“Think big. Start small. Fail quickly. Grow fast."
Buddy Foster
Associate
Hi, I'm Buddy.
Growing up, I didn’t have a concept of entrepreneurship. As the son of a pastor and a teacher, I didn’t have direct access to the business world. However, even then, I believed that if something you needed didn’t exist, do it yourself.
I always had an inherent desire and ability to construct and innovate, pushing me to forge my path, even if it meant going against the grain and pursuing unconventional, often perplexing ideas.
This approach to life and a “figure it out along the way” attitude led to me starting a regional lacrosse team at 16, a local music studio and production group at 18, and a coffee shop at 22, which I sold at 23.
During that time, I never saw any of that as “entrepreneurial.” I saw problems, gaps, or opportunities and obsessively fixated on them. That lens carried on into my career, whether as a competitive barista, working at a coffee roastery, as an early hire at early-stage tech companies, or introducing new products in the construction industry. I’ve bounced between various industries and sectors over my career, and I’ve found that business can be boiled down to a simple concept: solving problems effectively, efficiently, and constantly.
Outside of Mudita, I love spending time with my wife and my rescue pup, a pit bull named Leo. I’m an avid outdoorsman and enjoy climbing, running, and anything that keeps my heart pumping, curious mind engaged, and body moving.
"To build something new, you’ve got to look where no one else has…or will."
One of my first professors in my undergrad business courses taught entrepreneurship. He was a four-time founder and had built and sold some incredible organizations. On the first day of class, he stood up and quoted Winston Churchill's speech from 1941, "Never give up." The culmination of this came as he emphatically said, "Never give up, never give up… Never yield to force; never yield to the overwhelming might of the enemy." He then looked at us and said that was the mark of an entrepreneur—someone who, in the face of a massive challenge, won't stop.
The founders that make me excited are precisely that. They see a challenge and are eager to do the work. They are odd and see the world differently than others do. They seek out opportunities in places that others can't or won't.
If that's you, let's talk. I'm excited to hear what you're building and how it changes lives. Let's get to work.