Nestled along a mountain road just outside Evergreen, dark clouds are moving in overhead. I make my way through the winding road and up a steep driveway just in time for the rain to settle. An eager Colorado “dude” with grey sunglasses greets me with a Border Collie by his side. He introduces himself, “Roper, call me Roper, there’s too many Michaels in the world.” 

Roper is one of the many entrepreneurial/artist success stories that people who come to Colorado hope to emulate. If you live here, the story is familiar. Stuck in the daily grind of the 9-5 world, a person seeks a better life. But each story has it’s own nuances, even if the broad strokes may be familiar. 

After his wife graduated from school in 2011, Roper, working a construction job, decided he’d like to go back to school to find a more fulfilling career path and carpentry and wood working was a natural passion. At Red Rocks, he enrolled in the Fine Woodworking program, and eventually found his way to woodturning. 

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The Colorado Innovation Network (COIN) summit featured a slew of successful, wise, encouraging leaders from all over Colorado and the country, including none other than John Hickenlooper, the Governor of Colorado.

Serving since 2011, this visionary Democrat wants nothing more than to see the people in his state innovate, succeed and excel. We had the chance to sit down with him at the Capitol and talk about the state of Colorado, its authenticity, clean ethics and how he plans on attracting and keeping America’s entrepreneurs.

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The nonprofit game isn’t what it used to be.

Every day, these organizations work with children, families, schools, and local leaders to build our communities and better our lives—but this sector is now just beginning to experience a seismic shift, in Denver especially, toward innovation and entrepreneurship.

On Sept. 12 at the Commons on Champa, we’ll be discussing and exploring solutions for non-profit organizations in this time of change as well as why we need to build sustainable non-profits that will continue strengthen our communities in the coming years. This panel, Harnessing Innovation for Social Good: Women Leaders Bringing Entrepreneurial Change to Non-Profit Organizations, will take a look at the issues at hand exclusively through the perspective of Denver’s women leaders.

Elizabeth Suarez, director of Denver’s HERS Institute, has a wealth of experience in facilitating, coaching, and training individuals in the executive management ranks on how to improve their leadership capabilities and skills in order to reach their personal and professional goals. She will also be the moderator of this panel.

Given her experience with clients in the nonprofit arena, her involvement in the community of women, and her leadership in Denver, the event’s organizers feel that she is uniquely positioned as someone who possesses the capability of asking the necessary questions to get most out of this opportunity.

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One of the many intimidating things about moving to a new place is finding the people you depend on get you through the week. The hairstylist you trust with your split ends; the bartender that makes you feel at home in a new neighborhood; the mechanic who assures you that, no, the scary whirring sound coming your engine belt does not mean your car is about to explode.

Myself being a Denverite for a solid 13 months now, the sense of relief that came over me when I met Dave Mika, owner of Automotive Revival, could only mean one thing: I found my car dude. At that time, I was unaware that he is a successful graduate of Rocky Mountain Microfinance Institute’s boot camp, a class that teaches participants how to start, maintain and continually grow a small business.

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It seems in Denver there’s a stage for just about anyone these days, from comedy, to motivation and innovation, to just plain storytelling. And for your story-telling fix, you can join the Narrators once a month at the Buntport theatre for their monthly live show. Hosted by Erin Rollman of Stories on Stage, and Ron Doyle, a teacher turned entrepreneur and podcast enthusiast, the event brings together interesting personalities on the podcast and comedy circuit from Denver for a mish-mash of entertaining anecdotes.  

Storytelling itself has become a sort of zeitgeist buzzword, from corporations to entrepreneurs, everyone seems to be embracing the story as a compelling communication device. In fact, what people are selling or doing seems less important than the story itself. But sharing stories, which can be part therapy and part entertainment, has a humanizing effect, which could explain why it is such a nice complement to our cold isolated virtually lived lives.  

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When a couple of hard-charging, entrepreneurial stay-at-home dads call you and say, “We’ve met some guys that have an interesting idea, but they need you,” it sounds like they’re up to no good at best, and the end of a sad Bruce Springsteen song at worst. Luckily, the context here is within an energetic and enthusiastic rise in the tech community.

Chris Onan, founder of Galvanize, answered the call from Jim Deters and Lawrence Mandes. A glass (or two) of wine later, the idea for a “container” was constructed. A container to harvest the enthusiasm and growth of Denver’s tech and startup industry.

Their mission is strong, but concise:

“We believe in making education and growth accessible to anyone, especially underrepresented groups in the tech industry. Whether you’re a founder, student, or just someone who wants to level up their career, we want Galvanize to be a welcoming, inclusive place where you can take the next step in your journey.”

In other words: If your startup is Super Mario, Galvanize is your mushroom power up.

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Last time we gave you some advice from the peak, we talked about networking—an important form to master when it comes to getting yourself out there and meeting people. Now we’re on to the next step.

You’ve got the network and you know the right people to talk to; now it’s time to pitch your business idea. It sounds a lot easier than it really is, but there is actually a lot that you need to consider when it comes to persuading investors to get on board with your big idea. Integrate these five tips into your pitch and you’ll be off to a great start:

1. Facts, fast.

First of all, ditch your 45-minute PowerPoint slideshow. It isn’t going to impress anyone and you can wow investors in a lot quicker and simpler ways than that. You know what everyone always says they prefer: short, sweet, and to the point. If you can’t sell your startup to potential investors quickly, you’re never going to sell it to consumers.

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Don’t hypothesize—that’s why I say facts, fast. Nothing inspires anyone more than the truth. Keep it real. You’re not doing yourself any favors by trying to sell something that you don’t actually have.

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“I love the entrepreneurial atmosphere throughout Denver. You really can’t go to a restaurant or coffee house without hearing conversations about people’s startups or projects,” Blue Sky Creative Media’s founder Chuck Tyler. The innovative scene in Denver is flourishing and Tyler is capturing it with his own creativity.

“Entrepreneurial energy is simply creativity mixed with motivation. Those are the kinds of people I like to hang out with, because I’m one of them.”

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Thinking about business school? We talked to some business students at the prestigious Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver to see why they decided to take time out of their busy lives to further their professional education. What are these upcoming leaders planning to give back to the community when they graduate? Read and learn more about the future of Colorado from the students of today.

Jennifer – Executive MBA

I joined the executive MBA program because I was looking for something different, a career change. I was working as a consultant in education and I just got burnt out on education. But after working in the program for a while, I realized how many connections I had and decided it would be silly to walk away. I want to work on the tech side. I worked for 10 years with tech startups.

I think what I am missing from my career fulfillment is the hard sciences, math and the analytical side of things, so that’s why I am drawn to tech. I’d like to work on technology solutions for schools. Right now I am looking for developers to work with on business plan. Its nice to reconnect with some of the connections I had from many years ago.  

Part of the Executive MBA is a social capital project that we do to get involved in the community. We started a non-profit which brings safety awareness to kids and emphasizes the importance of helmets. In the spring, we visited 6 schools and donated helmets.

When I graduate I plan on staying in Douglas County, I have 4 kids and the youngest just went to kindergarten so it was a good time to go to school.

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