Pitch night is always one of the most popular nights of Startup Weekend, it's when people put their ideas out into the open. It's when entrepreneurs have one minute to tell their vision for a product or application or service to a room full of people who can make that idea come to life. There is an awesome energy in the room as people applaud, and when you look in the eyes of those in the crowd you see people's minds turning. Then, after everyone pitches, the crowd votes on their favorite project or the project they think has legs, and even before the teams are formed you watch people brainstorming how these projects become reality.
The pitch time is probably one of the most inspiring pieces of Startup Weekend, but what is most incredible is smaller than the big ideas that are discussed and realized at Startup Weekend, what's most incredible is that these ideas are coming from people in your town. When you think of the newest products or apps, you expect them to come out of the minds of Silicon Valley - we've been trained to expect that. However, last night as we wrapped up Day 1 of Startup Weekend it was apparent that in South Bend, Indiana there are great minds thinking of incredible ideas.
You also see that these home town entrepreneurs talking about these big ideas have a room filled with home town people willing to work on these projects with them. There are app developers, designers, business managers, marketers all from our own backyard wanting to help create a great company. It's inspiring to watch it all come together in a way that has no egos behind it, but, instead, has hundreds of people rooting for each other and rooting for the next big thing to come of this experience.
So, the next time you think about the latest app don't just assume that came from Silicon Valley… it could have been built in your home town, and if you're wiling to help - maybe the next one will.