Getting Connected in Seattle
During the recent Tech Week, I met so many people new to Seattle. A number of them asked me; what the best ways are for them to become more connected to the ecosystem.
So, I decided just to put a quick list together.
- GeekWire events, especially the Summer Rooftop Party, Geekwire Awards, and the GeekWire Summit. The link to their event calendar is here.
- Signing up for Startup Poker 2.0. Bob Crimmins and his crew run a fun networking and casual (mostly) game night.
- Come visit PSL for Wednesday's Community lunch. We have a small number of invited guests (future founders, investors...) who grab lunch with our team, some of our founders, and some of our spinouts. It's a very casual way to get more connected to PSL. If you want to do this, shoot me an email at tam@psl.com.
- Join a PSL Ideation Session—this happens every other Friday. We invite 5-6 people, usually focusing on “future founders,” to pitch ideas, get feedback, and connect with PSL and other like-minded startup people. If you are interested, email me (tam@psl.com) and copy Adrienne (adrienne@pioneersquarelabs.com), who manages the invite list. Start thinking about your idea and practicing in the CVFB manner.
- Apply to mentor at one of the many startup programs, including CDL (Macey McGovern), WTIA (Nick Ellingson)...
- If you are an accredited investor, start writing angel checks! Join Alliance of Angels, attend Seattle Angel Conference (John Sechrest) or just start investing alongside my partner Geoff Entress, one of the most active angels in Seattle...
- Plan to attend UW startup events like the Business Plan competitions—lots of additional events listed here.
- Connect with other Studios around town, including Madrona Venture Labs (Mike Fridgen), AI2 (Jacob Colker), Conduit (Amish Patel), Maritime Blue...
- Develop your own level of clarity on how you want to be connected and for what reason (starting a new company, joining a startup, raising capital, new job doing XX, investing, joining a big company)...and why you might be great at that thing. We can then make more direct connections when we meet.
- Welcome to Seattle!
