Last Saturday was the final business plan competition for the high-school freshmen in the BUILD program (the Peninsula site). It was a gorgeous day at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. And it was smart thinking on BUILD's part, and generous of GSB, to get these kids, most of whose parents haven't even finished school, to visit one of the world's best universities - the kids in my car kept up a steady 'wow, this is so cool!' from the moment we turned into Palm Drive.
The team I was mentoring won points on their clever, viable, idea, their comprehensive presentation and how they had figured out all the necessary details. But, the team was made up mostly soft-spoken, diffident kids and there was no obvious spokesperson who could sell. So, ultimately the team didn't make it to the final round since they couldn't 'talk it up'.
In the final round, the two top contenders had some things in common: smooth-talking CEOs who turned on the charm in introducing the problem and solution through a snazzy Powerpoint, and enthusiastic teams to back them up. One really wowed the crowd with frequent jokes and elicited much excitement among the audience of classmates, mentors, teachers and family. The other team had a couple of jokes, but would have clearly lagged behind in the applause meter. On the other hand, they were the team with a working prototype, a detailed market survey and a believable plan for market expansion. Given the fact that the panel of judges included CEOs and senior executives, it was no surprise that the team with more substance won out over the team with more style.
Of course, these 9-th graders didn't really have the opportunity to form their own teams, and the teams were not evenly balanced on competence and charisma, yet they were remarkably easy-going and accepting, in fact, celebratory, of their classmates' success. But all of them learned a lesson that's critical to any startup team making a pitch: what you say is as important as how you say it. And passion is a key element in the 'how' - if you don't show overwhelming enthusiasm for your idea, you can't expect anyone else to buy it.
It may sound corny, but there were no losing teams in this competition. The goal of the program is to build self-confidence and develop skills that help in business as well as school and make college real for kids who grow up thinking that it is out of their reach. I could see the difference: the kids who were nervous speaking to anyone they didn't know last fall, now got up and made a great presentation. They spoke with confidence and answered questions without faltering. (Note to BUILD folks: remind judges to drop bizspeak like 'did you factor the cyclical nature of the demand in forecasting sales' for the much-easier-to-understand 'do you sell the same number every month of the year'). On the way home our team was pumped: they were talking about colleges they'd like to go to and how they should start their business anyway, even if they'd didn't win the competition, as they think all their friends would love to buy their product - and oh, by the way, would it help them get into college? Hats off to BUILD for involving the community and bringing entrepreneurship to help in education - as mentors, we felt really good that we had a small part in bringing about this transformation, and I personally enjoyed getting a fresh perspective on teens and startups!
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