Written by Nick Elliott
for diamondback
Three University of Maryland alumni shared their business venture experiences and offered advice to aspiring entrepreneurs at the annual Terps Under 30 event Thursday.
The event, sponsored by the University’s Alumni Association and the Student Alumni Leadership Council, featured speakers who graduated from the University over the past six years. According to the alumni association, Terps Under 30 aims to connect current students and alumni each year through networking and short talks.
Akash Magoon, a 2018 graduate and co-founder of Adonis, a payment automation platform for healthcare settings and hospitals, spoke at the event. Magoon said his career has been defined by overcoming challenges, such as when he lost some control on the board of his previous company.
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“It’s not the destination, it’s the journey,” Magoon said during the event. “No matter who or what stands in our way, we must work together to move forward.”
Magoon’s parents owned a local gas station and used car dealership in Baltimore, which influenced his own entrepreneurial spirit, he said. He said that when he was 14 years old, he helped sell cars with his father.
For 2018 graduate Lin Shui, entrepreneurship is a new venture.
Shui, co-founder of Filter Baby, a water filtration device aimed at improving skin care, spoke Thursday about her childhood and her lack of interest in business during her time at the university, where she studied public health. .
She pivoted to marketing, but quickly realized she was in “a lot of trouble.”
The idea for Filter Baby was born when Shui moved to New York City for a marketing job and became concerned about the effects of tap water on her skin. For Shui, starting a business she had no experience with was daunting, but she was able to overcome her doubts, she said.
“Not knowing is beautiful,” Shui says. “You can educate yourself using up-to-date information and there are so many resources out there now.”
Alumni also shared tips for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Magoon told Diamondback how many aspiring entrepreneurs find themselves in a state of “analysis paralysis,” meaning they constantly bounce between different ideas and then lose motivation.
He said Magoon struggled with the phenomenon but had to stay focused as he quit his job and left with just four months’ worth of unpaid wages.
“What you have to do is figure out how you’re going to spend 100 hours a week solving that problem,” Magoon told Diamondback. “Try to put yourself in a position where you can work on ideas.”
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For Rick Tamno, a 2017 and 2020 graduate of the university and co-founder of Leaders All, a nonprofit dedicated to children’s education and literacy, aspiring entrepreneurs need to Finding the “why” behind our venture is key, he said.
Tamno said he hopes to work with the university’s students and programs to help entrepreneurs find their “why.”
Entrepreneurship isn’t necessarily about starting something new, Tamno added, but may be about furthering a mission that one is passionate about.
“I think just being engaged will help you find your ‘why,'” Tamno says. “Trying these new things allows you to discover yourself and build yourself.”
