The Propelify Festival brings out the best of the New Jersey tech ecosystem.
The event, which will be held Oct. 6 at Maxwell Place Park in Hoboken, is a place where founders and would-be founders can exchange ideas, best practices — and make connections.
We wanted to start the conversations early, so we asked some of the dozens of exhibitors to offer one piece of advice for would-be entrepreneurs of the future.
We got gems such as this: “Take risks. Entrepreneurship is like getting married or becoming a parent. You are never ready for it.”
And this: “Have delayed gratification and humility when you first start.”
The complete thoughts are below.
And if you want to talk to them and others, personally, click here to register — and use code ROINJPropels to go for free.
Q: What is that one piece of advice you would share with other entrepreneurship enthusiasts?
LaToya Ball (Per Scholas Newark): Don’t be afraid to ask for help; build a network; do not be afraid to fail — as long as it doesn’t burn down the house, it is a learning opportunity.
Anirban Bhattacharya (Amplo Global): Have perseverance, resilience, courage, faith and belief.
Anthony Conte (Lumiqualis): Do not let money dictate your decisions. Do the stuff that you love and/or believe in, even if it comes at the cost of making less money. You will never have productivity or motivation issues.
Dan Gura (Hugo Neu Capital): Do not be afraid to fail. Believe in your skill set and keep learning.
Pharoah Jefferson (Datchat): Everyone is not going to believe in your ideas, keep moving forward.
Sejal Lakhani-Bhatt (Techwerxe): If you wait to be 100% certain about a product or solution, you will never release it. Opportunities will pass you by if you wait for a situation to be perfect. Equally important is to recognize your talents and understand your limitations — and hire people who complement those attributes to create a well-rounded company.
William Lutz (VentureLink): Build your support community. The entrepreneurship culture tends to emphasize ‘toughing it out’ and individualism. In my experience, good entrepreneurs know how and when to rely on others and how to ask for help. Entrepreneurship is a super welcoming and supportive community, engage them.
Alex De Marco (MoneyStack): I love this quote by Wayne Gretzky: ‘Skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.’
David Nazaire (Ride Goat): Have delayed gratification and humility when you first start. Many times, entrepreneurs get caught up in the glam and hype of business, but the important thing is to focus as much as possible and enjoy the fruits when they are fully ready.
Chaya Pamula (PamTen): You need to find your passion and relentlessly work toward realizing it. This requires determination and persistence.
Mary Ann Piazza (Stevens Institute): Do not be afraid to try.
Rama K Rao (Bloqcube): Don’t give up; try and try again!
Darshil Sandesara (LegalEase): Build a support group of mentors, friends and family that support you throughout the journey. Also, cut the people who tell you that you can’t do something out of your life, they will only drag you lower. Finally, just follow your heart, your intuition is almost never wrong.
Syed Shah (12 Tech): Take risks. Entrepreneurship is like getting married or becoming a parent. You are never ready for it.
Noelle Stary (The (co)working space): Self-care. When you are building a business, it takes a lot of energy as well as creativity. Make sure you take time for yourself to keep yourself renewed and fresh — this helps to keep the fresh ideas coming.
Francine Steadman (BuddhaBooth): Just do it! Have the dream, have the fear… and get busy! Don’t be afraid to ask for help or advice.
John Vito d’Antonio-Bertagnoll (OculoMotor): Take care of yourself! You can’t run a business if you run yourself down.
Suzanne Willian (The Co-Co): Don’t go it alone. Grow and nurture supportive, authentic relationships with other entrepreneurs. Share and listen, honestly and intentionally. Collaborate to create value, impact and opportunity for one another. Learn and explore new ideas together.
Guanhao Wu (Exovolar): The great thing about the journey is that you learn something new every day. So, don’t worry about not knowing anything.
