As many of you reading this know, IntenseDebate has been a big focus of my life for nearly 4 years now.  It started as a somewhat random side project to kill some time while I was in grad school (with two guys I met on the internet … seriously), but outgrew even my wildest expectations for it.  There have been a lot of changes over the years in the team, the product, and even the company structure, but in the end I’m happy with where things ended up.  I owe a big part of that success to David and Brad (and more generally TechStars as a whole).  It was our entry into TechStars that really launched this project beyond a hobby and into a company.  I also want to thank the one other person who rode the entire ride with me, my co-founder Isaac.  And lastly, a big thanks to Toni & Matt at Automattic for the opportunities they gave us after they acquired IntenseDebate.

I’ve had a lot of ups and downs throughout the company, and had the opportunity to learn a lot.  IntenseDebate will live on without me and continue to grow and improve the commenting experience on sites across the web.  It was exciting to be a part of and I wish the guys keeping her going the best of luck.

So what’s next for me?  That’s a good question.  I’ll be sure to let you know when I do.  Although goodbye’s are always sad, there is also an excitement in starting anew.  I look forward to the craziness that the next project will bring and can’t wait to get my hands dirty on something new.

I have a small chapter in the book about how vesting can be good for the founders of a company which was inspired by my own experiences with IntenseDebate. There are also a bunch of other great bits of advice, though.  It’s definitely a great read and an easy way to learn from some great people all in one convenient book.

So go ahead and pre-order it now.   You’ll be glad you did.

So head on over and apply. It might just change your life (it definitely did for me).