It’s Retreat Season

TL;DR - I am hosting some startup retreats in 2024/2025. The retreats are for founders, investors, job seekers, tech employees, and students. Get notified about new retreat opportunities by filling out this form. 

After running events for startup folk in various capacities for almost 5 years, I have come to the conclusion that retreats are simply the most effective way to bond with new people and build new deep relationships. And since the startup/VC world is all about who you know and how well you know them, I am excited to share I am planning a handful of tech retreats over the coming months to help foster IRL community in various cities. The retreats will focus on entrepreneurs, investors, job seekers, students, and currently employed tech talent. Each retreat will cater to a specific persona and will have a vetting process to join, making sure everyone at the retreat has the right context and experience.

My thesis on this is that I believe that max bonding can occur when you put strangers with similar goals together in a new place for an extended period of time (longer than a day). In 48 hours, someone can go from stranger to best friend because of a well executed retreat. I know this is possible because before I was a startup guy, I was a camp and youth group guy, and have seen strangers turn to blood brothers/sisters over the course of a single weekend (literally dozens of times). Hell, it’s happened to me on multiple occasions too. Some retreat/camp pics below 👇

I think this is relevant to startup folk because oftentimes, the only thing holding many folk back in tech isn’t the number of people we know, but how well we know them. The deeper our relationships are, the more we can go to bat for each other, the easier it is to get a vouch, and the quicker doors open for us (or us opening the doors for someone else). Forget going to a conference and getting 50 business cards. Come to a retreat and truly get to know a handful of other talented people at your stage in life, in a deep way. Then benefit from those relationships for the rest of your life.

What Will These Retreats Look Like?

We have plans to host retreats in Scottsdale, Palm Springs, San Diego, Miami, Los Angeles, Austin, Las Vegas, and maybe some international spots as well. Some retreats will cost more than others, but you can expect any retreat we host to cost between $500 and $5,000 and ranging between two and six nights. Retreats will include a combination of structured relationship building, fireside chats/Q&A with relevant speakers, office hours, and tons of free time. Retreats are all inclusive, covering lodging, food, transportation (within the city of the retreat), and all programming. Get emailed new retreat opportunities here.

An Important Note on Safety

We take safety extremely seriously and are very aware of the issues that prior companies created when it came to having houses inhabited by both men and women. As of now, we plan on hosting men-only or women-only retreats. Women-only retreats will be in collaboration with a female founder who will co-lead the retreat with me. Once we are a few retreats in, I will aim to add in co-ed retreats, ensuring a comfortable environment for all through feedback and diligence on what is best for everyone.

Want To Come To A Retreat?

This is not just an idea. We hosted our first casual retreat in Summer of 2022 called Seedscout House. We did another smaller one later that summer.

After some reflection, we decided we wanted to bring back Seedscout House in July 2024, but level it up. We rented out a North Scottsdale mansion and have 15 founders from across the country flying in to hang out, learn, bond, and grow @ what we are calling Seedscout House #3 (SSH3). I mean, look at this house? This is going to be so fun.

Seedscout House #3 is full, but we’re looking forward to a variety of future retreats in 2024 and 2025. If you want to be kept in the loop about retreat opportunities for the remainder of the year and beyond, please fill out this short form so we know who you are and what your preferences are.

I went to camp every summer from the year 2000 to 2016. And after 8 years of grinding in tech, I miss the lighthearted nature that comes from human bonding in its simplest form. The pool dunks. The jokes around the campfire. The opening up on a deeper level. These retreats are meant to be a change of pace, and if we do our job, it will be a catalyst to help you get what you want faster. Expand your network of interesting people. Learn things that were previously in your blind spot. And potentially change your life…in just a few days(not months). Looking forward to seeing you at an upcoming retreat, and thanks for reading.