Writing Workshop Successfully Hosted!

As part of my work with Sharka Bosakova, I have had the opportunity to support her UnMasked exhibition by hosting a writing workshop at the Logan Art Gallery, where UnMasked is exhibiting until the 17th of April. My workshop was on the concept of Draft 0 and how the technique can be used to unmask your thoughts before crafting the textual mask you want to share with the word.

It was a fun experience, and I had about 5 participants for a workshop that lasted 2.5 hours. I was happy to work with Logan City Council on this, and maybe I’ll get the opportunity to do more of these in the future. Although my next event is more about business as I will be talking about Implementing Digital Transformation to be more Efficient and Effective.

As for UnMasked, the next event support the exhibition will be the Panel discussion on Art Therapy. It should be a great event, so here’s an invitation to all local to consider taking a trip to Logan next Saturday to join the discussion!

Sharka Bosakova's 3D / OVA Kinetic Jewellery Now Funded on Kickstarter!

Thanks to a lot of hustling by Sharka, her 100% Plant-Based, Sustainable 3D Jewellery Kickstarter got funded! By the time this post goes up, there should be just under 48 hours to go on the campaign. So if you want a Thorn earring, like the one I am wearing, you should back the campaign now!

It’s been an interesting experience being on the other side of a Kickstarter campaign. My involvement with the campaign was as follows;

• Initial idea and encouragement

• Helping Sharka with setting up the campaign

• Copywriting for the campaign page

• Helping with the layout, the look and feel of the campaign

• Seeking feedback from r/Kickstarter on Reddit while Sharka got advise from her network

• Writing the press release and putting it out on free press wires

• Setting up and launching a Facebook Ad campaign

• General technical support and assistance with community engagement

• Setting up Mailchimp and helping with Mailchimp campaigns

The marketing campaign was not effective and really hammered home how much more I have to improve my sales and marketing skillsets to be an effective entrepreneur and business owner. I had success with Facebook Ads before, but I forgot that the algorithm changes all the time, and so what worked last year would not work this year! There is a reason why digital marketing agencies exist.

That said, I was shocked by how expansive marketing packages are for Kickstarter campaigns. Like you have to pay a fee upfront to get the marketing material, and then some even took a cut of the money raised! It’s prohibitively expansive for small projects, and there are so many agencies that it’s hard to tell who is worth it and who is not.

As this was the first Kickstarter campaign for both myself and Sharka, although Sharka has previous experience crowdfunding through GoFundMe for her Madagascar Project, I think it was good to do or attempt to do everything ourselves as we went through the Make 100 small project track. But perhaps in the future, I’ll look more into marketing agencies.

I am glad I got to see behind the curtain. I have learnt a lot, and I am hopeful that we’ll finish strong. So please back us today and get your own sustainable modular jewellery!

I am 1 of 2 chapter leads for Queensland for Catalysr: pre-accelerator

Catalysr is an accelerator for early-stage startups. It is specifically aimed at first-generation migrants and refugees. “Migrapreneurs”, as Catalysr likes to call them, have unique challenges when trying to launch businesses. Catalysr aims to provide education, and the network Migrapreneurs need to have a higher chance of success with their business and ideas.

I am not an alumnus of this accelerator, but my MIT Bootcamp teammate, Pascal Seibold, went through the accelerator with his startup Jobspottr GmbH. However, it was another MIT Bootcamp alumnus, Muheeb Hoque, an alumnus of Catalysr with this startup, The Pluralist, who recommended me as a suitable person for the Chapter Lead position for Queensland in Catalysr’s new national pre-accelerator program.

Catalysr’s Head of Operations Marlowe Mackenzie on the pre-accelerator program

A pre-accelerator program helps individuals/small teams who have a startup idea to test and validate their idea for a high-growth tech startup.

I am incredibly grateful to be given this opportunity to give back to the startup community and the migrant community. We, first-generation migrants, have to stick together, and I look forward to meeting some great Migrapreneurs from Brisbane and beyond!

StartMIT & MIT Fuse: Plus mini MIT Bootcamp Reunion

In my last post, I mentioned that I was glad to have said yes in 2019 to the MIT Bootcamp. I couldn’t remember at the time if MIT Bootcamp took place in some form in 2020. Last week, I was reminded that the MIT Bootcamp was not slated to come to Brisbane in 2020 nor 2021. Instead, the QUT and MIT collaboration is now taking place through StartMIT & MIT Fuse - two other MIT programs.

My understanding is that StartMIT is a lighter introduction to entrepreneurship then MIT Bootcamp. While MIT Fuse is for established startups looking for a more tailored framework through which to analysis and contextualise their experience and journey. They both have their own niche and place but I think the in-person Bootcamp was probably the best for me. So while I could have done something had I said no in 2019 to the Bootcamp, I am still glad I said yes when I did.

Of course, a perk of being a Bootcamp alumnus is that I was invited by Professor Rowena Barrett to a meet and mingle with this year’s participants of the StartMIT and MIT Fuse programs. The event took place last Wednesday. I got to meet some new nodes in the MIT network. As well as reconnect with some old ones like my Bootcamp mate Justin George, along with Bootcampers from other years, so a good way to February!

The Power of Now: I am glad I did it in 2019!

Well, Queensland is back in hard lockdown. Hopefully, this lockdown won't need to last past the planned three days. But the lockdown has already disrupted my family's plans. I bought tickets for Bluey's Big Play for my niece and nephew. They were supposed to have gone to the show on Saturday the 9th. Of course, now Saturday was day 1 of lockdown. QPAC issued refunds but given my niece is 5 and nephew is 2.5, they don't care about that, they cared about Bluey!

Of course, the Bluey Play is new. So this was the first time we could plan to see it. But that's not true of other things. That is why, through the COVID crisis, I found myself thinking "I am glad I did it in 2019!"

I had a packed 2019. That was the year I undertook the MIT Bootcamp. It was also the year I was part of the Impact Boom Elevate+, and finally, it was also the year I attended the Launch conference.

MIT Bootcamp did not come to Brisbane in 2020. I am not sure there were any in-person boot camps in 2020. Impact Boom Elevate+ did take place but shifted to Zoom. So I could have still taken part, but it would have been a different experience. Also, I tend to be less engaged with other people in the cohort in a virtual setting. I mean, there are online MIT Bootcamps. They are cheaper and more convenient. But given where I was before the Bootcamp, I don't think I would have gotten as much out of the experience if it wasn't face-to-face.

Also, there was no Launch Festival in 2020, and I don't think there will be one in 2021. Maybe if a critical mass of people is vaccinated by 2022 both here in Australia and the US, there might be another Launch Festival. But then are things that won't happen ever again.

One of the victims of COVID-19 was QUT CEA. In 2019, I was part of the QUT CEA one-day boot camp, which was the final selection step for their accelerator: Collider. We didn't make the final cut, but I am glad Josari got as far as it did. I also made a point of attending the Collider Pitch Day to see how far the finalists got in the time they had in the accelerator. This is an experience I won't get again.

There is a tendency we have as humans to put things off. Alternatively, we can hitch change to specific dates and times. I do this all the time with exercising and eating right. "I'll start tomorrow," I say to myself, but tomorrow I find another excuse. Then something like COVID comes along and reminds you that you can't just put off experiences or activities. So I am glad I did all the things I did in 2019. Because I couldn't have done them or done them the same way in 2020 and my life would be less rich for it.

So say yes to the conference, to the boot camp, to travel, to shows, to whatever, today because you don't know what will happen tomorrow.