Our #AccelerateBOS 2017 Cohort Kicks Off!
On Saturday, January 14th, our 5th and largest #AccelerateBOS class kicked off at the Roxbury Innovation Center. The freezing cold temperatures outside didn’t diminish the energy and excitement of the 19 businesses gathered around the table. Founder and President, Malia Lazu, welcomed the newest cohort into our expanding #AccelerateBOS family. Standing in front of the room, she proudly shared that now each business was a part of one of the most successful urban accelerator programs. #AccelerateBOS has engaged 85 businesses, 20+ have gone to market, 96% of founders are under 40, 77% creators of color, and 53% female, and funded 14+ businesses. For the first time since launching #AccelerateBOS Malia enthusiastically turned it over to Leora Viega Rifkin, the Accelerate Boston Coordinator.
#AccelerateBOS believes that much of our businesses success comes from the community that is fostered among participants. Our philosophy is based on the power of connections and relationships. That concept was embodied by all sitting at the table. Each participant ready to learn from their fellow cohort members.
The morning was focused on building high quality connections among participants. High quality connections (HQC) are brief interactions that leave you feeling engaged, open, motivated, and revitalized. Using the method of Appreciative Inquiry (AI), cohort members paired off and asked each other about high point moments in their entrepreneurial lives, times when they felt most alive and engaged. They also asked each other to reflect on their “root causes of success”. They closed the conversation by asking each other, “What do you want to preserve no matter what else changes in your business?”
The day closed out with Leora facilitating a workshop on Character Strengths and how to apply awareness of one’s Character Strengths to unlock individual potential and the potential of others. The VIA Character Strengths survey is scientifically validated and the backbone of discovering what is right with people. We included learning about Character Strengths in order to have a shared language for our cohort to talk about, and identify, what are our primary pathways to feeling alive, energized, and self-actualized.We are so impressed by all our cohort members and cannot wait to see them thrive and flourish, individually and professionally.
