Summary
Welcome back to the Startup Junkies Podcast!
In this episode, Shelby Matussak joins our hosts Jeff Amerine, Caleb Talley and Davis McEntire to discuss his transition from unemployment to board game creator. From making a passion project into a business, the importance of face-to-face human interaction, and why asking for help is so hard as an entrepreneur; this episode is packed with helpful information. As founder of Dead Lemon Games and creator of the new board game hit Lonely Undead, Shelby’s grit, optimism, and creativity inspired all of us here at Startup Junkie!
Thanks for tuning in!
Shownotes
(1:17) Introducing Shelby Matussak
(1:49) Introducing Dead Lemon Games & Lonely Undead
(5:52) Displacement of Unemployment
(12:59) Board Games & Pandemic Parameters
(15:53) Funding Dead Lemon Games
(18:36) Co-Founder Scott Forbush & Round Mountain Coffee
(23:55) Advice to first-time Creators
(26:43) Defining Future Success
(30:20) Advice to Younger Self
(32:30)Wrap Up
Links
Quotes
“I don’t think there’s any substitute for being in a physical space, with a number of people, and being set forth with a problem or an objective and having to work together to sort of accomplish a shared goal. Whether it be a friendly competition or it could be cooperatively. “(5:22)
“[On product feedback] And as a new entrepreneur, start small, start close to yourself, like, look at your friends, look at your family, see what resources you have… maybe you can figure out how to weave them into your process.” (25:56)
Definitely don’t take on everything yourself. Even if they’re small tasks and you have friends that can help… if you do have to kind of crunch some numbers and outsource a couple of things to make and keep yourself sane, do that, that’s way more important. (31:55)
The Game of Life with Shelby Matussak of Dead Lemon Games
For better or worse, the past year has pushed most of us to our limits. With isolation, fear, illness, and the unknown came a time that had the potential to bring forth tragedy and fortune. In this week’s episode of The Startup Junkie Podcast, we had the opportunity to speak with someone who felt the darkness of the pandemic we know all too well and allowed it to propel him into an entrepreneurial endeavor leading to great joy!
Shelby Matussak joined our hosts Jeff Amerine, Caleb Talley, and Davis McEntire to discuss his transition from unemployment to board game creator. This episode was more than fun and games, though. We jumped around from how to transition a passion project into a business, the importance of face-to-face interaction, and why asking for help is so hard as an entrepreneur. As founder of Dead Lemon Games, and creator of the new board game hit Lonely Undead, Shelby’s grit, optimism, and creativity inspired all of us here at Startup Junkie!
I’m Unemployed… Now what?
It is not an uncommon story to have been laid off in the past year. It no longer has a connotation of being fired or a tragic event happening to our company, but almost a social norm. When Shelby joined the growing population of the unemployed and displaced, he admits that he did not immediately find a way out. Mental health has been a buzzword for the past couple of years, and Shelby is not a stranger to the pandemic’s impact on it. The combination of financial stress, loneliness, and lack of routine that a job brought, depression set it, as it did so to many around the world.
Coming to terms with the new norm, Shelby then realized he had to give his attention to something that brought life, joy, and laughter back into his life. Board games had been a childhood favorite, a way of gathering friends and family, and a stabilizing piece of entertainment to life before the pandemic. What started as a healthy coping mechanism soon turned into a creative outlet. With the extra time on his hands, he began to develop what would now be the Lonely Undead board game. A game made for himself and a few friends evolved into a complex survival board game pitting zombies against human victims. The twist comes in when you realize that you are playing the zombie, having to empathize with the undead and their desire for life and friendships in their new reality. This goofy, lighthearted, genre-bending game has taken the gaming world by storm and turned a passion project into a full-on business.
Your mental health is way more important than overworking and trying to get some things done. (32:09)
The next step was publishing the game. Scott Forbush of Round Moutain Coffee encouraged Shelby to self-publish and then came alongside him to co-found Dead Lemon Games. The duo now have even combined their businesses to create coffee-themed to coincide with the Lonely Undead game.
Does Human Interaction matter?
In an age of Facetime, Livestream, texting, and zoom call meetings, it makes us wonder if we have adapted out of face-to-face interaction. Add on the new standards of quarantining and social distancing ,and it can all get a bit confusing. Politics aside, studies show that human interaction is essential not only in the first years of life but are foundational to a long and healthy existence. Shelby could not agree enough; therefore, after going all-in on the board game business, he created Dead Lemon Games which goal is to achieve engaging experiences with innovative ideas that will create meaningful and unique interactions with all those involved. Overall his heart for building communities of individuals does not want to impede on the social distancing measures but adapt to them accordingly and create a safe place or people to engage organically with one another.
“I’m a true diehard believer that face-to-face communication is absolutely key and super important to us as humans. And the evolution of technology has definitely pulled away from that.” (5:04)
We were able to discuss what that looks like in the parameters of covid and learned that through their Facebook and certain websites, you can play the game virtually while having it with you in real life, or follow CDC guidelines and still play in person.
“I don’t think there’s any substitute for being in a physical space, with a number of people, and being set forth with a problem or an objective and having to work together to sort of accomplish a shared goal. Whether it be a friendly competition or it could be cooperatively. “(5:22)
Can someone lend me a hand? Said no entrepreneur ever.
Your big idea is taking off, and you have 1,000 things to do in about one day. You would think your brain would realize that this is too much work for you alone, but this project is your baby, and you want everything to be just right. So when Shelby found himself working from 8 a.m. to midnight every day, every weekend, he had to make a change without any downtime. When asked what advice he would give to his younger self, he stated that he would beg himself to ask for help. Whether it is outsourcing projects, bringing in friends, family, or a whole team, you need help at the beginning of a start-up.
Lonely Undead had begun as a creative and healthy outlet to combat mental health, and then became the source of unhealthy habits all over again. That is why Shelby believes in the importance of putting mental health first. He is a firm believer that it does not matter how hard you work, how great your idea is, or how fast you hit your goals if you are not well mentally.
Want to learn more about how we come alongside Startup Junkies like Shelby to see their full potential unlocked? Contact us today!
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