I'm excited to be speaking at the Futura Innovation Conference, taking place October 19-21 in Limerick, Ireland! Join an inspiring community of innovators, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders and me for three days of thought-provoking conversations, new ideas, and meaningful connections. Learn more and register at futuraevent.com. #Futura2026 #FuturaInnovationConference #Innovation #Limerick

Most economic development talks about communities. This one listens to them. On October 6, Start Co. hosts The Suggestion Box at The Dame downtown. Cocktails, conversation, and community suggestions. It's our next Catalyst30 mixer. The idea is simple. Get business owners, placemakers, and residents in one room. Ask five questions: 1. What in the region helps you innovate? 2. What hinders you from innovating? 3. What outside the region helps you innovate? 4. What is missing in the region that could help you innovate? 5. Where could you specifically use help? Come with your thoughts or work them out there. You can submit suggestions from your phone while we talk. I think the best ideas for Memphis are already in Memphis. We need to hear them. Tuesday, October 6 | 5:00-7:00 PM The Dame, 69 E. Pontotoc Ave, Memphis Register: jazpqjuxujz.typeform.com/to/…

What will it take for #Memphis to turn more entrepreneurial activity into scalable companies, stronger firms, and real job creation? @Start_Co President Andre Fowlkes is taking that question to the stage at DelTech 2026. Drawing from the Urban Institute’s recent report on entrepreneurship in Shelby County, Andre will break down three areas where Memphis businesses and economic development organizations can improve our competitiveness nationally: • Incorporation and the innovation continuum • Helping firms reach greater operational scale and commercialization • Open-logic corporate innovation for greater job creation and business expansion The data points to real gaps we need to address. Tennessee ranks last nationally in the incorporated share of firms, and improving our economic performance requires more than simply starting more businesses. We need an economic value-delivery system that puts innovation, scalability, capital formation, and competitiveness first. We’re proud to have Andre representing Start Co. at DelTech 2026 and advancing this important conversation about the future of the Memphis economy. #DelTech2026 #Memphis #Entrepreneurship #Innovation #EconomicDevelopment

Downtown Memphis has always been built by people willing to adapt, reinvent, and keep moving. Join us on September 8 from 5:00–7:00 PM at Barware for a Catalyst30 fireside chat with Deni Reilly of The Majestic Grille and Cocozza. Deni will share what it took to navigate COVID, why new ideas and reinvention became essential, and what other entrepreneurs and business leaders can learn from that experience. We’ll also bring together downtown businesses, aspiring talent, and partners across Memphis’ innovation ecosystem for an evening of conversation and connection. This is what Catalyst30 is about: creating a downtown environment where entrepreneurs can start, grow, experiment, and help shape the future of our urban core. If you are building a business, leading one, or care about the future of Downtown Memphis, join us. Link in the comments to register. #Memphis #MemphisBusiness #Entrepreneurship #Innovation #DowntownMemphis

I'm proud to serve on the SXSW Pitch Advisory Board and help discover the next generation of innovative startups! If you're building something transformative and ready to showcase your company on one of the world's biggest innovation stages, I'd love to encourage you to apply for SXSW Pitch 2027. 📷 Applications are now open. 📷 Deadline to Apply: November 13, 2026 Know an incredible startup? Tag them below or share this opportunity with your network! Apply and learn more here sxsw.com/pitch/ #SXSW #SXSWPitch #Startups #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #Founder #Tech #StartupCommunity

Most people sense that something is off before they can articulate it. They continue to add to their plans because completing them would mean confronting whether they were ever viable. They haven't made a bad decision in years, but they also haven't made a difficult one. The version of themselves they are trying to protect has not been accurate for about three years. They wake up feeling fine, but by the time they drive to work, something has already shifted, often dismissed as just traffic. These are signals. In my Mathews Mindset newsletter, I explore what these signals truly signify. The newsletter delves into the gap between what individuals claim to want and how their lives are structured to achieve those desires. I am not sharing productivity hacks or generic success advice. My insights come from twenty years of experience in building companies, coaching founders and business owners, and observing recurring lessons across diverse people and situations. Subscribe here: mathews-mindset.beehiiv.com/… #Leadership #Entrepreneurship #Mindset

My next Mathews Mindset post elaborates on a diagnostic question my friend Scott Brown (@rsbrown) gave me twenty years ago. It is one of the simplest and most revealing questions I have ever been asked, and I think about it to this day. Here is a taste: your body answers the burnout question twice a day, every day, before your brain has a chance to spin it. You just haven't been paying attention to the answer. It drops Tuesday. Don't miss it. Subscribe to the Mathews Mindset newsletter here: mathews-mindset.beehiiv.com/…

#SanFrancisco friends, I'm in town this Thursday and I want to see you. We used to host happy hours like this pre-pandemic and it's time to bring that energy back. Hoping this kicks off more regular gatherings for our friends and community out here in SF. Why am I coming? Why happy hour? I'm the incoming board chair of Code Crew, a Memphis-born 501(c)(3) that has reached over 16,000 students with hands-on computer science, coding, and AI education and built real pathways into tech careers. The impact is going national, and we're in the middle of a $7.5 million capital campaign to make that happen. Jillian Friot, Meka Egwuekwe (Code Crew's CEO and co-founder), and I are hosting a happy hour this Thursday, April 23rd from 4:00 to 6:00 pm at the San Francisco Wine Society. Wine and food are on us. If you care about the future of tech talent and who gets access to it, come through. If you don't still come so we can hang out and catch up. Donate what you can. Bring someone who should be in the room. Thank you!!! RSVP: cdcrw.us/HappyHourSF #Memphis #HH #HappyHour #SanFranciscoTech #impact

Strong companies are built deliberately. They do not emerge by accident. Start Co. is currently running the **Virtual Entrepreneurship Series 2026**, a six-part leadership and sales program designed to help founders build scalable organizations and repeatable revenue engines. This is a multi-state program funded by Empower California and open to qualified entrepreneurs in: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington. We kicked off on February 11, but it is not too late to join the remaining sessions. Over the next sessions, founders will learn how to: • Strengthen organizational structure and culture • Establish governance and board discipline • Validate and sharpen their “sell” • Modernize their sales funnel • Scale with financial clarity and operating discipline The program is fully funded. There is no cost for qualified participants. Registration and completion of the intake form are required to determine eligibility. If you know founders in any of these states who are serious about building durable companies, send this to them. Apply here: docsend.com/view/nzezmimqs34…

Two months of silence. Two weeks of fire. I took a step back from the Mathews Mindset newsletter at the end of last year. Sometimes the best thing a leader can do is pause, reflect, and come back sharper. That's exactly what happened. Starting this month, I've got a run of essays coming that I'm genuinely excited about on resilient transformation, the real edge in leadership, and what it takes to build something that lasts. Subscribe now so you don't miss any of them: mathews-mindset.beehiiv.com/…