ARK Challenge (@ARKChallenge): Week 1

One week before the program started, Jody Shackelford and I learned that we had been accepted into the ARK Challenge program, a startup accelerator program in Fayetteville, Arkansas. We had applied for VidLibs, our Startup Weekend Little Rock prohect and had some difficulty in securing a tech co-founder. We switched our business to one called Newspaper Next and ultimately, we were accepted as one of 10 teams of the 90+ that applied. We eagerly accepted and it has been a whirlwind since that time. I have a full time job at Stone Ward and couldn't leave it for a full 14 weeks to relocate to Fayetteville, as the program required. After much negotiating, in a very short period of time, we came to an agreement that Stone Ward, the ARK Challenge and I could all live with that meant I would be splitting my time between the two cities and be responsible for full time commitments to both organizations. In short: I have two full time jobs for the summer. And I couldn't be more excited (and nervous)!Before showing up in Fayetteville and going through orientation, our first steps were:

• Meeting with and hiring an attorney to officially form our business and begin getting paperwork in order.
• Searching for a place to live in Fayetteville, which is harder than it sounds when you are needing to move in quickly and only need a four month lease.
• Starting to pack for all the things you need in a new apartment and a summer of work away from home.

Because we were planning during a short window, unfortunately I wasn't able to participate in as many of the program activities this first week due to previously scheduled business trips for Stone Ward. But I was in Fayetteville for the orientation and then back up for the weekend. My business partner and I talked and emailed every day. And I was even able to join one of the panel discussions via Skype.Though I felt out of the loop a bit this first week, I am amazed by how much I learned in the brief time that I spent with the program and am still pinching myself to make sure this is real. I feel lucky to have this opportunity.This first week, we accomplished the following:

• Lean canvas refinement (a process that will continue in the coming weeks).
• Hired a developer to start building the product.
• Secured the URLs and social media profiles for our company and products/services.
• Developed a proposal for partner newspapers.
• Developed a survey for market research (launching this coming week).
• Met a lot of great people.
• Learned more than I could have imagined in a short period of time.
• Moved into empty apartments (and I met my neighbors the first night when the fire alarm went off and the building was searched by fully geared-up firemen).
• Drove a lot of miles.

At one point I woke up this week and wasn't sure if I was in Little Rock, Fayetteville or Chicago. But at least I was getting some sleep.Here are some photos documenting our first week: