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Techonomy
founder David
Kirkpatrick and
Guy Halfteck,
founder of the
startup Knack
A Lesson in Humility
BENJI ROSENZWEIG I SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
I
recently attended Techonomy
Detroit at Wayne State University, a
technology conference where tech
freaks and geeks like me gathered
from all around to see the latest that
Detroit has to offer. I learned a lot at the
conference, but as a representative of the
Detroit Jewish News/Red Thread Magazine,
I was a man on a mission to find a way
to connect Techonomy with readers in the
Jewish community.
My initial thought was the obvious
pitch — ratio of Jewish attendees and
speakers to non-Jewish. But that's a story
you don't need me to shed light on; just
take a look at past Nobel Prize winners.
Jews have a disproportionate number of
successful (and recognized) scientists,
artists and entrepreneurs compared to
our population. Techonomy is a natural
place to have a large number of Jews.
Story: meet trash bin.
I noticed a Twitter exchange between
@rabbijason, a local rabbi and fellow
tech freak, and @jewintheD, a local
website focused on the Detroit Jewish
community. Rabbi Jason stated "There is
a Jewish angle for everything."
If that was true, why couldn't I find
mine?
I thought I had struck gold as soon as
I heard the sweet voice of Guy Halfteck
from the startup Knack. I recognize an
Israeli accent anywhere, and sure enough,
a quick look at his bio proved not only
an impressive business career, but also a
stint as ship vice commander in the Israeli
Navy. I was particularly interested in the
46
September 27 • 2012
inclusion of his IDF navy career in his bio.
We were at a conference taking place at
WSU, a place known for being a hotbed
of political animosity between pro-Israeli
and pro-Palestinian student bodies. I
mentioned this to David Kirkpatrick, the
founder of Techonomy, who responded
by informing me that "Guy's being in
the Navy, or our mentioning it, is not a
political statement. It's a fact and part of
his bio."
Harrumph, now what was I going to
write about?
I was handed the answer on a silver
platter during a moment of self-reflection
this Rosh Hashanah.
I thought about the incredible people
I had heard speak at the conference and
how down to earth, even humble they
were as they shared their successes.
There it was: Humility is a universal
concept.
The character traits, behaviors and
commandments that are written about
in Jewish texts are universal traits that
everyone can appreciate. As Jews, we
don't own "Honor thy mother and father,"
"Thou shall not steal," the concept of
humility, modesty, honesty or gemilut
chasadim (acts of lovingkindness). No
one religion or ethnicity has the corner on
those traits, but we definitely put a lot of
emphasis on them as Jews. Every now and
then, I'll hear or see something and think,
"I remember my grandfather teaching me
that."
I had a few of those moments at
Techonomy.
Speakers, whether Jewish or not, had
a lot to be proud of, yet they showed up
with a sense of humility and gratitude.
As they shared the knowledge and
experiences of their respective companies,
they spoke from a place of strength rather
than ego.
Dan Gilbert, CEO of Quicken Loans,
spoke about "his team" of the best
and the brightest young folks in the
technology world. He wasn't talking
about himself; the only talent he
referenced was of the people with whom
he surrounded himself. They were the
talented ones. He said that he hires
qualified people, not college degrees, and
"If someone is good at what they do,
even if they don't have a college degree
— they will get hired in a second!"
Tonya Allen of the Skillman Foundation
talked about the momentum that the
region is building and how our efforts
only payoff if we work together. More
importantly, "How do we take the
momentum we have and be inclusive
about it to ensure kids poor today aren't
in 20 years?"
Possibly the greatest example of
humility I saw was from Jack Dorsey,
co-founder of Twitter, who held a private
question-and-answer session for the
media. Jason Raznick of Benzinga asked
Jack for advice on how to run a company
of that scale. Jack had a few gems for
Jason, one of them being, "I take the
bus to work every day. I can see what
real people wear, hear what real people
talk about, know what technology they
Eric Malley of Quicken Loans and
Benji Rosenzweig
are using and what interests them. Some
things I can't do from the insulation of a
fancy car-ride to work."
I thought about what Jack said many
times over the High Holiday. Jack, a
billionaire, takes the bus to work to be in
touch with real people. How many things
do I do to try and impress people? Where
can I be more real? My lesson in humility
is best wrapped up by what Josh Linkner
of Detroit Venture Partners said about
Detroit: "We need to stop apologizing for
what Detroit is not and start celebrating
what Detroit is."
This means we all need to be real.
Know who we are and who we are
not. Only then will be able to present
ourselves with strength and humility
— rather than ego. The Techonomy
experience has been a lesson in humility I
will never forget.