Arizona Entrepreneurship Conference Wrap-up

The AZ Entrepreneurship Conference was designed to help build the entrepreneurial community in Arizona. It is a way for entrepreneurs and investors to meet each other, connect with resources, and gather information. Some of us nerds attened the event and were very impressed with the people and energy, and that's a hard thing to admit for an anti-social computer nerd.

The format was no different than any other conference, but the energy and optimism floating through the air were. The conference was a refreshing change of pace for this nerd, and for the city of Phoenix as a whole. Despite all the economic doom and gloom headlines floating around these days, it was clear that everyone understood that there was no way to jump start the economy without the people that gathered at this conference and we all accepted that responsibility with open arms.

#AZEC featured several awesome speakers who crushed it in every single way. The first stand-out presentation was by Bill Reichert from Garage Technology Ventures. Bill talked about the 10 rules for entrepreneurs and investors, and I felt compelled to write them down. 1) The point is to Create Value, 2) establish a brilliant team to work with, 3) create a Mantra instead of a mission statement, 4) Get Going; get going as soon as possible, 5) Bootstrap it, 6) have a Global Strategy from day one, 7) be a Fast Adapter, not a first mover, 8) Everyone Sells, 9) Change Takes Time, progress is slower than you think, 10) People Trump Technology. Bill was an amazing source of information, and helped to get everyone pumped early on.

Another standout was Howard Lindzon, who runs a local hedgefund here in PHX. Howard is very entertaining, and mentions that he hates that the press says this is not the time to start a business. He disagrees, saying people should zig when others zag. He also recommends bootstrapping it. One thing we took notice of is that he says there is nothing wrong with a quick flip.

After Howard, there was a breakout session titled The Climate for Startups. Derek Neighbors from Gangplank, Andrew Hyde from Startup Weekend and Dan Gillmor from ASU talked about breaking down walls and collaborating. Their point was that the more you give, the more you will receive. Be dangerous, because you can't get ahead without taking risks. But keep it simple. Seek mentorship, and find alpha users.

Pat Sullivan from Flypaper was another good speaker. He drove home the point that its important to continually learn, because its not just one thing that determines success, its like 7 or 8. Pat expressed the importance of staying focused and being fanatical about details because the biggest mistakes often happen at the beginning. Ideas are easy, but implementation is hard so its important to think about things. He mentioned that not every startup has to be a homerun, that small successes are good too. Cash is Blood.

Next on the list, and my second favorite of the conference, was Wordpress creator Matt Mullenweg. Matt discussed the state of the Blogosphere and crushed it. He declared the Blogosphere alive and well, regardless of what Wired magazine says. Matt also expressed the importance of details, encouraging people to blog everything. He also made sure to mention that its important to plan for success.

Other speakers at the event included Alan Kaplan, co-founder of LimeLight, Michael Ward from Ventana Bank, Chris Brogan, Jody Gnant and Chris Pirillo. The best speaker of the night, Gary Vaynerchuk from WineLibraryTV.com, will be posted seperately as there are too many great things to say about that part of the conference, and about the man himself to add to this novel-length post.

So, what did these nerds take away from all this?

Be Everywhere. Be Awesome. Be Dangerous.