StartingBloc: How I Found My Inner Leader & Why The World Needs Us To Lead
What Is StartingBloc?
StartingBloc is a community of leaders determined to build a viable future. Through their five-day Institutes, StartingBloc has built a tight-knit, international community of 2,500 social entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs and other innovators from over 56 countries. These institutes take place in 4 locations across the U.S (LA / NY/ New Orleans and D.C. ** I mentored in New Orleans 😃)
In the 21st century, community is currency, and StartingBloc fosters community through authentic connections & strong relationships.
This short video does a great job of explaining Startingbloc in only 2 mins. If you’re a changemaker and have heard enough, click here to apply and join our beautiful tribe. Once you become a fellow you’re a cool kid.
Startingbloc & Mentorship
After becoming a fellow you have the opportunity to come back to Mentor new fellows into the community. This is SB’s secret sauce. When people volunteer for causes there’s a magic that happens. Volunteers and Mentors are there because they WANT to be, not because they HAVE to. Most people want to be part of a movement. Most of us yearn to participate in something greater than ourselves. SB is that tribe for me.
What does being an SB Mentor entail? Well, each institute is comprised of 70–100 Fellows. Each Mentor adopts 6–7 fellows which make up a Break Out Group (BOG). There’s a reason Navy SEAL teams are typically small and intimate (4–6 ppl). Deeper bonds & trust can form organically. The purpose of the BOG is to facilitate an amazing experience for all fellows by having a Mentor dedicated to answering questions, offering expertise and being an ally throughout the experience.
What did that look like for me?
- Daily Check-Ins w/ my BOG using the Rose, Thorn, Bud Method via Cesar Romero (also an SB fellow)
- Sharing stories of how the SB community has enriched my life
- Group Facilitation of Design Thinking & Rapid Prototyping workshops
- Creating Group Theme Songs 😃
Here’s a glimpse into the magic:
What StartingBloc Taught Me In 5 Days
Find the locals, They’re the key to the city
StartingBloc NOLA had several locals that showed me true the fabric & authenticity of the city.
- There was Jacob Pouncey, (aptly named “Jacob From New Orleans”) who works at a local Ed-Tech accelerator
- Kaiden, Anika, Kevin and Clara (couldn’t find y’all on LinkedIn) that taught me more about the city than I ever could have learned from a Yelp search.
- Also shoutout to Omar Cameron, a close friend of mine who attended grad school in NOLA and gave me a 6 page pdf of all the local spots to hit.
The fondest memory I have from these amazing individuals was getting Shrimp Po Boys @ Gene’s. Genes is a whole in the wall; tucked away, small, personal and amazing. As hot sauce & mayo unapologetically dripped down my chin I thought, “this is why you talk to the locals”.
Moral of the story, TALK TO THE DAMN LOCALS. Don’t just be a tourist, immerse yourself. Get to know people who are invested in the local communities.
Storytelling is a MUST-HAVE skill if you want to lead
Every other day I explained to Lyft drivers what StartingBloc was and why I was in New Orleans. It was great practice quite frankly. This gave me an opportunity to expose complete strangers to a community molding leaders that are changing the world. It was tough, but it was fun. This made me realize that the best leaders in the world inspire action through story telling.
Most ppl aren’t inspired by metrics, graphs and KPIs. Stories inspire action. Stories give people swift kicks in the ass that make them question the status quo.
Stories & visions are so important that StartingBloc dedicates an entire day to sculpting your vision. SB calls this the Ideas Marketplace. On day 2 of 5 Fellows have 60 secs to share their vision for a better world. Businesses are born here. People with common passions form their own miniature tribes. Change happens!
Here are a few of the fellows who shared their visions!
If Community is Currency then Storytelling is your Debit Card. Storytelling provides you access to the people who believe what you believe.
The Status Quo Education System Pisses Me Off, and I Love That
During the Ideas Marketplace I shared a vision for implementing a microcosm of StartingBloc at the middle school/high school level. Let’s be honest, the current education & higher education system in the U.S. is sub-par. College tuitions are rising and student loan debt surpassed $1 Trillion in 2013. If we were truly creating value through Education we’d create $1 Trillion in equity, not debt. I digress.
