This was meant to be a private 'thank you' letter for Dan Christofferson. But really, I think I've set a precedent already, what with making my communication [infatuation] with him very public, so I'll keep driving that road. I was invited by Dan and fellow good guys at Big Cartel to speak at Indie Fest a few weeks ago. What's Indie Fest? It's awesome. I'll elaborate...
Indie Fest was easily the best god-damn conference I have ever been to, and I happen to have attended billions [hundreds]. Seriously...I've had the privilege of presence at loads of truly inspiring and interesting events. Mind-blowing speakers and authors, company-shaping workshops and seminars -- the business person I am today has been shaped, in various ways, by thousands of hours of education soaked up from the wise ones that came before me. That all noted, my business directions have changed over the last few years, and we're finding ourselves in the thick of the creative class. When you create a company that's never been created before, there is no business model. No predecessors to whom you can direct questions, no road map to which you can look for direction. It's as exciting as it is scary, so Indie Fest's timing was, frankly, magical. COLLECTIVELY, our motivation is often found in the inhabitants of our city, but a little direct creative-mentoring never hurt anyone. Enter Big Cartel, seeking precisely the same. Why find elsewhere what we can create here? We've got countless brilliant thinkers in SLC, fully prepared to bust the minds of your employees wide open with ideas. And so it was born. Indie Fest is a conference of local folks curated to galvanize. The fields and ideas are varied, but the mindset is parallel -- there's a COLLECTIVE "desire to learn and grow from people who are doing it right." Over three days, we speakers and listeners gathered and shared ideas. From collaborative design at the Natural History Museum with Tim Lee, to artisan-chocolate tasting with Matt Caputo, to inspiring stories by the owners of The Heirloom Group. We were inspired by Paul Mayne, the creator of Day One, entertained by the music of Jake Bellows, and intensely moved by "Listening in a noisy, digital world," a presentation by Doug Fabrizio.
As a creative business person/entrepreneur, it often feels like an endlessly lonely ride on the road less traveled...like I'm alone in my ADD/ADHD/OCD tendencies and passion. But I'm not. It felt good to be inspired by peers doing incredible shit. I've gotten a wee off track with my letter to Dan, but it may have been intentional. *Dear Dan, Anna, and Big Cartel crew -- thank you for creating something so affecting where there once was nothing at all. We hope to be involved again next year in whatever way we can, and I bow humbly to all of you for pulling an event like this one together.
