First Impressions
I'm not always this apathetic.
Here's to a new chapter of my life and the continuation of something great.
My name is Brady Heyen, and I'm one of the new interns here at theCo!
As a philosophy major at Union University, you wouldn't expect me to be interested in entrepreneurship. Yet, here I am. I hope you'll join me on my journey here at theCo: first virtually, then physically.
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I first heard of theCo a few weeks ago, via an advertisement in a SnagMob mailer (the Groupon of Jackson, TN). Simply from the design of the ad, I knew there was something very "un-Jackson" going on here.
I attended an event (AM Creative) and fell in love with the space and the people involved. Though I didn't entirely understand everything theCo did at the time, I wanted to help. A few conversations later, and here I am, hopefully doing just that.
Over the past year, I have developed keen interest in the areas of entrepreneurship and local sustainability. I think we're all familiar with the concept of entrepreneurship, but perhaps less so with that of local sustainability. By this term, I simply mean the ability for a geographical region to provide for itself, and to sustain a community based on this provision.
You may be familiar with some of the benefits of supporting local farms. But did you know that the same "win-win" scenario exists in all forms of local trade? Watch the video below to get an idea of why buying local makes sense (ignore the British nationalism, it's a universal concept):
All of the sudden, buying local seems so obvious!
The only problem is: it's hard to start a business.
There are so many people in the world who can recognize needs. Many of those people—believe it or not—are here in Jackson! These people might be able to fulfill a need that you don't even know you have. But without the necessary tools and training, they might not feel capable of fulfilling such needs.
From my limited time here, I am learning that while it is so many things, theCo is—at the most basic level—a place where those dreamers have a chance. With the proper space, tools, training, and support, theCo can fully equip these "need recognizers" to make the next step in Jackson's walk towards local sustainability.
Stay tuned.
-Brady