How I’ve Spent my First 30 Days in San Francisco

Alright I did it. I have entered the arena. I uprooted my comfy life to move to San Francisco exactly 30 days ago to chase a dream. One goal. Start my own business. It’s only been one month and I’ve already learning a lot about the city, and myself.

It’s not all pretty and full of roses. No one is approaching me to cofound their company because I said I want to build a company. Working from home does not expedite making friends. I’ve already paid over $500 to the SFMTA for parking infringements that are not common knowledge.

This isn’t easy.

You have to show up every day.

You are going to have to f*ck around to find out

Here’s how I’m going to break down how things are going:

• Wins So Far

• Hard truths and learnings

• Thing’s that surprised me

Ready?

Lets get in to it.

Wins So Far

Apartment living scenario – I moved into an 5 BR 3.5 Bath in Russian hill. One of the nicest neighborhoods in SF. The place is huge, and it’s super nice. I didn’t know a single roommate before moving in. I only got to meet them over Facetime. Pretty happy with this so far. (My roommate asked me if I was going to blog about them, i told them no, so that’s all you’re going to get… publicly)

Putting yourself out there works (but not all the time)

Went to a party at a plant shop not knowing an single person, left with over 20 new friends – I went to a party with a live band and DJs at a plant shop in the outer sunset not knowing a single person ahead of time. Was introduced to two guys when someone found out I went to Ohio State… they did too. They both went through YC in 2020 and already on their second go for building companies. One is focused on building community around people who are passionate about AI, and the other is specialty a concierge medicine space.

• One of them was generous enough to show me Shack 15. A completely brand new coworking and common space at the Ferry building. Filled with founders, builders, and interesting people.

Twitter Works – It’s the SF group chat. I reached out to Harshita Girase because I saw a tweet of hers that she was trying to connect with 30 new people. 5 days later we met up, and talked over over an hour and a half. She told me to check out the SF Commons. Next thing you know we made a plan to go to their writing session and have a brainstorm session.

SF Commons – I was told to check out a community space for people to work, build and connect. You get some big names coming through this space. On Sundays they host writing hours where you write for an hour and then the space is open to the public the rest of the day. A shortlist of things that happened just over the span of 3 hours

• I met [redacted], one of the main VCs running the weekend fund. All because we both showed up late and I let them jump on my mobile hotspot. (More to be shared on this)

• I was told “You should come around more, you have great normie energy. We need more of that.” …I’ll take it. I’ll be back soon

Tahoe Ski Trip – I got to run it up to Tahoe to catch a fresh dumping so I could warm up for the upcoming ski season. Was nice to squeeze some runs in after i knocked out all my work super early in the morning. I was uncomfortably close to being part of the KT-22 avalanche at Palisades. Thankfully, my buddy and I wanted to knock out our morning work. Otherwise we would have been the people trying to hit that exact chair early in the morning.

San Francisco is beautiful – full of incredible views and I’ve encountered less homelessness in the area I live in than I was warned about.

Befriended a Cloud Gaming Founder at Start-up Social – At the check in someone asked me about why my name tag said I love to do cold plunges in the bay. Unfortunately for her… next thing you know I’m diving deep into why I love them, their benefits, and invited her to my cold plunge party that Saturday.

Connected with someone building the Stripe of health data (Cambrean) – David Sloane is an ex-professional soccer player turned health nut, just like me. We got introduced because he’s building a product I’d love to exist. A place to centralize all health data, such as CGM, exercise data, sleep data, nutrition, and more. He’s showing me some cool companies to check out in that space, and other fitness freaks in the city, just like me.

Cold Emails Work – I saw some guy that used to work at a Levels, a company I find extremely interesting, followed me on twitter. So what do I do? I hit him up up out of the blue and ask him if I can grab coffee with him, since I’m new to the city and know nobody. Turns out he worked with my manager. He showed me what is now the best espresso pull I’ve had in SF. Check out third wheel coffee, right next to Alamo square. He offers to walk me around Hayes valley and show me some cool spots, and introduces me to another fitness nut working in the start-up space.

