My expectations for San Francisco included meeting lots of passionate and ambitious people, with big dreams to change the world in a meaningful way.
For the first few months, about 90% of the people I had met told me they just looked up what career path would earn them the most money and then pursued that. Most of the people I met had little to no passion or interest in what they were doing and didn’t seem to have many hobbies either.
It was like the "work hard, play hard" without the "play hard". To me, it seemed a bit like living a rich, yet empty life. Some people were ambitious, but not in a way that piqued my interest. They were yet another founder creating a product that frankly does not add any value to society or the planet. I started wondering:
“Where are all the people with world changing ideas?”
Within two weeks, all that changed. SF Climate Week took place for the first time ever between April 17th and 23rd and I was actively a volunteer in helping coordinate logistics and volunteers. Although I didn't have a lot of time to register for events because I was preoccupied with the organisational aspects, I was able to attend a few events and meet some incredible people (most of the events required approval to join).
During SF Climate Week, I met the incredible and inspiring Helena Merk, co-founder of Streamline Climate, who dropped out of college to pursue her entrepreneurial ambitions. Through her, I met Jason Benn, Founder of the Neighbourhood, who explained that a lot of the business gets done behind closed doors, in people's homes or at exclusive events. You have to meet the right people to get invitations to private events and enter the communities.
I found out that there are people in San Francisco that care about more than just money. You just need to find them as they're just hidden away, in their social bubbles of climate enthusiasts, social activists and communities.