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About Bill
(and this site)
Hard at work? Deep in
thought? Naw....I'm admiring the plaque that reads, "2001 McDonald's IT
Charity Classic Long Drive Champion."
Welcome to billsnow.com!
Gratuitously commingling professional pursuits with sundry personal
interests, this site is the number one Bill Snow website in the world.
I've struggled long and
hard to create an actionable, yet fun and irreverent web site that will help
early stage entrepreneurs find the pieces they need to realize their
business dreams. Bare in mind: I'm not a miracle worker. If your idea,
business plan, and/or company sucks eggs, there's nothing I can do about it.
If you're an entrepreneur
looking to raise capital,
take a look at
my thoughts on raising
capital. Better yet, take a gander
at my Venture Capital 101, which smashes the many myths and misconceptions
early stage entrepreneurs have about venture capital. To round out all
these academic exercises in raising money, I set up a handy dandy
entrepreneurial resources page.
As if this wasn't enough,
I'm in the midst of further (and numerous) site revisions and updates,
I'll be launching a
new newsletter soon (you can sign up now), and I'm planning to re-start my
networking events. I'll also repost the various articles I've written
over the years. And, I think there's a heavy duty
revision coming to the entrepreneurial resource section. This will
blow your socks off. Just wait.
Differentiating this site
from the great unwashed is the inclusion of some personal things, including
a look into my varied and diverse musical tastes, various links I find
interesting, and of course, a de rigueur pictures section. Wait
a minute...everyone does this kind of stuff.
About Bill Snow
 Yes, I am The Bill Snow.
Fearless warrior against the tyranny of the anonymous e-mail. Inspired
helper to the entrepreneur everywhere. Shameless self-promoter. Unabashed
author of Venture Capital 101. The son who never calls his mother.
I am also a Chicagoan,
through and through. At least until I buy that concrete bunker in Montana
where they let you own guns and drive fast on the interstate. I was born and
raised in Park Ridge, IL, but I should note, Chicago-proper was a mere three
blocks from our house. Here are a few quick facts about me (make mental
notes for gift giving times):
Birth: June 8
Height: 6-4
Ideal Meal: Meat and more meat.
Favorite fancy-pants urban
trendsetter meal:
Sushi.
Favorite beer:
Beck's
Favorite Scotch:
The Glen Livet,
neat
Coffee: Black, no cream,
no sugar. I like it sour, like my personality.
Tea: What's that?
Hobbies: Golf,
basketball, kicking the
dog (just kidding about
that!).
Favorite Spectator Sports:
Baseball,
Pro and College Football,
College Basketball, Golf.
Favorite new toy: My brand
new TaylorMade R510 Humongo Dome Driver. 8.5 degree loft, baby, and
yes, I can hit it. A ton.
Proudest accomplishment:
I haven’t broken a
golf club since 2002!
Those old Rams had rust in the shafts...it certainly wasn't due to poor
swings!
Pop culture wish: Quentin Tarantino should direct a western.
Bill’s Chicago
Discourse
I love Chicago because of
the sense of identity you find in the City. Chicago is huge, loud, busy and
boisterous. We talk and walk as fast as any east coaster, but we are imbued
with a farmer’s sense of simplicity…probably because we’re all descended
from farmers. We are constantly worried that New York thinks we’re a cow
town. Having that cow art display a few years ago didn’t help.
Because we’re all
actually farmers, the City starts its day early. Because grifters built the
City, Chicago has street smarts. Because Chicago was settled and resettled
by wave after wave of ethnic groups, we have Polish, Italian, Korean,
Mexican, Croatian, Jewish, Greek, Chinese, Black, Japanese, Indian,
Pakistani, German, Dutch, Arab, Russian, and Serbian neighborhoods. We even
have some people from Ohio in Chicago.
In other words, if you
want a certain type of food, you'll find it here.
People make a big deal
about Chicago's weather. Yes, we can have cold winters, but I'm used to
it. Suffering through a cold winter makes you appreciate the week of summer
we get every other year. But Chicago's weather beats Wisconsin's weather.
I hear they have four seasons: winter, winter, winter and bad sledding.
Chicago, situated at the
intersection of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River system, has been hub
for transportation and information for hundreds of years. Jacques
Joliet and Louis Marquette (those old timers from the 17th century, not the
cities named after them) sensed a great city would eventual arise at the
southwest end of Lake Michigan. Never mind the stinky swamp and long
and cold winters, whoever controlled this plot of land effectively
controlled the Great Lakes and the Mississippi. Kind of
important in the days before cars, planes, and trains.
Don't believe me?
-
1850 to 1950 -- Chicago
was the railroad hub of the US. Trains didn't run through
Chicago. They stopped in Chicago. Literally, all
railroads led to Chicago.
-
1950 to present --
Chicago is the airline hub for the US. We all know O'Hare is
the busiest airport in the US (never mind those baseless claims
from Atlanta!)
-
1990 to present --
Chicago is the information hub for the US. That's right,
more data travels through Chicago based servers than any other
city in the US.
Chicago pioneered futures
and options trading, invented the balloon frame house, and when we ran out
of room in the Loop, Chicago invented the modern skyscraper. The Mickey
Finn? Invented right here. OK, maybe that isn't the best example, but we
invented the Ferris Wheel.
When polluted water from
our river surged miles into the lake, overflowing the intake cribs and
contaminating our drinking water system, we reversed the flow of the Chicago
River, and literally pumped our shit to the Illinois river, and ultimately
the Mississippi River and St. Louis. To this day, 100 years later, Cardinal
fans still harbor ill will towards their aquatically superior neighbors to
the north. This is the crux of the Cubs-Cardinals rivalry.
Mention "Chicago" to
people in the most backwater, off the beaten track, third world city (no,
I'm not talking about Atlanta and their usurper airport), and they will make the universal sign of
Chicago -- both hands cocked in faux gun position -- and say "bang bang, Al
Capone!" How many times will the mere mention of a city's name elicit that
kind of reaction? C'mon, what do you think of when you hear "Denver," for
example?
Omelet?
We invented Michael
Jordan, we invented pro football, and we invented the homerun. We invented
the printing press, electricity, and the stirrup. OK, not really, I
fabricated those last few examples, but we are famous for the Chicago School
of economics. For those of you who continue to believe supply side
economics don't work, please consider the facts so we can retire the debate:
1981: top marginal rates
were 70%. Revenue to the Treasury was $599.3 billion.
1989: top margin rates
were 28%. Revenue to the Treasury was $991.2 billion
Source:
http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxfacts/overview/sur_def.cfm
What part of lower tax
rates yield higher revenue do you not understand?
I have never referred to
Chicago as "the windy city," because 1) it isn't that windy, 2) it's stupid.
True Chicagoans never use that term. In fact, true Chicagoans rarely even
say "Chicago." We simply say, "the City." And we rarely say "Lake Michigan,"
we simply say "the Lake." And that super ultra thick crust deep dish pizza
that is synonymous with Chicago? We don't eat it. The preferred pizza of
choice is thin. People who don't know better (tourists and people from Schaumburg) eat that doughy stuff.
When in Chicago, make sure you order an Italian Beef, with hot peppers. We
play softball with a 16-inch ball, and we do not use mitts.
We have one major league
baseball franchise, the Cubs. We also have a few minor league teams in the
area. The Kane County Cougars and Schaumburg Flyers are very popular with
suburbanites afraid of the City. If you’ve been on a three-day bender and
you’re looking for some fisticuffs, might I suggest the scrappy little team
that plays in the aptly named “The Cell” ballpark. I think they’re named
after a hosiery product. |