Im not suggesting that we’re totally screwed but we got some changes to make. We gotta get our shit together.
The foundation of the Education system in the U.S. was built to create compliant factory workers. The industrial revolution made it such that efficiency and producing more widgets was highly profitable. That was the origin. But in the 21st century ideas, community, tribes and compelling stories are currency. Despite all this, how we fundamentally educate hasn’t changed a whole lot.
Sharing my frustration about this debacle made me realize how passionate I truly am about Education. This made me realize that passion can be found by searching for the problems that piss you off. The ones that make your blood boil.
Despite all this, it inspires me that the tech industry is being hit hardest by it’s blind proclivity to formal education over candidates that are deeply skilled & motivated. The tide however is soon changing with the birth of programs such as Apprenticeships.
- Shameless plug: my team & I at Dev Bootcamp have worked with companies like LinkedIn, Airbnb, Adobe, Thoughtbot and Microsoft on apprenticeship programs geared towards hiring and on-boarding talent from non-traditional education paths and underrepresented groups. Talk to us. Seriously email me (anthony@devbootcamp.com)
Now back to Education….
The CEO of LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner ,summed it up in 3 words: Skills Over Degrees. This isn’t to say a college degree is worthless, but there’s so much more to the human capacity than a piece of paper that merely says, “I STUDIED STUFF”. I admire Jeff Weiner and think he’s being a pioneer by using his voice and platform to change the narrative.
Picasso said it best, “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once they grow up.”
Through StartingBloc and my work at Dev Bootcamp, I’m fighting for the artists. Let’s change the conversation. Let’s not mandate folks to pursue higher education, lets challenge them to discover their inner artist.
Find Your Tribe & Do It Your Way
Simon Sinek gave a short key note speech where he made a compelling observation. Most people focus on obstacles and less on the goals they want to achieve. Click here to hear Simon explain it. This made me question how I want to show up and how I wanted to lead others in my tribe. It also made me realize that leadership is fun!
I’m currently reading Seth Godin’s Tribes. In it he does a great job of explaining why the tribes we subscribe to are so powerful. The book is stellar because every other page is a call to action. Seth not only shares real world examples of inspiring leaders, he constantly challenges us lead. With phrases like,
“We Need You. Most companies are looking for people like you to lead. Lead Now!”.
If you truly want to lead you need to give yourself permission to question what is possible.
Don’t let the obstacles get in your way, they’ll always be there. Just shift your focus. The world more than ever is depending on us. Education is depending on us. So is climate change. Like Simon Sinek proclaimed, “don’t worry about the line, just grab the bagels” (watch the video, you’ll understand the reference).
What’s next?
Camille Villa, a Dev Bootcamp grad and now Research Engineer @ Stanford said it best, “Focus on growth and not achievement”. I’m sure others have touted this, but when she did it really stuck with me. Perhaps I really needed to hear it at the time. Moving forward, I plan to continue to dedicate myself to growth & leadership.
What does that look like?
- Completing Seth Godin’s AltMBA course in Oct. If you want to level up and lead in your organization you should enroll.
- Mentoring again at StartingBloc LA in 2018
- Setting goals that scare me so that I can continue to grow.
Gratitude
As I close out this retrospective on my StartingBloc experience I want to give a huge kudos to all of SB, but especially the following people:
- Annika / Kristine / Cesar: You 3 are the glue that holds our tribe together. Thank you for the opportunity to lead.
- Geronimo: Thank you for embracing your inner geek and bringing your whole self to SB.
- Brenda Boyle: One of the warmest people I’ve met in the Bay. Let’s hang out soon!
- Jasiel: Felt like we were homeboys since Day 1. #EuroStep
- Chris Moncrief: I aspire to facilitate like you. Stay Black & Pay Ya Taxes!
- Everyone in my BOG: Jess, Elise, Clara, Ethan, Ginsey, Giovanni . Luhhhh Y’all !!!
BONUS: I shared this google doc with my BOG. It includes articles, videos and resources that inspire me. My gift to you. Lead with passion. Go make a ruckus. The world needs you to!
