Meeting Mark Zuckerberg

Dave McClure's painstaking hard work in organizing Startup2Startup dinner paid off very well where Chad Hurley, co-founder and CEO of YouTube, was speaking. The star-studded event was one of the best I ever attended.

After spending the day hanging out with Dave, I arrived at Startup2Startup a little early so we can check on arrangements. Once at Sheraton in Palo Alto, we found that right next door, Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook) was speaking at a Facebook corporate event.

As the Startup2Startup attendees started showing up, discussions started flowing. Facebook's staff wanted participants of Startup2Startup event to quietly socialize :) Dave decided to move the bar to the pool area.

I started hanging out at the bar, talking with the stars of Silicon Valley. Moments after the Facebook event ended, I spotted Zuckerberg talking with Chad Hurley near the pool side entrance. There, a desire lit up in my heart to meet Zuckerberg.

Before I knew it, my wish came true. There was a 2 minute window where Zuckerberg was free and I decided that I am not going to waste this opportunity. So I approached him and we started talking.

Zuckerberg is a very bright guy with deep insight. He was very easy to socialize with, a sign of a great CEO. We briefly discussed Facebook's growth in international markets such as Brazil among other things.

As we were parting, I asked Zuckerberg if I could have his card. He didn't have one but he generously gave me his personal email address.

I am thankful to Dave for inviting me to the event otherwise I'd not have met Mark Zuckerberg.