{"id":3219,"date":"2012-04-30T18:21:15","date_gmt":"2012-04-30T23:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.studyabroad101.com\/?p=3219"},"modified":"2023-07-21T08:29:58","modified_gmt":"2023-07-21T12:29:58","slug":"masschallenge-abroad101-recipe-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.studyabroad101.com\/blog\/2012\/04\/masschallenge-abroad101-recipe-success\/","title":{"rendered":"MassChallenge and Abroad101: A Recipe for Success"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Art<\/a>
Inspirational Wall Art at the MassChallenge Office<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Last week, our President and Co-Founder, Mike Stone, wrote a great piece for the MassChallenge<\/a> blog on how Abroad101 was born and what has helped the success we’re enjoying today. “Listen, Tweak, Repeat” he wrote, on how to build a successful business. The MassChallenge startup accelerator may not have been mentioned in that post, yet their support and assistance \u00a0has been integral to our growth. Below, Mike elaborates on how winning the first MassChallenge competition in 2010 has contributed to our progress as a company.<\/p>\n

The following was written by Mike Stone, President and Co-Founder of Abroad101<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

How did you hear of MassChallenge?<\/strong><\/h1>\n

My business partner Adam Miller had met John Harthorne at various Boston start-up events, and I remember sitting down with John and David Constantine several years ago when it was in the very beginning stages. Even at that point of inception, I left that lunch incredibly impressed with John and David\u2019s passion for providing unprecedented access to key resources for start-ups like ours.\u00a0 However, I was most amazed that, opposed to other \u201cincubators\u201d that I was familiar with, they were planning on establishing a non-profit that would demand no equity in the companies they were supporting.\u00a0 The spark in their eyes and enthusiasm around this concept really intrigued us, and the launch of the competition in 2010 could not have been more perfectly aligned with Abroad101\u2019s evolution. The entire MassChallenge team has exhibited social entrepreneurship at its best, and we are so honored to have been a winning team in the first year of a program that continues to gain more prominence over time.<\/p>\n

How has\u00a0MassChallenge\u00a0helped Abroad101?<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Whenever people ask me to describe MassChallenge, my response is always prompt and enthusiastic: \u201cIt\u2019s like start-up boot camp.\u00a0 On steroids.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 In the metaphorical \u201cPath to Entrepreneurship,\u201d MassChallenge helps you navigate around traffic, gives you access to luxury digs, and provides you with unlimited gas\u2026for your state-of-the-art spaceship.\u00a0 I love it here.<\/p>\n

I think one of the greatest assets of MassChallenge is that it expedited our progress by providing time sensitivity and deadlines around achieving milestones.\u00a0 The combination of the 3-month \u201ccompetition\u201d with the incredible support from mentors and the other teams is any entrepreneur\u2019s dream.<\/p>\n

When I reflect on the value MassChallenge has provided, I think about the excitement to wake up every day and work in a space with such motivated, bright, and fun entrepreneurs. I recall the incredible guidance from our mentors, like receiving expert advice on how to write a press release from a neighbor in the space, Jodi, who happened to be an award-winning producer of Matty in the Morning (and is now a dear friend).\u00a0 And I remember the Press Night (also organized by Jodi) when we were sitting at our cube and approached by journalists from The Economist, leading to an amazing mention<\/a>.\u00a0 MassChallenge continues to help us win, and a conversation with any alumni will reinforce the strong commitment that we all feel to support this extended family of entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n

What are your goals for the next year?<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Our founding team<\/a> frequently discusses how every time we look at the year ahead we are overwhelmed by the ambitious goals that we set.\u00a0 Yet, looking back at the previous year, we realize our past targets have been fulfilled, and we continue to set a precedent for more aggressive goals moving forward.<\/p>\n

This is going to be a huge year for Abroad101.\u00a0 We are so excited to continue to expand our team, which has been one of the most rewarding aspects of our growth.\u00a0 We also look forward to the approaching milestone of reaching profitability.\u00a0 Since starting Abroad101, we have dreamed about scaling our software globally and we plan to take the successful tools that we have developed for outbound study abroad students and expand into other verticals.<\/p>\n

What was your favorite memory of being abroad?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yikes! This is a tough one\u2026I feel like I\u2019m a parent being asked which child is my favorite.\u00a0 The answer is obviously the one who joined a rock band in Melbourne.\u00a0 When I was studying at The University of Melbourne<\/a>, I had the opportunity to live in a residential college.\u00a0 Based on the Oxford system, this living arrangement was a highlight of my semester, as I lived with predominantly Aussies and enjoyed Harry Potter-style high table dinners and late night philosophical discussions with the faculty-in-residence.<\/p>\n

At the end of my term, I was invited to be the lead singer in an 80\u2019s cover rock band for an upcoming concert. I immediately accepted, mostly due to the fact that this is something that I would\u00a0never<\/em> do back at home, but apparently flying halfway around the world left every reasonable inhibition behind.\u00a0 Performing with that band was the most frightening, energizing, and rewarding experience. I also recall ad-libbing a full song about pommes frites (French fries), in French, during a jam session with local students at another program in southern France<\/a>.\u00a0 I love how, the further you distance yourself from your comfort zone, the more studying abroad allows you to mold a \u201crockstar\u201d version of yourself.<\/p>\n

Thanks, MassChallenge for being the support system we need and we look forward to watching you provide amazing support for the next class of entrepreneurs!<\/p>\n

Interested in viewing some of our stellar reviews on programs? Read through them here<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week, our President and Co-Founder, Mike Stone, wrote a great piece for the MassChallenge blog on how Abroad101 was born and what has helped the success we’re enjoying today. “Listen, Tweak, Repeat” he wrote, on how to build a successful business. The MassChallenge startup accelerator may not have been mentioned in that post, yet […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_ppma_block_editor_authors":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[183,255],"ppma_author":[682],"class_list":["post-3219","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-abroad101-news","tag-masschallenge","tag-startups","author-pwpadmin"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t