I hosted a Cold Plunge Party – where I wanted to get some people together and do something fun, but not how I was doing “mixers” in the past. I threw a spin on it. I wanted to find people that have a little crazy in them. Just like me. So I decided to to host a party at 8:45 on a Saturday morning where we all jump in the bay, get to know each other, then get on with our Saturday. 10 People said they would come, 4 showed up (it was raining). I’ve got a ton of interest for the next one, I think this is going to be a reoccurring thing. People seem to love it.

Hard Truths and Learnings

Ambition will only take you so far – it’s highly respected, but proof of success carries more if someone doesn’t know who you are. —> Build products or solutions to problems you find interesting, people will notice… they’re looking for it.

The SFMTA does not f*ck around. They will get you. You can get a ticket for not having a front license plate. They I’ve alredy been fined over $500, and will come out having paid them a total of over $500 after I pay the corrections, fines, and have bought my permit.

Cold Emails Work – when done the right way, to the right people. I fumbled it my first time. I cold emailed the CEO of a health tech company, she promptly answered. They do check their emails, trust me. I learned I need to be concise and/or have a clear CTA, or else you’re wasting their time.

Working from home is tough – it does not help when you’re new to a city and don’t know that many people. The upside is it is forcing me to put myself out there more, in places I want to be with people I want to surround myself with. WFH can be tough though, I catch myself going bananas sometimes. That’s when I try to go work from a coffee shop or a coworking space. There’s tons of them here.

I am a fast mover – I want to already have something to show for the whole “why I moved.” I need to keep reminding myself that this is a long game, not a quick turnaround success. Set the seeds now, grow the roots, the tree will be full bloom 2-3 years from now. Trust the process. Keep showing up.

Things That Have Surprised Me

Very few people have heard of CGMs or Dexcom – they recognize levels health before they know what Dexcom is. I find it funny. The bay area is so entrenched in software they aren’t as familiar with the biotech space. Reminds me I am more knowledgeable than I think in this space. There’s always more to learn, so just make sure you know what you want to go after learning next.

Sparse Super Chargers – There’s only 3 Tesla super chargers in the “city” and really only one good option in Anza vista. I thought there’d be more in somewhere like SF.

Quality of House Music – the talent (that I like) that comes through SF is surprisingly diverse and good. One of my favorite artists, Hot Since 82 is coming to the midway February 23.

Being normal is not normal for SF – Be quirky, be obsessive. They admire intensity. Let your freak-flag fly. Wear it proud

Investors love weirdos – One of the VCs I’ve met at the SF Commons told me that she looks for people you have obsessive passions. I get it, you like people that really dive deep. But I was surprised by how much weight they put on that characteristic of a person. I have a ton of passions, some that I’m obsessed on, curious how it looks if it’s not super specific.

Run clubs are essentially social groups and dating clubs – They’re huge here. And there’s tons

This Area is Cycling Paradise – the best place in the USA for cycling, you can meet some very wealthy and successful people through this. Every other person tells me i need to pick it up. I’m considering it.

Cold Plunges aren’t as popular here – my $100/mo gym in San Diego had 5 cold tubs. But yet the Equinox there that’s nearly triple that price, has zero. Nuts. That’s why I’m plunging in naturally occurring bodies of water here, like the bay. For now.

What I’ve Learned

Everyone is doing something – So just do what you love doing, and the rest will come together.

Vocalize your intentions – (genuinely) and people are willing to help

Give, before you take. Offer help, ask questions

SF Doesn’t get moving until 10am on a weekend

Share to be Known Well, not well known – Double digit number of people have recommended I write publicly, share my thoughts. Everyone has something to say and share. Newsletters are oversaturated. Don’t do it for a “newsletter,” to sell a product. Write publicly to establish your reputation, credibility, develop your internet real estate. This can be where someone can get to know me better than a resume, twitter, or Instagram

30 Days in. I’m just getting started.

One More thing…

Let me know what you think about these.

• What do you want to hear more of?

• What do you want me to deep dive on?

• Lmk if you have questions about what I’m writing. I check

Let’s rock and roll…

-Jared