This is the slide deck I was to use for the TEDx Kalamazoo talk in September 2015. The talk was to be on XMERSION -- being wholeheartedly committed and engaged in what you do in startup communities. However, the talk was never given in public, since I wasn't feeling well. Maybe in the future I will give the talk. In the meantime, I have provided the slide deck for everyone to better understand some of the thoughts behind why individuals should focus on being XMERSED into their startup community if they want to increase the vibrancy of the community (and their endeavors). XMERSION: http://xmersion.com

1. [
]
an
essay,
not
a
scien,fic
study
being
WHOLEHEARTEDLY
commi6ed
and
engaged
in
what
you
do
in
startup
communiAes
John
M.
Mueller

2. STARTUP
COMMUNITIES
New
/
young
companies
that
grow
create
the
NET
new
jobs
in
the
United
States
Vibrant
startup
communi,es
are
where
these
gazelles
are
started
Vibrancy
=
energy,
excitement,
and
movement

3. Heidi
Neck,
Dale
Meyer,
Boyd
Cohen,
Andrew
Corbe6
(JSBM,
2004)
A
Taxonomy
of
the
Components
of
the
Boulder
County
Entrepreneurial
System

4. Daniel
Isenberg

5. Hwang
and
Horowi6
(2012)
Let
the
weeds
grow,
community,
trust,
emo,onal
connec,ons,
collabora,on,
bringing
people
together,
keystones
The
Rainforest:
The
Secret
to
Building
the
Next
Silicon
Valley

6. STARTUP
COMMUNITY
VIBRANCY
• Feld
“
Boulder
Thesis
“
Feld
(2012)

7. “A
Stay
Factor”
WMU:
Understanding
Startup
CommuniAes
Course
(Spring
2015)

9. Organiza,on
Local
Startup
Community
INDIVIDUAL-­‐FOCUS
Team
Individual

10. Immersion
(of
an
individual)
• Complete
involvement
in
some
ac,vity
or
interest
• Source:
Merriam-­‐Webster
dic,onary
• Similar
defini,ons:
engaged
wholly
or
deeply
– Learning
a
language
– Experien,al
learning
– Virtual
reality

11. [
]
being
WHOLEHEARTEDLY
commi6ed
and
engaged
in
what
you
do
in
startup
communiAes
…adding
the
,me
component
with
“commitment”
A
deriva,ve
of
“immersion”:
…in
the
startup
community
“zone”…

12. • How
can
you
trust
someone
who
is
not
wholeheartedly
in
it?
– On
a
sports
team
– In
a
family
– In
a
job
– In
a
musical
band
– In
a
community…
OBVIOUS,
YES?

13. WHY?
• Increases
Imagina,on
– imagina,on
-­‐>
crea,vity
-­‐>
innova,on
Imagina,on
starts
with
engagement
“
-­‐-­‐
Tina
Seelig,
professor
“

14. • Constantly
Learning
I
didn’t
get
just
to
visit
space:
I
got
to
live
there.
A
funny
thing
happened
on
the
way
to
space:
I
learned
how
to
live
be_er
and
more
happily
here
on
Earth
“
-­‐-­‐
Chris
Ha`ield,
astronaut
“
WHY?

15. This
was
quite
possibly
the
most
exhilara,ng
adventure
of
my
life,me,
partly
because
I
moved
through
my
fear,
but
mostly
because
of
how
I
moved
through
it:
fully
engaged.
“
-­‐-­‐
Dave
Romanelli,
author
“
WHY?
• More
Enjoyment

16. In
other
words:
WHY?
HAVE
FUN
AND
LEARN
being
FULLY
commi_ed
and
engaged
helps
an
individual

17. 1.
Just
Show
Up
HOW?
80%
of
life
is
just
showing
up.
“
-­‐-­‐
Wood
Allen,
actor,
writer,
director,
comedian
“

18. 1.
Just
Show
Up
HOW?
80%
of
life
is
just
showing
up.
“
-­‐-­‐
Wood
Allen,
actor,
writer,
director,
comedian
“

19. HOW?
2.
Use
All
Your
Senses

20. HOW?
2.
Use
All
Your
Senses

21. HOW?
3.
Leave
Your
Ego
At
Home,
But
Make
It
Personal

22. HOW?
3.
Leave
Your
Ego
At
Home,
But
Make
It
Personal

23.
4.
Remove
Nega,ve
Judgment
HOW?

24. HOW?
5.
Don’t
be
in
a
rush

25. HOW?
5.
Don’t
be
in
a
rush

26.
6.
No
Goals
/
No
Expecta,ons
HOW?

27. Happy
people
live
secure
in
the
knowledge
“
that
the
ac,vi,es
that
bring
them
enjoyment
in
the
present
will
also
lead
to
a
fulfilling
future.
“
-­‐-­‐
Chris
Ha`ield,
astronaut
-­‐-­‐
XMERSION
IS
LIVING
IN
THE
PRESENT
-­‐-­‐

28. [
]
an
essay,
not
a
scien,fic
study
being
WHOLEHEARTEDLY
commi6ed
and
engaged
in
what
you
do
in
startup
communiAes
XMERSE
YOURSELF
and
allow
ac,vity,
serendipity,
and
success
to
thrive
in
your
startup
community
John
M.
Mueller

30. HOW?