Baton Rouge Entrepreneurship Week (BREW)
returns to spotlight, educate, and connect Louisiana's entrepreneurs. This
year's keynote speakers include Philip Rosedale (founder and CEO of virtual
worlds High Fidelity and Second Life), Patrick B. Comer (founder and CEO of
Lucid), and Sevetri Wilson (founder and CEO of Resilia/SGI).
The
schedule is packed with 14 additional speakers representing a range of what
entrepreneurship looks like today. The diverse selection of presenters will
bring their experience in the tech sector, real estate, urban planning,
marketing, and other industries to the stage. When BREW says that the event
aims to cover "entrepreneurship in Louisiana from every conceivable angle," they
mean it.
The
events will take place from Tuesday, January 19, through Thursday, January 21.
Safe and convenient Virtual Attendee tickets are available for free.
Though
the event will also be livestreamed, limited tickets are available to be in the
socially distanced studio for the High-Stakes Pitch competition. Here, the
stakes are specifically $50,000 high. Three startups will face off for the
investment prize. All three small-scale Louisiana-based companies are
high-potential, having already gone through an intensive process of closed-door
semi-final pitches, coaching, and mentoring. The challenge will close out the
three-day event by highlighting the heightened drama and theater in
entrepreneurship.
Counterbalanced
with the theatrics of the High-Stakes Pitch competition, another option proves
that entrepreneurship includes elements of comedy as well as tragedy. For $30,
a Hot Mic Executive Improv Session is available. Taught by five actors from
Theatre Baton Rouge, this package will help you harness the art of "Yes, and…"
thinking. The foundation of collaborative comedy is not just for sketch troupes
anymore. BREW notes that improv skills can come in handy for "on-the-spot
interactions you'll have in business."
You
don't need to be an entrepreneur to attend BREW. Anyone interested in new
developments in jobs, economics, and cultural change could benefit from
checking out what's going on at the conference. BREW is a glimpse into some
possibilities for Louisianians seeking to diversify from our biggest industries
of oil, natural gas, agriculture, healthcare, and tourism. In the face of
potentially long-lasting impacts of COVID-19 and global warming, Louisiana's
expanding economic future should interest all of us.
After
all, BREW's website states that its mission is "building our future." Talking
about the future is the kind of inspirational-sounding goal that comes off as
overused and exhausting. The future seems distant, meaningless, and full of
corporate jargon. At BREW, there's certain to be a little bit of jargon, but
the world these entrepreneurs envision is worth paying attention to.
For
more information and for tickets, go to www.celebratebrew.com
Photo by Daria Nepriakhina on Unsplash
