What are you working on now?
I'm currently focused on leading Unreal Collective and cohosting the upside podcast. I fell in love with building products through my first software startup, Tixers, a digital ticket exchange. Tixers was in the second class of the UpTech accelerator program in Covington, Kentucky, and raised a seed round of funding. After just a couple of years in business, Tixers was acquired in 2015.
In 2016, I worked as a product head with CrossChx, a venture-backed healthcare startup in Columbus, Ohio. There, I managed several hardware and software products and helped to launch two completely new products in the healthcare space. All along the way, I was actively engaged in the startup community as a local organizer and facilitator of Startup Weekend since 2012.
In 2017, I left CrossChx to combine my interests in product and community building through Unreal Collective, an online accelerator for founders and freelancers to find community and grow their businesses.
You can connect with me on social media @jayclouse or sign up for my daily blog at jayclouse.com.
How has BBC helped you get to where you are?
The Business Builders Club fundamentally changed my life by introducing me to the concept of entrepreneurship. Growing up, all I really knew was education, and the BBC opened my eyes to an untraditional path. When I found BBC through my first Idea Pitch, I understood that I didn't need to be "chosen" or "selected" by anyone else to be successful -- I had the freedom and personal agency to create my own path.From then on, the BBC continued to bring me opportunity in the ways of mentorship, internships, and the privilege to lead the club as President my senior year. Without the education received from BBC and the friends made, my life would look completely different right now.
What advice do you have for current BBCers?Show up and contribute. The people you will naturally meet by being around the BBC are life-changing people. Five years from now, you'll see your BBC peers building companies, leading organizations, and being at the forefront of change and influence. You are in the perfect time to show up, learn from the speakers and from your peers, and contribute to others.Everything I've built and achieved was due to the authentic relationships I've formed. You are in a golden time here at Ohio State -- use this time to build relationships with your peers and mentors that will last a lifetime.
