Our brave team of 5 Evojamers participated in the Startup Weekend Warsaw edition three weeks ago. The project we've taken for a spin was EngagingLive aka SalesBooster. The whole event was a blast so let me summarize a few reasons why we did it and why it exceeded our expectations. As you may know the format of the event is a 72-hour long hackathon. On Friday evening participants get on stage, pitch - sometimes crazy - startup ideas and then form teams to work on those ideas throughout the weekend. The thing that matters the most is progress made over the weekend.
Below is the list of our 5 key benefits of participating in StartupWeekend
1. Fun of Coding without Constraints
Our team works hard everyday on the projects for our customers. They have their own routines set: backlog of requirements, code repositories, technology stack, set scope of responsibilities and ownership... StartupWeekend is a great way for them to detach from the day-to-day business and work in a different way. Develop a demo, a quick and dirty proof that something is possible. Even the seasoned developers can be amazed by how much they can achieve when the usual constraints are taken away.
Coding full concentration on #swwaw ;) pic.twitter.com/Q7i6r3tZa6
— Artur Bańkowski (@abankowski) May 31, 2014
2. Mentorship on Steroids
Being on a Startup Weekend is sort of like a 2,5 day long micro-acceleration program. It’s a great way to crystalize the idea, while getting serious beating from the mentors ;) They try to find any holes in your project, just so that you can work on improving it. And this involves all aspects of the idea - the technology, business model, marketing and even the name for the product. One thing is sure - you’ll finish SW with your idea buried in the ground or vastly improved.
Meet the mentors! #swwaw pic.twitter.com/6PckYdSEiX — StartupWeekend WAW (@SWWAW) May 31, 2014
3. Team Spirit & Motivation
Being surrounded by so many creative and enthusiastic guys and gals is tremendously motivating in and of itself. Combine that with the fact that you’re there to work on your own idea you get input and encouragement from the mentors and you have great, motivational mix! One that makes an impact on the team and lasts even once the event is over.
#swwaw so much fun, great time here! — Artur Bańkowski (@abankowski) May 30, 2014
4. Alignment
StartupWeekend gives a great opportunity to align everyone around the idea. Because we work on immaterial and malleable things - concepts, code, ideas - they tend to be understood differently by different people. Moreover ideas tend to evolve in people’s minds as new information comes in and new relationships between them emerge in their brains. That’s why you need discussion and you need something concrete to work on, in order to build a common understanding of the abstract idea. StartupWeekend helps to exchange perspectives and solidify understanding of the product concept.
@abankowski I believe him! pic.twitter.com/EMgh067ZZw — Artur Bańkowski (@abankowski) May 30, 2014
5. Networking
Pretty obvious yet worth repeating. As one wise man said: the amount of serendipity (luck) in your life/work/project is directly related to the number of people that you’ve managed to communicate your vision to. You never know which of the StartupWeekend participants may turn into an employee, advisor or an investor!
Conclusion
In short we’ve taken much more out of the event than we’ve expected! If you’re in a similar situation we strongly encourage you to utilize the closest Startup Weekend near you :)
If you're interested in becoming a part of our team apply here!
If you seek a dedicated team that will develop your product drop us a message.