Last week, I started working at Mobility Labs. My first week was a blur of amazing doughnuts, hugs, discussions about Chaos vs. Order Muppets, and getting up to speed on current projects. Mobility Labs is building all sorts of things that make an impact, including lesson planning tools, apps for young children across the globe, tools to more easily calculate teacher pensions, and even tools to help educators connect and learn over Twitter.

During the week, we met with clients and potential partners. It struck me that Mobility Labs is definitely not a place where a relationship ends when the initial client requests are completed. Jeannie at Literacy Design Collaborative was kind enough to chat with us about a tool we’re working on internally and also put us in touch with some educators who would be able to provide additional feedback.  We also spent an afternoon chatting with Urban Arts Partnerships about their work and enjoying amazing doughnuts (Doughnut Plant, you will be the death of me). Throughout these conversations, it was clear that relationships, collaboration, and making an impact came first.

We ended the week with a bang at Startup Weekend NYCEDU.  Although we came as a group of 8, we split off to work on different projects, including apps to help students apply to college, math games, and lesson-planning platforms for ESL teachers. One of the organizers, upon hearing about our incredible two minute dance break, commented, “Why didn’t I hang out with you guys sooner?  You guys are awesome!”  She was correct.

 

I know I’ve landed somewhere special because I leave the office feeling energized and I can’t wait to see my coworkers again. They’re a fun, creative, and hilarious group who care as much about making a difference as I do.