I recently had a chance to meet the insanely ambitious and inspiring Nate Tepper, founder of TEDxUMassAmherst. If you don’t know Nate, you’re missing out, but don’t worry – he’s on a mission to meet three new people each week.
Alexa: What inspired you to bring TEDx to UMass Amherst?
Nate: Awesome question! There is a story behind why I wanted to bring TED Talks to UMass Amherst. Last summer I was working with 125 startup companies, including Her Campus, from around the world at MassChallenge. These entrepreneurs were taking action with their passions every day to turn their ideas into reality. This was inspirational to me. TED is all about spreading ideas. I then attended TEDxBoston. This was more than an event, this was an experience that sparked a flame in me to take action with my own passions. I then came back to UMass Amherst in Fall 2012 and began to speak with all of the students. I realized everyone had a passion, everyone had a dream, and everyone had potential. Many just needed that small spark of inspiration to ignite the flame within them to take action with their passions. MassChallenge and TEDxBoston were those sparks of inspiration for me. I believed that if we could have a small spark of inspiration in everyone in the audience at TEDxUMassAmherst we could make a meaningful difference!
Alexa: How did you go about building such a strong team to put together the event?
Nate: From the start, I had a strong belief that students can do amazing thing, now! Having that mentality helped me to empower other students to realize their potential. TED is a unique platform and brand that brings together some of the best people in the world. What is unique about TEDxUMassAmherst is that it is student-inspired, student-driven, and student-run. We had a team of 25 student leaders working day and night to create this unique experience. We are currently looking for new members of the team for this year’s TED Conference at UMass Amherst!
Alexa: What was the most difficult part of planning the event?
Nate: Every night, at 3am, I would be up in my bed with a feeling of anxiety and questioning if I was doing things right. I kept calm through the entire process, yet this feeling remained constant. Once the event was over, the anxious and overwhelming feeling was gone. I realized, I missed that feeling! It was the feeling of stepping out of my comfort zone! I now search for situations that make me feel nervous, anxious, and overwhelmed because I know those situations can be the ultimate learning experiences.
Alexa: What was the most rewarding thing that came out of all of it?
Nate: I believe it is pretty amazing that we raised $25,000, held a TED conference for 500 students, alumni, faculty, and entrepreneurs, and hosted 12 world-renowned speakers, in three months! The most rewarding part of organizing TEDxUMassAmherst though was the impact it had on the audience. For example, one of our Top Sponsor’s sons sent me an email a few weeks ago describing how TEDxUMassAmherst inspired him to take action with his passions and organize a TEDx event at his high school. I am now mentoring him through the process. Our mission was to inspire people to take action with their passions and I believe we completed that.
Alexa: Who was your favorite speaker last year?
Nate: Chris Herren, former Boston Celtics Player and ESPN speaker, discussing finding his greatest strength in his struggle. He suffered from addiction for 15 years. You can watch his talk here.
Alexa: What can students expect from TEDxUMass Amherst this year?
Nate: Our motto last year was #ThinkBigActBig. This year we are Thinking Bigger and Acting Bigger! Everything we do this year will be twice as big! I want to keep some surprises but it is my personal goal to get the Dalai Lama to speak and 1 Million views on our TED videos online! You can learn more about the exciting things we are doing on our Facebook page.
Alexa: Which is your favorite Ted Talk online?
Nate: My favorite TED Talk online is Simon Sinek’s – How Great Leaders Inspire Action. I think about it in my life every single day. He discusses the importance of always starting with “WHY” you are doing something. Then “HOW.” And lastly, “WHAT.” This is called the Golden Circle. You can learn more and check out his amazing TED Talk here.
Alexa: What is YOUR “idea worth spreading”?
Nate: Be thankful and express gratitude. Be positive and express optimism.
Alexa: How can students get involved with TEDxUMassAmherst this year?
Nate: We are now looking for new student leaders to join the TEDxUMassAmherst Team. Only a select few people out there can say they have organized a TED Talk. Here are the open positions: http://goo.gl/daIDH3. If you want to be a part of this ultimate learning experience please send a cover letter and resume to tedxumassamherst@gmail.com.
Alexa: How do you think planning and working with TEDxUMassAmherst will help you with your future career goals?
Nate: Through organizing TEDxUMassAmherst we built a community. The people I have met through this experience have become some of my best friends and mentors. These relationships will grow into the future as we continue to learn from each other. I am now applying the skills I learned from starting TEDxUMassAmherst to building a profitable company. Another TEDx Leader and myself have started a software company, called Rabbly, dedicated to creating personal experiences between big brands and their most engaged users, to turn “likes” into sales.
It is a goal of mine to meet 3 new people every week! If you are interested in chatting over some coffee please feel free to email me at ndtepper@gmail.com.