Robb Gilbear’s Post

Howdy everybody ✋ We’ve been off social media for a while. In 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣3️⃣ we concentrated on various aspects of our business, such as organizing meetups across the country, mentoring startup founders in local and international programs, and, most importantly, acquiring and working with clients. So simply being present online because ‘this is what you have to do”, was not 🙅on the agenda. Just adding irrelevant posts to the overload of online information is not something we are keen on doing. And honestly, we know that posting is not our strongest superpower. But organizing events & workshops is! 🦸 So for the first half of this year, we have some things cooking up. Which will talk a lot about... Okay, maybe not that much, but enough to let the rest of the world 🌍 know what We For Real is up to. One of our 2024 goals is to communicate more frequently in public. Let's see how we do 🤞

"Sizzle, sausage, sizzle" I was fortunate to be in Edinburgh these last 2 days after we were selected for a bootcamp designed for start-ups between Seed to Series A. I met David Bowie! Not the late singer (sorry mum). But an entreprenuer on a mission to solve preventable blindness. Very cool. David coined the phrase "sizzle, sausage, sizzle"... When pitching, it's an art to balance a HUGE vision with a narrow early focus. Sizzle: Cast your BIG vision Sausage: Show you have an early niche and why will you dominate it Sizzle: Route to scale - demonstrate how your product can easily transfer into new markets, regions and use cases. Or as I like to think of it: 1. We're going to eat an elephant. 2. Here's the first and second bites. 3. Remember though. It's a big ole elephant.... And we are now in pole position to eat the whole thing very quickly. Thanks to Danny Helson for setting up the bootcamp. And Alister Minty (who's avoiding LinkedIn) for the rich content. Next week: on to Geneva to pitch Niya at the Global Forum for Migration. And with the right amounts of sizzle and sausage. Picture of a nice landmark from my run this morning:

Dear Leader! Here are 3 Tips on Events and Workshops: Tip 1: Diversify Event Formats Experiment with different event formats, such as panel discussions, fireside chats, hackathons, and virtual summits, to cater to diverse learning preferences. Varied event types keep members engaged and excited to participate. Tip 2: Address Current Challenges and Trends Stay abreast of the latest industry trends and challenges and design events and workshops around them. Addressing relevant topics ensures that members receive up-to-date knowledge and insights applicable to their entrepreneurial endeavors. Tip 3: Encourage Member-Led Workshops Empower community members to lead workshops on subjects they excel in or have expertise in. Member-led workshops foster a sense of inclusivity and encourage knowledge sharing within the community.

My reflections on this year's Two+Two are mainly ones of gratitude. It's hard for a small business to find the time and money to run an event like Two+Two, we could never have imagined how it would scale, and without the generosity in time and money from the industry it would never have taken off. This year was more challenging than usual, a tough trading year last year meant it would be fiscally irresponsible to do it really. However, the support, in money and resources, we were pledged meant we were able to go ahead, all rather more last minute that usual, but we got there! The result? I say the best yet every year, but it really felt like it was. We kept it tight and trim and for the first time it was fully funded, thanks to some very generous organisations: Ian Lenehan at McCann Manchester, Clare Roberts (Assoc CIPD) at Brandon Consultants, James Lawton-Hill at APS Group, Holly Harkin at Havas Lynx, Jenny Jones at Sound & Colour Film all offered to be Event Partners. Then one of our clients, Ian Cox of Avark, pitched it to one of their clients, Katie Harries of Coinbase and we had a generous, fantastic to work with Headline Sponsor and a cracking brief! Web3 and Blockchain demystified! Ian Lenehan introduced us to University Academy 92 (UA92), what a fantastic venue, absolutely perfect for our needs and so well organised that the wonderful Creative Resourcers were not broken this year. We had an additional slot, Lisa Jones of Couch and a Two+Two stalwart, gave a great talk on how the students can get the best out of their attendance post-event. If you were there and you're reading this, do the things she said! Two+Two in numbers: Once we reached 46 industry mentor volunteers from 33 agencies, we had to very apologetically say we couldn't accommodate more and we capped student numbers at 170, from 16 northern Universities. We were joined by 19 talent managers and networkers. We had 5 streams each with 7 teams of students, 35 teams competing to win, and have a great experience along the way. 5 judges, chaired by Tom Richards, Global CCO of 21GRAMS and Cannes Lions Jurist; Imogen Tazzyman, ECD McCann Manchester, Paul Dunleavy, CD APS Group, George Goldhagen & Peter Stilwell from Coinbase. We had not 1 but 2 videographers @james harper from Sound & Colour Films and Patrick Mcdermott from Mojo M3dia, and 1 photographer Simon Rhodes from APS Group. And we had 7 finalists; 5 stream winners and 2 wild cards. There can of course only be 1 winner and this year it was the Red Snakes, but all 7 teams win a prize each; mentorships, internships, agency visits, all kindly donated. To every person and organisation who helped, came along and supported in some way, thank you so very much. Hope you enjoy the video highlights from Sound & Colour Films, a glimpse of a wonderful day. See you in 2025! https://lnkd.in/gfjMRzSn

