How Mitch Gordon Founded Go Overseas

Psst: Despite a perfect audio capture of this interview, there are a few spots where we look like we're doing a very terrible attempt at the robot dance sensation of the 80s. Feel free to mock our silly faces. ;)  ##

One of the most terrifying things I've ever done is leave a great job and a secure, comfortable living to break out on my own and start my own company. There's a never-ending learning curve. And it's a journey that, no matter how many people tell you, you don't understand how hard it really is until you're in it, in the trenches, slogging it out every single day. 

This is how Mitch Gordon and I became friends - our mutual experience with the heartache, stress, and exhiliration of entrepreneurship. He's a co-founder and the CEO of GoOverseas.com. Heading into his 5th year of starting and running GoOverseas, he knows all too well how challenging the process can be, how it can shake even the strongest and capable minds to the core, and how you have to have an unwavering dedication to the mission of your company and the very problems you aim to solve. (And side note: This is his second time on this crazy entrepreneurial roller coaster! Crazy town!)

I invited Mitch on the show to share his international ed story (which is definitely a little different than a lot of us have experienced). We talk about the value of program reviews, how GoOverseas got started, his "dark years" as an accountant in NYC, and the upcoming International Programs Marketing Conference (being held in Berkeley, CA, in early June - a nice follow-up and compliment to NAFSA in San Diego).

Here are a few resources and links we discuss during the show:

• Check out GoOverseas: Website, Twitter, and Facebook
• International Programs Marketing Conference - June 1-2 in Berkeley, CA with presenters from Moz, Google, Salesforce, Optimizely, Hubspot, Facebook, and Google. Pretty awesome line-up!
• Mitch's first company: Reach to Teach
• How to study abroad more than once - like me! (article on GoOverseas)
• We talk about study abroad reviews and how students make program choices. I mentioned a study I heard referenced at a Forum or NAFSA conference. Sadly, I couldn't find the specific presentation or article referenced, but did a bit of my own research to find a few studies that might be interesting as they relate to student decision-making in college and the influence faculty:
  • Faculty do Matter: The Role of College Faculty in Student Learning and Engagement
  • Going Global: Understanding the Choice Process of the Intent to Study Abroad
  • Factors Influencing Study Abroad Decisions Among College of Business Students