Lighting the Way for Tallahassee

4 min readFeb 28, 2020

And connecting Tallahassee with the world

In the course of a year, I went from having no direction to overwriting my life path and becoming a software engineer working on a tech startup to help people connect. If it had not been for the amazing community in Tallahassee, I doubt I would have found my purpose- I was able to discover it thanks to the people of Tallahassee.

👥 Why Tallahassee is Awesome

Community:

Tallahassee has a community of people who genuinely want to help you.

After I changed my life path, I started getting involved in my local startup community.

Before coming to Tallahassee, I had never been exposed to startup culture or met anyone who had launched a startup.

I was first exposed to the startup world through a local mentor event, in which mentors gave feedback on a startup idea. I had a startup idea and was in awe of the support I was receiving from people I had just met. It was quite a culture shock experiencing how willing a stranger was to help me.

I am building my own startup and I continue to be inspired by people’s desire to help one another and the camaraderie that exists within the community.

People will go out of their way to help you, which is not something you can say about any community.

Opportunities:

Whatever your interest may be, Tallahassee has a space for you.

Interested in starting your own business? Tallahassee has intimate co-working spaces to develop your business, hosts a plethora of free workshops and events, and has organizations which help your business succeed.

Interested in technology? Tallahassee has multiple software development companies, 3D printing and innovate spaces, entrepreneurs working on AR technologies and VR startups, and alliances for the tech community.

Interested in design? Tallahassee has a design community which hosts social events, a design week that showcases designers and presents workshops, and a co-working space focused on the design community.

I promise, Tallahassee has a community for you.

📌 Establishing Tallahassee’s Identity

Tallahassee has all resources for people to succeed- the world just needs to know.

I think many people, including Tallahassee residents, are just unaware of the existing communities and opportunities in Tallahassee. Tallahassee is much more than a university town- it is a space for quirky creatives, a place for startups, and a playground for musicians.

When people think of tech or startups, Tallahassee usually doesn’t come to mind. My goal is to bring exposure to the growing entrepreneurial and tech scenes Tallahassee has to offer. I aim to put Tallahassee on the map as one of the best communities for innovation, startups, and technology- because it already is.

💡 Building the Future

I am building the future of connecting, starting with the Tallahassee entrepreneurship community.

My app idea was a direct result of my experiences at Tallahassee startup events. I loved connecting with startup founders and hearing their stories, but exchanging contact information and reaching out afterwards was tedious and time consuming. BAM- the idea for the app I am building was born, which set me on an entirely unexpected, passion-filled life path.

I am working out of Domi Station, Tallahassee’s startup incubator. I am starting with impacting Tallahassee’s passionate community of entrepreneurs, freelancers, and creators, listening to their pain points to help guide the direction of the app.

Once I release my app, I will bring recognition to the city of Tallahassee as a unique space for tech startups. I will promote Tallahassee and give back to the community that has helped me.

I am a board member of Entrepreneurship Tallahassee, an organization that coordinates Tallahassee Startup Week and promotes entrepreneurship.

As a board member of Entrepreneurship Tallahassee, I am leading the entertainment committee to make Startup Week Tallahassee exciting and introduce the people to a part of Tallahassee they may not know exists.

I advocate Tallahassee’s startup and technology community.

I love connecting people in the community, advancing the unique, passionate entrepreneurs Tallahassee has to offer. I look forward to 1 Million Cups each month to listen to entrepreneurs and offer to help. I promote local Tallahassee entrepreneurs and communities on my social channels. I serve as a programming mentor for two community members.

I am looking forward to connecting Tallahassee with the world and helping light the way for Tallahassee’s future.