Eric and I have been working out of his living room, for a little over two months now.  For most of those two months, we’ve worked together, just the two of us, taking breaks to be with our friends and loved ones, and to do the things that keep us sane (cycling, snowboarding, writing, etc.).  However, the last two weeks have been much different.  We’ve started spending time with other friends founding companies, which has inspired both of us and made us feel more comfortable.

The loneliness struggle applies to anyone who is self employed, working in an isolated space.  It’s a challenging part of working for yourself, and not for a company.  And it’s weird for those of us that have worked at companies for all of our career.  We’re not used to being alone.

Eric and I need to continue to get out of our “office” and meet other people in the startup ecosystem.  This is somewhat challenging, though, because so many startup meetups are completely over the top and not worth going to.  But we both have friends in the startup world, and we need to reach out to them more often.  To share anecdotes, war stories, technology decisions, etc.

The same thing goes with any of you who are self employed.  Get out of your office and hang out with people.  It’ll inspire you and remind you why you quit your job in the first place.  Validation from other people can be part of that light at the end of the tunnel.

Eric and I received the news yesterday that TownSquared, Inc. is an official corporation of the state of Delaware. The news was very exciting for the two of us, though the reality is that not much has changed.

At the state we’re at, incorporating really just means a bunch of paperwork and a big lawyer expense. Eric and I are both friends and trust each other, so we’ve never had concerns about one of us screwing over the other. Incorporating makes things formal, with well defined equity splits, board seats, etc. Incorporating also lets us issue NDAs and other formal documents on behalf of the company, and lets us have an officially place for all the intellectual property we create.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m very excited we’re official. But being officially incorporated is kinda like being official with your girlfriend or boyfriend — nothing day-to-day really changes.

Eric, my cofounder, and I have been having a debate lately about whether or not we should do our startup in New York or San Francisco.  I thought I’d share my first impressions, because Eric and I have had a significantly easier time getting meetings in New York than in San Francisco.  My impression so far is that San Francisco/Silicon Valley investors only want to talk to you if you’re raising a round.  Whereas New York investors are way more willing to talk to you, even if you’re not looking to raise money right away.

To give some background, my cofounder, Eric, wants to move to New York — he’s originally from the area.  I love San Francisco and want to stay here.  We’re not sure where we’ll end up yet, but we’re considering all possibilities.  Our product is at a point now where we can start having meaningful meetings with investors we may want to work with in the future.  We’re not looking to raise money yet, but we want to start building relationships and getting to know the investor landscape.

Eric and I have both been trying to get meetings.  So far, we haven’t had a single meeting in San Francisco/Silicon Valley, and we’ve had about six phone calls in New York, with even more meetings lined up for a trip we’re making in early February.

My impression is that San Francisco/Silicon Valley investors get way more incoming investment possibilities than New York investors, making for a more rushed and formal investment process.  In New York, the people we’ve spoken to are super excited to hear what we’re doing and super willing to make other introductions, even though they know we’re not looking to raise money.  Whereas in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, every person in my network I’ve asked to do an introduction has told me it’s too early.

I believe there’s a few things going on here.  First, I expect Eric and I come off as good people to bring to New York.  We’ve each spent our entire professional career in the Valley, and I expect the New York community would love to have more Valley people.  And second, all the meetings in the Valley that I’ve tried to get have been through extremely capable entrepreneurs that want me to avoid bad terms with an investor, urging me to wait as long as possible to get investment.

All said and done, Eric and I have lots of New York meetings lined up.  And we have zero lined up in San Francisco/Silicon Valley.  So far, New York is a better place to get investor introductions.  Not what you’d expect, right?

For those of you reading that are entrepreneurs, I’d love to hear your take.  I’m also open to any introductions you’d like to make ;).

A few friends have asked me what I do for health insurance.  I started doing COBRA, which lets you continue the health insurance from your previous employer at the same group rate your employer paid.  My bill was north of $400 for a PPO dental and health plan.  Way too much money.  After two or so months of COBRA, I kept my PPO dental plan because I have a tooth that still bothers me, and I dropped the PPO health plan in favor of an emergency plan, with a $5,000 deductible and a max coverage of $2M.  The new health plan is a little more than $100 a month, and is only there to help with health emergencies that would cost huge sums of money.  I found and purchased the new health plan through eHealthInsurance.com, which I’ve been happy with.