startup communities outside of Silicon Valley over the last two years, we've found surprising similarities and differences in how they operate.
The fastest growing ecosystems have collaborative community builders within them who truly represent their stakeholders. In growing communities, these advocates are operating similarly to the Platform roles within Venture firms.
In this panel, we explore what those individuals performing "platform" roles within their communities are doing well. We explore how to foster it in your own community, as well as how to begin creating platform bridges ACROSS communities.
We've had the benefit of speaking to so many communities and seeing their notes. This panel will share those insights and activate a larger audience.
Capital-less Capitalists: Running a Cashless Fund
How do you get investing experience without investing experience? This catch-22 is at the heart of getting into venture capital, private equity, and asset management.
This presentation walks through creative ways to learn specific asset management skills, create a track record, and build a network. Access is easier than most people realize - it takes work, consistency, and a little bit of luck.
Throughout the presentation, Jay and Eric, the co-hosts of the upside podcast, will tell you their story of building a cashless early stage venture capital fund using podcasting as a medium and growing their network from near-zero to over 200 startup founders, venture capitalists, and community builders across the country.
In today's world, you don't have to have capital to be like a capitalist.