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RAVI S MIKKELSEN
Co-Founder at ATMOS Financial - building banking solutions for the clean economy
Professional Background
Ravi Mikkelsen is an innovative entrepreneur dedicated to using technology as a vehicle for positive change in the world. At present, he is channeling his passion and expertise into building a cutting-edge banking startup focused on funding climate-positive infrastructures. With a mission to promote sustainable initiatives, Ravi’s work illustrates his commitment to merging technology and social responsibility for impactful solutions.
His entrepreneurial journey is marked by a robust array of roles that highlight both his leadership and his ability to harness technology for progressive outcomes. As the former Co-Founder and CEO of Atmos, a platform aimed at enhancing environmental awareness and action, Ravi demonstrated his ability to lead innovative projects that resonate with both consumers and investors. His role as an Organizer at ClimateLink-SanFrancisco further cements his involvement in climate advocacy, showcasing his drive to connect individuals and organizations towards collaborative environmental efforts.
Ravi’s impressive history encompasses a rich blend of expertise not only in startup environments but also in consulting and advisory positions. His tenure as the Associate Director at Emerging Markets Capital points to his proficiency in navigating complex financial landscapes while ensuring projects align with social impact goals. In addition to his technological ventures, Ravi has also engaged in various capacities that reflect his multifaceted skill set, such as leading advisory roles and founding startups directed at sustainability.
Education and Achievements
Ravi’s educational background is comprehensive and supports his diverse skill set in technology and engineering. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Materials Science and Engineering from the prestigious University of Washington, where he developed foundational knowledge in scientific principles and material innovation, crucial for understanding today’s technical challenges. His commitment to continuous learning is further highlighted by his completion of a Full Stack Development Certificate in Computer Software Engineering from Free Code Camp. This program allowed him to acquire advanced skills in software development, preparing him for the dynamic tech landscape.
Additionally, Ravi’s formative years at The Bush School equipped him with critical thinking and leadership skills that have informed his career trajectory. It is evident that his academic experiences have imbued him with a strong analytical mindset and a passion for problem-solving, traits he has carried into each of his entrepreneurial endeavors.
Achievements
Across his varied professional journey, Ravi has amassed a wealth of achievements that underscore his commitment to meaningful progress and innovation. As the Founder of ClimateLink, he initiated a dialogue about environmental issues while providing tools that empower individuals and communities to engage in sustainable practices. His dedication to building platforms that foster positive social change is a consistent theme in his work.
Furthermore, as the co-founder of EnerWise, he focused on helping individuals and organizations adopt energy-efficient practices, further illustrating his commitment to sustainability and climate action. Ravi's previous experience as an Environmental Consultant at the SYDA Foundation demonstrates his embeddedness in the environmental sector, as he worked on projects that aim to have lasting positive effects on the planet.
Ravi’s holistic approach to his professional life emphasizes his core ethos: Always Be Growing (ABG). His motto guides his pursuits and interactions as he consistently seeks to expand his knowledge and find ways to leverage technology for the greater good.
Additionally, his earlier roles, such as Senior Event Planner at IDM Meetings, Inc, and Basketball Coach at The Bush School reflect his versatility and capacity for leadership in diverse environments. He brings together his passions for education, coaching, and planning into a cohesive career dedicated to fostering development and creating opportunities for growth.
Personal Interests
Beyond the professional arena, Ravi is an avid traveler who seeks out new cultures and cuisines, believing that such experiences enrich one’s understanding of the world and enhance connection with others. He thrives on meeting new people and is dedicated to helping them achieve their goals, reinforcing his mission to effect change on both personal and societal levels.
In summary, Ravi Mikkelsen embodies an inspiring blend of technological expertise, entrepreneurial spirit, and a steadfast commitment to social impact. Through his ventures in banking, climate initiatives, and sustainable practices, he is poised to lead transformative efforts that not only elevate businesses but also foster a better world for future generations.
Highlights
"Keeping burnout at bay" - may be a bit of a stretch. As one of our investors, @EthanAustin of @outsidevc put it when we met last Summer "You look 75% burnout, and I know, I went to 100".
Thank you @d_gershenson for having me on to tell my story, how I failed to protect myself, and how I made it through.
For those that don't know, I worked 5, 100+ hr weeks in a row last year and pushed myself into a state of pre-diabetes, which I didn't find out until the end of January this year. I then had to work myself back from the brink and focus on my health, while also still pushing on @joinatmos.
The biggest part was focusing on sleep, nutrition, and then exercise. Thanks to the work of @sleepdiplomat, @hubermanlab, @PeterAttiaMD, and @foundmyfitness, I was able to bring my fasting blood sugar down from 112 mg/dL to 97 over about 5 months.
One big change was no more "40 hour work days", which I had done at least once per month since starting Atmos. Thursday morning to Friday evening.
