10 weeks at Singularity University in review
When trying to explain the Singularity University experience to people outside our bubble I find it difficult to put into words how amazing it was, ending up applying more adjectives in a sentence than I ever thought possible (am I becoming too american?).
Here are 8 reasons why I recommend the Global Solutions Program (GSP) to everyone — besides being in the sunny California and feeling the magic of living in the NASA campus.
#1: Spending 10 weeks with amazing, crazy good people
I’m part of a new family and that feels tremendously good. Everyone said before that it’s all about people — and it is. You can’t stop learning with this diverse group during the endless discussions, late conversations, walk and talk, brainstorming sessions, the few days off carefully planned and intensely lived and everything else that is blurred in my memory with the overflow of information, emotions and gratitude.
#2: Your mindset changes — think BIG!
We filter our thoughts and words because we don’t want to be judged or perceived as being stupid. Google X encouraged us to think big and embrace “moonshot thinking” to remove all those filters. One of the best exercises was the “bad idea brainstorming” — picking a problem and coming up with the worst ideas ever to solve it (including sending everyone to mars and transforming humans into plants that don’t need food).
If you are at Singularity the goal is to impact one billion people so you need to stretch your brain until you can think big. The brainstorming sessions and techniques are endless and include design thinking, individual and group brainstorming.
They encourage you to be resourceful and creative. I felt that they had achieved their goal when we found ourselves using toilet paper when we run out of post-its.
#3: It will be a transition, even if you don’t plan for it
Some people apply to GSP because they clearly want to change their life in a way or another. The ones that don’t will figure out life cannot be the same anymore. Suddenly, everything is about impact, solving problems, believing in a better future and working to build it, becoming a better human being and reducing the level of bullshit and obstacles that exist around you. Challenge accepted!
#4: You will learn a lot!
Singularity University is in fact a school so you will learn a lot. The main topics include the latest technology, the Global Grand Challenges and the exciting fields your colleagues have worked at. The speakers are world-class innovators, researchers and best-selling authors. As a bonus you have an exciting lab where you can experiment with every single piece of technology: play games using nothing but your brainwaves, hack robots, analyse hyperspectral camera data, understand the latest VR technology, or hacking DNA. The list could go on and on.
#5: You can create the next big thing
If you have an insight that you would like to turn into reality go for it, this is the place. If you are wondering how you can capitalize your PhD and put your knowledge of service this is the right program. If you are an entrepreneur and are looking for the next big thing or an investor and wanna get a glimpse of how the future will be like, sign up as well. If you are an engineer, have technical expertise in a particular subject or field experience within one of the Global Grand Challenges they would love to have you there. The framework to capitalize all this is very solid.
#6: The network is impressive
I am part of several communities and networks and still I felt amazed by how the network is responsive. Just by being in Silicon Valley you have the world’s expertise in a small area but I didn’t expect this level of commitment and interest. When sending 10 emails to mentors and contacts to validate some assumptions on a friday, everyone answered me that morning and I ended up scheduling a bunch of calls for that weekend (yes, you read correctly: during the weekend).
#7: Wellness and personal well-being is important
Unfortunately our “always be working” culture — especially in the startup ecosystem — does not focus in managing your energy and maximizing your productivity but the time we spend working. Experiencing both approaches I can tell you it makes a big difference when you switch to managing energy better. At 6pm every day we had a break to do Yoga, play games, exercise or go for a walk. Healthy food was carefully prepared to make sure our bodies were sound. The lunch break would always start with meditation. Being forced to have a routine felt way better than I expected.
#8: Just be yourself
What we refer to as “cultural differences” and the result of having 40 different countries represented is that nothing is weird and you can just be yourself — that includes daydreaming and talk about everything without being labeled as “the crazy one”, not wearing shoes if you don’t want to, walk around in your pajamas or being vegetarian just to try it. If you think you know yourself take the challenge of going to a place where no one judges you and see how you behave.
I am thankful to everyone that made it possible. This experience changed me forever.
This post was inspired by my experience at Singularity University where I am spending the summer as part of #gsp16. GSP happens every year during the summer. You can apply here and in the meantime read some of the books that inspire its content.
