A one man band or an army of many?

The story (so far) of a company built by relationships, introductions and community

I’ve had many an identity crisis down the years in my career, wishing I was labelled one thing or another. I would often disregard my ability to build genuine relationships, but it’s only in recent years that I’ve recognised it as an under appreciated skill and a pretty much an art form.

It’s a unique blend of the ability to listen, strong emotional intelligence, an empathetic foot forward, a willingness to give more than you take, great communication skills, modesty, humour and doing so in an absolutely authentic way.

I don’t think I’d have had the confidence to start building a company if I didn’t believe I had the relationships and community around me to make it happen. On the brink of our major rebrand and relaunch this month, I’ve been reflecting back on over 15 months of work, and it’s safe to say I’ve not been alone in this pursuit.

In fact I’d even struggle to take credit for what’s been produced because it’s these wonderful people that have brought it to life — either paid for their value, or volunteered their time and talent to support our mission. People who’ve all left their mark on this company in it’s infancy and whose impact will be felt for many years to come yet.

Communities

Community is everywhere. It’s your meetups and conferences, your Whats’app groups and Slack Channels, as well as your Twitter and Linkedin. It’s these spaces and places and the people within them, and their desire to connect and share, that makes them such potent forces for learning and growth. I’m grateful to these people and communities.

Thanks to Product Hunt

• I met Ryan Hoover — who has be generous with his time and brain to offer feedback on our product, and in turn provided great connections to people in his own network who might be interested in what we’re building.
• I met an entrepreneur turned investor, who went on to become one of my first investors.

Thanks to Linkedin

• I met Andrea Gonteri— who became the products technical director alongside his full time job.

Thanks to Twitter

• I met John Newbold and Ricky Engelberg— both of whom invested in my company.
• I met Rehat Kathuria — who has been instrumental in helping ship the upcoming mega release.
• I met Alex Fefegha — who alongside his team designed the amazing graphics and characters that add volumes to our rebrand.

Thanks to Creative Mornings (via Victoria Stoyanova)

• I met Jennifer Hayashi — who has helped bring some life to our content for our rebrand.
• I met Francis Augusto — a photographer who has helped capture content to help continue tell our young story.
• I met Rosie Scanlon-Jones — who has helped me run events and get me connected to new communities in the city.

Thanks to ustwo

• I met Sam, Jamie and Marco of Combo Studio — who helped me build the original MVP for Ping.
• I met Jim Van Nest — who went on to compose the music for the upcoming brand film.

Introductions

I get the most insane energy from connecting two new people. And not just any two people, but when you think long and hard about a mutually valuable introduction that proves so — no feeling like it.

Reputation and trust are two huge components of introductions. First off, you’ll usually ask someone who you know will understand your needs, and standards. But most importantly, you’ll take that recommendation or endorsement as gospel. If you really know that person, that’s all that matters.

Thanks to millsustwo

• I met Harry Northover — who went on to single handedly compose and build the technical stack and front end for the new website.

Thanks to Clement Marfo

• I met Michael Garsin — who went on to direct the brand film, and in turn assembled an amazing team of people to ensure we did things right.

Thanks to Rob Bye

• I met Maciej Ziehlke — who has helped us evolve our backend infrastructure for Ping.

Thanks to Simon Maddox

• I met Red Davis — who helped us ship the front end for the Reminders and Search release.

Thanks to John Newbold

• I met another gent who went on to become another of my investors.

One thing that stands out to me, is how many men there are here. I’m grateful to each and every one of them all the same, but it became an even starker reminder of my need to continue to diversify the people around me who I consider my community.

So please do not forget people, it’s not about who you know. It’s who you get to know. Take good time to think about how you can better invest in the people and communities around you, and just watch what amazing things you can do.