It's possible to come back if you don't go too far, but much better to build up the protections before hand.
Thanks again @d_gershenson and @enduring_planet for letting me share my story and for getting these important lessons out to other founders so that they can avoid our mistakes!
this is called the most spectacular playtime you can give a child.
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Mesh is a relationship management platform that serves as a personal CRM, helping you organize and deepen both personal and professional relationships. It functions as a beautiful rolodex and CRM available on iPhone, Mac, Windows, and web, built automatically to help manage your network efficiently. Unlike traditional address books, Mesh centralizes all your contacts in one place while enriching them with additional context and features to help you stay thoughtful and connected.
Mesh works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
Mesh offers several powerful features including:
- Comprehensive Contact Management: Automatically collects contact data and enriches profiles to keep them up-to-date
- Network Strength: Visualizes the strength of your relationships relative to others in your network
- Timeline: Shows your relationship history with each contact
- Smart Search: Allows you to search using natural language like "People I know at the NYT" or "Designers I've met in London"
- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
- Home Feed: Displays updates about your network including job changes, news mentions, and birthdays
- Groups: Organizes contacts into meaningful categories
- Nexus AI: An AI navigator that helps you derive insights from your network, such as finding contacts who have been to specific places or work at particular companies
Mesh is designed for anyone who values maintaining meaningful relationships. The app is popular among a wide range of industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. It’s even used by half the Fortune 500! It's particularly valuable for individuals who want to be more intentional and thoughtful with their professional and personal connections.
Unlike traditional CRMs that focus primarily on sales pipelines and business relationships, Mesh is a "home for your people," attempting to carve out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. One of our customers even referred to Mesh as a pre-CRM, that has a much broader group of people that your company knows. Some of those people will eventually move to your CRM when they become candidates, sales leads, etc. Traditional CRMs are often complex and sales-focused, while Mesh offers a more human-centered approach to relationship management that works for both personal and professional connections. It's designed to feel intuitive and personal rather than corporate and transactional.
Mesh takes privacy seriously. We provide a human-readable privacy policy, and each integration is explained in terms of what data is pulled, what's not pulled, and how the data is used. Mesh encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Mesh work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Mesh is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
Mesh is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Mesh is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
Mesh offers tiered pricing options to suit different needs. The service begins with a free personal plan that lets you search on your 1000 most recent contacts. Mesh offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Mesh for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Mesh accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Mesh offers extensive integration capabilities. Mesh introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Mesh supports. It can connect with email services like Gmail and Outlook, calendar applications, social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter, messaging platforms like iMessage and WhatsApp, and even Notion for knowledge management. Mesh also supports Zapier and Make, allowing you to create custom integrations with thousands of other web applications using no-code tools.
Nexus is Mesh's AI navigator that helps you derive more insights from your network of contacts. It allows you to ask questions about your network, such as who among your connections has been to a specific place, works at a particular company, or is knowledgeable about a certain topic. Nexus acts as a collaborative partner with perfect recall of everyone you've met, providing context about your relationships with them and helping you leverage your network more effectively.
Mesh makes it much easier to stay in touch with the people you care about. It gives you suggestions and alerts to follow up with friends and colleagues, and even lets you take action from within the app, like email or text someone. Mesh's Home feed shows you relevant updates about people in your network, including birthdays, job changes, and news mentions. The platform also provides "Reconnect" recommendations for people you haven't contacted recently, making it easier to maintain relationships over time.
Mesh is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Mesh stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Mesh excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
Mesh is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
Mesh offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Mesh is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Mesh's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Mesh has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Mesh is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Mesh beneficial.
Mesh offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Mesh offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Mesh's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Mesh offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Mesh focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Mesh also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Mesh offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
Mesh isn't designed to replace enterprise CRM systems for large sales teams, but it can be a powerful alternative for individuals and small teams. Many people use Mesh instead of Salesforce, Hubspot, and Pipedrive. Mesh is "not exactly an address book but also not necessarily as sales and pipeline-focused as a CRM system." The founders refer to their app as a "home for your people," carving out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. For solo entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small teams focused on relationship quality rather than sales pipelines, Mesh can absolutely serve as your primary relationship management tool.
Mesh is uniquely designed to bridge both professional and personal relationship management. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Mesh helps you organize your contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. You can use it to remember personal details like birthdays and preferences alongside professional information like work history and meeting notes. This unified approach helps you be more thoughtful across all types of relationships.
Mesh's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Mesh has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Mesh a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Mesh's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Mesh's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Mesh has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Mesh's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Mesh as "just too good" and praise its "Reconnect" feature that curates reconnection prompts and enables users to stay on top of their network. Former users of other systems often mention that Mesh eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.
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