speed: dating: founders:

Founders “speed dating” is a great way to organically connect with like-minded individuals, says Kelvin Kuok, founder at Young Leaders Collective. He recently attended a potluck-style event for founders and shares how he got to hear so many inspiring stories from people in different industries. “It was a powerful reminder of the collective strength within our varied pursuits.” What is the most effective networking strategy you have ever used? Share your experience in the comments below or write a post from your profile using this link. https://lnkd.in/exK5UUTC hashtag #IOTD hashtag #entrepreneurs hashtag #networking Kelvin Kuok Kelvin Kuok • 1st • 1st I help youths discover their potential and thrive as highly effective leaders | Founder and Managing Director at Young Leaders Collective I help youths discover their potential and thrive as highly effective leaders | Founder and Managing Director at Young Leaders Collective 3d • 3d • 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 "𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠"? This concept was new to me until yesterday, and I must say it was a fantastic experience at 100club’s founders networking event. Each participant brought a dish for a potluck! 🍱 What stood out to me was how this format allowed everyone to mix around and eventually gravitate towards those with more synergy. It's a brilliant way to organically connect with like-minded individuals who share similar visions.💡 Throughout the event, I got to hear so many inspiring stories from people in different industries—everyone is impacting the world in their own way. It was a powerful reminder of the collective strength within our varied pursuits.💪🏼 I had the chance to share about my work in Young Leaders Collective and was pleasantly surprised by the enthusiastic response. The highlight for me was meeting another founder in the education industry and we are in the midst of joining forces to amplify our impact on youth empowerment! Thank you everyone for this wonderful gathering! On another note, I am seeking collaborations with nonprofits to bring youth mentoring to underserved communities. If you or someone you know aligns with this vision, feel free to drop me a DM! We are changing the world, one youth at a time.

Founders “speed dating” is a great way to organically connect with like-minded individuals, says Kelvin Kuok, founder at Young Leaders Collective. He recently attended a potluck-style event for founders and shares how he got to hear so many inspiring stories from people in different industries. “It was a powerful reminder of the collective strength within our varied pursuits.” What is the most effective networking strategy you have ever used? Share your experience in the comments below or write a post from your profile using this link. https://lnkd.in/exK5UUTC hashtag #IOTD hashtag #entrepreneurs hashtag #networking Kelvin Kuok Kelvin Kuok • 1st • 1st I help youths discover their potential and thrive as highly effective leaders | Founder and Managing Director at Young Leaders Collective I help youths discover their potential and thrive as highly effective leaders | Founder and Managing Director at Young Leaders Collective 3d • 3d • 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 "𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠"? This concept was new to me until yesterday, and I must say it was a fantastic experience at 100club’s founders networking event. Each participant brought a dish for a potluck! 🍱 What stood out to me was how this format allowed everyone to mix around and eventually gravitate towards those with more synergy. It's a brilliant way to organically connect with like-minded individuals who share similar visions.💡 Throughout the event, I got to hear so many inspiring stories from people in different industries—everyone is impacting the world in their own way. It was a powerful reminder of the collective strength within our varied pursuits.💪🏼 I had the chance to share about my work in Young Leaders Collective and was pleasantly surprised by the enthusiastic response. The highlight for me was meeting another founder in the education industry and we are in the midst of joining forces to amplify our impact on youth empowerment! Thank you everyone for this wonderful gathering! On another note, I am seeking collaborations with nonprofits to bring youth mentoring to underserved communities. If you or someone you know aligns with this vision, feel free to drop me a DM! We are changing the world, one youth at a time.