Arcbound Update #11

A LETTER FROM THE FOUNDERS

Not every impactful moment needs to go viral.

It was the ’70s. Joe Pedott had just returned from Mexico, where he met Oaxacan artists using an unexpected plant as part of their art.

Inspired by their work, Pedott launched a product that swept the U.S., the world, and still sells 15 million items a year: the Chia Pet.

Our favorite? The Bob Ross figurine, his big halo of permed curls (eventually) included.

If you’ve seen the commercials, or if you’ve owned a Chia Pet yourself, you know that the coolest part isn’t the initial look of the terracotta figurine, or even the final look once the chia seeds have sprouted—it’s the process that you go through to get there.

Getting a Chia Pet to its full, fluffy glory takes 4–6 weeks. You spread the seeds on the terracotta, let them dry, and then change the water every day (no one wants a moldy Bob Ross). It’s a process that, while simple, can seem arduous (especially if you’re a kid). Your patience might wear a little thin waiting for something to happen, but once those seeds start to sprout, everything changes.

In a world that is fast-paced and flooded with technology, we’ve become wired for instant gratification. It’s built into our daily life—a Starbucks mobile order that lets you skip the line, the seconds-long download of a new computer game, or Amazon’s same-day delivery service.

And while there’s nothing wrong with that, sometimes it’s the process—and the waiting—that makes the end result even better.

We often want our return on investment (ROI) to be instant too. When it comes to personal branding, we want the viral tweet or the high-engagement LinkedIn post that changes how many people see our content (and thus our business).

Last week we talked about how sometimes you have to wait for the right moment in your life. The same holds true for ROI on anything, really—personal branding included.

If you spend time building the right connections and content, it might take longer to see your ROI, but rather than the 15 minutes of fame—and surge of serotonin—that comes with a viral post, the results will stick, and it’ll feel infinitely better.

After all, transformation—and growth, in any form—takes time.

The One Away Show

Jill Stelfox: One Acquisition Away From Nourishing the Whole Human

Jill Stelfox is the Executive Chair and CEO of Panzura, the fabric that transforms cloud storage into a global file system, allowing enterprises to use the cloud as a high-performance, globally available data center. Prior to joining Panzura, Jill founded and acted as Co-CEO of marketing consulting firm EDGY, and literally changed the game of football stats as Vice-President and General Manager of Location Solutions at Zebra Technologies, where she created the sports vertical that delivered player-tracking technology to capture the speed and acceleration of every player on every inch of the field.

In this episode of The One Away Show, Jill and Bryan discuss what it means to nourish the whole human (and why business leaders need to focus on this), aligning your personal and professional values, and transparency between leadership and employees.

PERSONAL BRANDING

What Dolly Parton Can Teach You About Finding Your Arc

When Dolly Parton arrived to get her Covid-19 vaccine, she was dressed in a glitzy, cold-shoulder top that matched her eyeshadow and face mask—all a deep, midnight blue.

But she wasn’t just getting the shot like everyone else. After donating $1million to Vanderbilt University Medical Center to support the development of the Moderna vaccine, Dolly was truly getting a dose of her own medicine.

While waiting for her shot, Dolly broke into a rendition of “Jolene,” reminding people of who she is at her core. And it’s all part of her Arc.

Featured Arc

Opening Doors in the Tech Community: Sara Ledterman

Sara Ledterman is throwing the doors to the tech community wide open. After founding KSL Aquisitions and co-founding APG INC, Sara is now a General Partner at 3+ Ventures, a VC firm that is "smashing the 3% venture funding cap for female founders."

Sara has played a huge role in creating events and Twitter spaces that are geared towards overlooked founders, especially women, and is part of found.her, a community for female founders in tech.

Be sure to check out her upcoming event at SF Tech Week, which we highlighted below.

We're so impressed with—and grateful for—the work Sara is doing and can't wait to see what she does next!

ARCBOUND HAPPENINGS

Female Founder Brunch at SF Tech Week

Join 3+ Ventures & First Republic Bank at SF Tech Week for a female founder brunch and panel on understanding equity, safes and how to run a tight fundraise.

Panelists include: Anna Barber from M13, Natasha Allen from Foley & Lardner LLP, and Carine Schnieder from Astrella.

We have several open positions at Arcbound, and are hoping you will join our team. Visit the link below to find out more about each position and why the next phase of your Arc is with us.

Thanks for letting us play a role in launching your arc.