Hey Minneapolis/St. Paul transplants, when were YOU supposed to leave?
& WHY are you STILL here?
Within this answer lies the secret to what makes the Twin Cities "hard to recruit into and even harder to recruit out of."
While snow is undoubtedly a barrier to entry, inquiring minds want to know "what is the barrier to exit?"
In 2011, my husband, Sameer, and I moved to Minneapolis. I still remember driving on Lake Street through Uptown during Sameer's final interview weekend - our first anniversary weekend too - and thinking "Wow! this is like mini-Brooklyn...I could make this move." So we did - with the intention of moving back to New York City after two years. 12 years, 1 house, 2 kids, 1 dog and 2 companies later, we are still here.
I've lived in New York for most of my life, Miami for about 2 years, and Mumbai and Madrid for 6 months each. Minneapolis provides a fulfilling life experience unlike what I've ever experienced.
Recently I had the pleasure of reconnecting with my friend Neela Mollgaard, MN DEED's Executive Director of Office of Small Business & Innovation and meeting Rob Cimperman, the new Director of Launch Minnesota.
We shared a great conversation about the past, present and future state of the MN startup ecosystem, how being here and seeing established founders in action through TwinCitiesStartupWeekend, Minnedemo, and BETA's "Science fair for Startups" paved the path of clarity for budding entrepreneurs like myself and how there's still so much work to do.
As a LaunchMN Board member for its first few years, I saw firsthand the "founder first" and "regional network" foundational focus. As the organization and programs move out of infancy, I am stoked for the perspective and connections Rob brings as a corporate executive and seasoned professor of Entrepreneurship. His experience offers a bridge between startups and Fortune 500, and startups and higher education as the state focuses on building what matters.
What struck me was that Rob had a similar story of his arrival to MN from the east coast. He also moved for a professional position on what he called a "two year experiment" and it got me thinking "how many of us are there?!"
It's no secret that I love living here. (I've written an opEd for the Star Tribune and spoken at least 5 times on behalf of MN DEED's LaunchMN program to advocate for "Building What Matters" in Minneapolis and beyond.)
Did your life in MN also start out as a "two-year experiment?" Did you move here for professional opportunities, with the intention of returning home after a few years? What (or who) did you find here in Minne that made it worth staying? Share YOUR story in the comments!
love ♥️, strength 💪, & awareness 👀,
Aneela
Cover Image courtesy of Unsplash / @alexkondratiev