M.I.N.D - My Ideas Never Die

MIND is a creative ecosystem and resource database that is uniting entrepreneurs and accelerating the emergence of the creative economy. 

The emerging gig based economy requires people to be creative entrepreneurs. AI and robotics will replace every menial task. We have to enable the current and future workforce to become multidisciplinary creative entrepreneurs. We are connecting creative communities at home in Boston and around the world. We empower our communities through our services and support them with our network, to provide everyone with the necessary tools needed to thrive. Mind helps the workforce of tomorrow through supporting students in colleges, high schools and, middle schools. Mind helps the workforce of today through our artist spotlight events, mentoring, promoting and connecting to resources. Our planned buildings are designed by a team member to produce food, energy, and water for its residents. Combining sustainable design with affordable living/working spaces provide a physical launchpad for creative entrepreneurs. By connecting creative communities from across the world and providing sustainable living space, we can build the support system for the new economy. By working with the youth and adults, we can insure the workforce will be able to thrive. Collaboration is also a rising trend against competition, the entrepreneurs of today see the value of working together vs. against one another. Education and work will be passion based, collaboration will be widespread, and sustainability will be achieved. It would be peace on earth and a truly utopian global society. It is a future that our team and community are avid about bringing about as fast as possible.

Our solution is a process for solving the challenge. Right now in the creative field everyone is focused on their own projects and community. No one is currently focused on bringing the various communities together. We are specifically fixated on bringing all the creative communities together. and empowering the individuals to be more self sufficient. Essentially we are developing a creative accelerator. Through our campaigns that include a docuseries and specially curated events, we can showcase underground creatives and their communities. Large brands gain access through sponsorship, which helps with their marketing and provides access to the creative underground.

Technology is integral to our solution because it provides a means for people from all backgrounds to collaborate together as well as simplify the process of creating new projects. In order to bring together creative communities and empower individuals, we will be developing a digital ecosystem which will allow creative entrepreneurs to access all of the tools resources and communities they need to be successful. Our digital hub will provide a gamified experience which will be directly tied to our physical experiences. This gamified experience will attract and inspire creative entrepreneurs of all ages as well as promote physical interactions.

Over the next twelve months we plan on developing campaigns that showcase underground creatives and their communities. We intend to leverage these campaigns for elevating the underground and grounding the elite. Our intention is to start in the North East fall 2018 and gradually expand to connect creative communities across the country. The creative launchpad program for schools will start in January of 2019 with 2-4 colleges where we connect their creative community to the greater Boston area. By the end of the year, we hope to be positioned to begin expansion to other countries.

Over the next three to five years, we intend to have expanded our platforms and school programs to a worldwide scale. Our solution will impact more people over time through our creative launchpad program expanding to middle schools, high schools and colleges across the country. The digital platform will enable creatives and resources to connect while providing a virtual creative community spanning across the globe. Our creative campaigns will provide a spotlight for underground creatives and the events will provide spaces for our community to engage with each other. As the campaigns spread across the world, so will our impact.

Our customers and beneficiaries are two sided. They are large brands wanting access to the creative underground and creatives looking to gain access to resources. Reaching creatives has been really easy. We host events that they want to go to, provide environments that enable them to connect to each other, and have all of our branding positioned to attract creatives. Reaching brands is similarly fairly easy, we connect with insiders via linkedin and setup meetings. Our site will enable brands sign up as sponsors, creatives to sign up to our community, and for people to purchase tickets to our events.

We are serving creative entrepreneurial communities in Boston and abroad. These communities include underground creative groups, resources, universities, brands, and international creative groups. We serve creatives by curating experiences that expose them to new audiences and opportunities. We serve resources by connecting them to creatives seeking resources that don’t know where to access them. We serve brands by connecting them to underground creatives. We serve universities by connecting their creative industries students to insider opportunities. We serve international creative groups such as the organization Let’s Create by connecting them to our network of resource and creatives.

Over the next twelve months we will be focused on bringing attention to boston's creative communities. We aim to serve the respective communities by providing thoughtfully curated events to bring greater awareness while increasing their respective fan bases. Secondly we aim to introduce our docuseries as a means to edify the populous on our movement while providing a fresh approach to inspire those who want to convert their passions into a career. We anticipate reaching, on average, 3000 people a month with aggressive marketing and public engagements. In three years, we hope to expand to the world, empowering creatives everywhere.

First and foremost, my team and I share an unwavering passion for empowering every person on this planet to convert their passions into entrepreneurial pursuits. Each team member brings something unique to the table, whether it be marketing expertise, branding and graphics, coding, or social engagement. We are very resourceful and pick up whatever skills we need as we face new challenges. Having already connected to the majority of creative collectives in Boston, a startup in India, and the Chamber of Commerce without funding, I am confident we can attract the resource we need to succeed and make an impact.

The for-profit side of our business will generate revenue through sponsorship for the campaigns, ticket sales from events, apparel sales, membership fees, and marketing services. We have positioned ourselves to be able to charge those that can afford it, higher amounts, while charging others less. The large brands, corporations and universities will provide the larger percentage of our revenue stream through presales & select access packages. We anticipate being able to bring in $50-250k per quarter from each of the larger resources. The individual creative will pay a minimal monthly fee of $20-50 depending on the services that they want. Our apparel will sell for higher on our website ~$80 per shirt and lower at the events of ~$50 per shirt, driving traffic to our events which will increase revenue from ticket sales. Our non-profit side will generate its revenue through fundraising and various creative projects. It will enable us to provide free services to impoverished communities that are in need of access to resources that will enable them make a living off of their passions.

My team and I are applying to Solve because our solution fits perfectly with the work for the future and the flex economy. We love MIT as a community of people that have embraced their genius. What better place to advance our efforts in helping everyone find the creative genius within each of us? By working with Solve, we believe we will gain access to the funds we need to focus all of our efforts on bringing our vision to life. In addition, we believe the connections it will open up will significantly accelerate our efforts across the world.

The key barriers we face are access to the right kinds of financiers, a dedicated workspace, and educational resources. Acceptance into MIT Solve would open the doors to fostering the necessary connections to lead us towards financiers interested in supporting creatives. We especially see the opportunity in getting connected to the education system. By working with MIT Solve we will have endorsement from a well respected educational institution. It will enable us to get into schools quickly so we can provide students access to the resources necessary to become creative entrepreneurs and be fully prepared for the gig economy.