Yadda Squad

Chase Garbarino

Why I Am An Entrepreneur

Note: This article was originally published here by The Huffington Post. BostInnovation.com and The Huffington Post have a content partnership. Chase Garbarino, BostInnovation and Pinyadda founder & CEO, contributes to a weekly column on entrepreneurship for the Huffington Post.

On Christmas Day in 2005, during my junior year of college, my mother gave me a copy of the Small Business Opportunities magazine in my stocking. To this day, I can still remember the headline jumping out at me: “College Student Makes $300,000 In A Month.” After briefly skimming the article about the student setting up an affiliate shopping site, my mind was was made up – I was going to start an internet business.

The stack of resumes and cover letters prepped for internship opportunities at Lehman Brothers, Goldman and other financial companies never ended being mailed. Instead, a friend of mine and I created an internship position on several job recruiting sites calling for the nation’s top collegiate journalists and media makers to join “The New York Times of college publications.” That night, as I went to bed, it hit me like a ton of bricks: Did I seriously just bail out on applying for legitimate internships to start a national collegiate news site with absolutely no technical or media experience?

After several beers, a night of tossing and turning, and 24 hours of avoiding internet access, I finally checked my e-mail. We had received over 100 applications within a day and ended up receiving a total of over 300 by the time the listing expired after three days. The magazine headline that planted the seed for my interest in entrepreneurship quickly faded to the back of my mind. I was hell bent on giving students at the peak of their intellectual curiosity and development, a platform to share their new ideas and beliefs with the world, and CampusWord was born.

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: Zach Cole

“I use Pinyadda because it takes social interaction around current events to a new level.

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight Zach Cole, a Boston-native and student at Emerson College where he is finishing his degree in marketing communications. Passionate for understanding how consumers shape the world and what he describes as the “never-ending pursuit of innovation,” you’ll find Zach pinning articles on everything from social media strategy to Google’s latest moves. Here’s a quick glimpse into why you’ll find Zach on Pinyadda every day:

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: Ted Gott

I use Pinyadda because it serves me news that’s of interest to me in a much quicker and easier way. I was constantly sharing news and links with friends via email, but Pinyadda provides a much better forum and experience.”

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight a newer user, Ted Gott. Ted heard about Pinyadda from his friends, and since says he’s been “addicted.” Ted works in strategy and analytics for Digitas, the cutting edge digital advertising agency, but fancies himself, and I quote, “a Pinyadda renaissance man.” Read: you’ll find Ted pinning everything from cool science articles to business strategy articles to sports briefs to viral videos. Ted also wanted to let me know that Pinyadda has made him realize that National Public Radio actually produces articles (despite their, quote, “droning radio presence”), so expect to see him posting their articles, too! Here’s why Ted has become so addicted to Pinyadda:

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: Caroline Cahill

“Pinyadda has become my go-to for news because everything feels so tailored to my interests and also because of the unique social aspect.”

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight Caroline Cahill. Caroline discovered Pinyadda after someone she followed on Twitter pinned an article from Pinyadda there. She followed the link, discovered Pinyadda, and jumped right on into the community. You can find Caroline pinning on everything from new Nike sportswear to the best movie posters to great article finds like where old Nickelodeon game show hosts are nowCaroline was initially drawn to Pinyadda because of the ability to follow news and blog post across all her interests in one place — not just for her work, but across her hobbies, favorite sports team, cities, and all the other activities she’s involved in. The real-time reactions, insights, and perspectives from other people in the community she has been networking with since joining, is another reason Caroline uses Pinyadda:

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: John DiGilio

“Pinyadda is not just an excellent news aggregator, it is a doorway to a community of people who care about the news as much as you do.”

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight John DiGilio. John is a professional researcher, writer, and educator who is well known in info-centric circles for his blog iBraryGuy (you can follow his great content on Pinyadda here). You will find John pinning news and blog posts on everything from books and libraries to technology to healthy living and spirituality. Since joining the Pinyadda community in July, he’s brought a wealth of knowledge (both from the articles he pins and the commentary he provides) and has already amassed a solid following.

A self-described newshound who is a magnet for both information and new technology, here’s why Pinyadda is such a large part of John’s news routine:

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: Tom Nickerson

“You will soon abandon all other forms of news gathering. Pinyadda makes all other methods obsolete and it’s a lot of fun to use. You WILL become hooked.

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight Tom Nickerson. Tom is a grad student at the University of Minnesota, getting his PhD in Bioproducts and Biosystems Science, Engineering, and Management (um, holy moly!). While he is studying this, his pins tend to be an equal amount of funny articles (he is credited with introducing many Pinyadda members to the now religiously followed site, The Oatmeal!), Apple hate (kidding!), and  sports talk. Tom is the epitome of a Pinyadda community member, pinning articles to stay in touch with friends in other cities, to share inside jokes with his new wife Katie (CONGRATULATIONS FROM THE YADDA SQUAD!), as well as pinning to network with new people he discovers on Pinyadda. It’s no surprise that conversations are “hands down” his favorite aspect of  Pinyadda:

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Greg Gomer

A Day in the Life and A Caption Contest

Well, I just acquired Kyle’s camera and decided to let you in on what’s happening right now at the Pinyadda World Headquarters.  Here are a few quick shots that sum up today’s happenings.  I hope you enjoy!

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: Rob Nicewicz

“Pinyadda is a news platform that combines the efficiency of an RSS reader with the community of a social network.”

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight Rob Nicewicz, who works at a private equity firm in Boston and has been on Pinyadda since we launched in open beta back in January. Reflected in his profile pic and pins, when he’s not crushing deals you’ll likely find him watching and reading about the Celtics and Bruins. Here’s why Rob’s on Pinyadda:

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: H. “Greener” Balikov

“Pinyadda: A good place to get your creative juices flowing, a GREAT place to exchange ideas.

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight Greener Balikov.  Greener is an environmental consultant and naturalist photographer, and you’ll quickly begin to amass a ton of knowledge on green tech, the environment, and energy just by following his pins and soaking up all his insights. Aside from his green pins, you can find him sparking conversations with all sorts of people in the community on everything from who has the most regrettable sports contract to LinkedIn’s newest valuation. So, it’s no surprise the conversations are at the core of why Pinyadda is such a big part of Greener’s daily news routine:

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Cheryl Morris

No User Left Behind: Sam Butcher

“Pinyadda collects the news from the sources that I usually use and also brings me new sources that I did not know about.  It’s much faster and more efficient than stealing the paper from my boss.

This week in no user left behind we’re happy to spotlight Sam Butcher. Contrary to Sam’s profile photo, he’s  not a Pinyadda Rookie by any stretch of the road; he’s been using Pinyadda since last fall, contributing to our growth and certainly the development of our community ever since. An environmental consultant, you’ll find Sam spreading his knowledge through pins on everything from China’s carbon emissions to new “peel and stick” solar panels. Here’s how and why Sam has been on Pinyadda all this time:

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