Dre Thompson of Startup Tucson: The Importance of Little Asks
Dre Thompson is the executive VP at Startup Tucson and the Festival Director of TenWest Impact Festival. Dre has a diverse background with startups, research institutions, and in the public and private spheres. She’s passionate about understanding why people do what they do to inform programming design and education.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
- [01:07] Stephanie introduces her guest, Dre Thompson
- [02:37] Speed round with Dre Thompson
- [05:05] Dre’s very first ask
- [06:24] How empathy can play a role in making an ask successful
- [10:58] How small asks can help you get into the mindset of a grant reviewer
- [13:06] Why founders are hesitant to make smaller asks
- [14:25] The importance of checklists when preparing your pitch
- [17:07] Why reigning in your emotions and knowing your audience is crucial in positioning your ask
- [24:24] Why Dre is impressed with founders who can get technical with their ask
- [27:50] Why recognizing your limitations can help you formulate the best pitch with your team
- [28:47] Why Dre is excited about Women In Tech Fellowship
- [32:01] Valuable information that Startup Tucson needs to know about from founders
- [34:02] Connect with Dre Thompson
In this episode…
What are the things that you need to have in order to make a successful ask? Are you pready to make relatively smaller asks in preparation for that one major ask that you’re planning to do for your project or for your business? These are some of the things that Dre Thompson wants you to think about before you go out there and do your pitch. Because for her, doing the little stuff is a major part of the legwork in making in ask which can ultimately lead to your success.
On this episode of What’s your ask, Stephanie Sims is joined by Dre Thompson, EVP of Startup Tucson and Festival Director of TenWest Impact Festival, where they talk about the importance of having a checklist when preparing your pitch and why reigning in your emotions and re-evaluating your strengths and weaknesses can help you become more effective in doing your ask. Tune in as they dive deep on the role of pride, empathy, and ultimately, humility when it comes to making business decisions that are bound to make a difference for you and your company. Stay tuned.
Resources Mentioned in this episode
- Startup Tucson
- Startup Tucson LinkedIn
- Dre Thompson LinkedIn
- Dre Thompson’s email address
- Finance-Ability
- Stephanie Sims LinkedIn
Sponsor for this episode...
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