Month Ten Build-In-Public Updates: Exploring The Fire Industry
A picture of a similar map to the fire risk tool I explored co-founding last month from Watch Duty. The grey areas are historical fires, crazy to see how much of the North West has burned in the last decade!
Summary
Fire decision making research & building: I’ve now completed a month long trial with a co-founder. We decided not to continue, but my interest in this space continues to increase. I met with about 15 fire fighters/departments and am starting to see some opportunity areas and unmet needs around safety planning, insurance modeling, and initial attack on fires.
Decision points: As I spend more time on that above, I’m debating do I let go of the small VC fund fundraising (I may not have the time to do both) and the person on I’ve been supporting working on a micro-sawmill business. I’m leaning towards just letting go of other stuff, but part of me also wants to try and push a bit on multiple fronts to feel it out even if it diminishes my focus to keep a portfolio of options that can grow.
Celebration of life: We hosted my mom’s celebration of life at the beginning of May. It was a beautiful ceremony and wonderful to see childhood friends, parents of childhood friends, family, and her community.
A picture of the Threshold Choir my mom sang in singing at her celebration of life event.
Strong month: Between excitement on work, changing my diet to include more protein, completing a Mankind Project New Warrior weekend, and the rest of my life I had a very strong month emotionally and feel hopeful and charged going into June. Even after ending a co-founder trial, I’m excited and hopeful. Wishing for another month like May on this journey.
Things built/achieved:
Worked on our fire prediction tool. Built a marketing site for AWS credit applications.
Micro DLT lumber business model. Completed most of the unit economics for creating DLT (a type of mass timber) for Sierra Sanctuary’s business plan to harvest wood on their 40-acre property that had half of it burn last fall in a fire.
Continued Building Truckee Threshold Choir chapter: We’re doing our demonstration for the hospice volunteer coordinator June 10th and have started to memorize songs. We sound really good!
Lessons Learned:
Building trust with a co-founder: It isn’t simple without shared work history. I appreciated Julian Wisser’s tip in our On Deck Founder’s program last May about how strangers can build trust quickly through exposure (one successful company the co-founders rented a flat together and lived there for a month). I suggested to my partner we try and spend as much of the last month together as possible and despite living about 3 hours away from each other we’ve both visited each other’s place and spent multiple days in person together during those trips. It didn’t work out, but that model still shows the most promise I’ve seen. I’d probably add a few more light meetings (we had 2 or 3) before a trial and I did regret taking his word that he’d send over a contract which didn’t pan out.
Seeing new shadows and accepting they won’t completely go away: In the New Warrior Weekend retreat I recently attended, I saw clearly I have an insecurity about feeling capable. It can manifest as the exact opposite, feeling superior to others as a cover. Continuing to get that out in front of me excites me to own my power, build better trust and awareness. I’ve also wished for a while that my shadows could be completely healed. I’m starting to really accept that they may be there forever, and my job is to keep them in front of me.
Credibility and trust: Many of the interviews we’ve been able to have for a fire tool are due to either our credibility, or trust between fire fighters. On the later, we’ve seen a few lucky connections I have spiral into many interviews through trust between fire fighters and an interest in our tool.
Progress (or a feeling of progress):
Climbing goal of the year accomplished! Thanks to a great friend and climber Adam, I’ve now accomplished way ahead of schedule my goal for the year of climbing Royal Arches in Yosemite Valley, doubling the total height of any trad climb I’ve ever done at ~2000 of climbing. Feels good man, especially after my worst ever fall last summer that shook my confidence.
The view from the climb and me at the top of Royal Arches.
Stablecoin yield business may be finished. The opportunities I felt were worth pursuing are now complete and I haven’t quickly found new ones. Another great month making 75% of my prior salary but probably the last one.
Very excited about continuing to explore the fire and forestry space. It is global and in need of changes to meet the changing world we live in.
Questions:
As I learn more about the fire industry, it seems easier to sell hardware than software. Will I find a high conviction business opportunity?
Do I let go of the other business projects mentioned above (small VC fund, micro DLT lumber mill)?
Asks
Connections to fire tech experts to start to put the knowledge I’m learning into more business context
Offers
Reflections on ManKind Project’s New Warrior Training
Fundraising? Send me your pitch. I’m an angel investor for incredible founders and/or in industries I know well. I also have a network of other investors I can share your story with.