Chapter 7Go West

Leveraging location and upending our lives

Like so many before us, we went West in pursuit of a gold rush—this modern day one fueled by the Internet and a severe case of being bitten by the TechCrunch bug. After so many visits to the West Coast, we were sure San Francisco was the right place: being part of a startup industry, the early adopter first-mover customers, the investors, the talent (and talent with actual relevant experience), the sheer density of startups and startup people, and of course the sunshine. And then came the less obvious part—we had to decide where exactly to set up shop. As usual, there was a difference of opinion.

I flew out to San Francisco, toured a few office spaces, and selected what I thought ...

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