Richard Carton lives and dies by his calendar. As a former dual-sport Division I collegiate athlete in both baseball and football, he faced the daily reality that if it wasn’t on his calendar, it didn’t exist. And if it didn’t exist – he’d miss events or meetings he should have attended. His multiple commitments forced him to maintain several separate calendar programs, including Microsoft Exchange, Google Calendar, and iCal. It seemed like everyone used something different. That made juggling his social, personal, and professional events a struggle. He had to constantly comb through multiple sites, applications, and emails for relevant dates – a cumbersome and tedious process that still often resulted in important dates becoming lost in the shuffle. Richard needed a better way.
After dealing with the ongoing frustration for too long, his fraternity, Alpha Kappa Psi, tasked members with coming up with a new idea every day for a month. Richard already knew that not only did he want a new method of scheduling and organizing his life calendar, he desperately needed one. So his idea was clear. He would create a program with the ability to condense and manage all of someone’s calendar and commitment details easily and efficiently – filling not only his own need – but a felt-need of others in the practical app market.
Now Richard needed to determine how to begin. He didn’t know how to code. How do you build a new program – and, ultimately, an app – when you don’t know how to code?
Richard went back to earlier in his college career, when he and his fraternity brothers had made the app, BragOn. While that app wasn’t particularly successful, it provided him some background in what he would need to design the framework for his new calendar app. It was a start anyway. Using his rudimentary understanding of UI/UX design, he was able to create all of the wireframe and minimal viable product (mvp) for the application. In other words, he was able to build a basic blueprint of his idea so communicating his vision to various development companies was possible.
Next, Richard needed to find someone to actually code and build the app. He vetted over twelve different teams, both foreign and domestic, considering price estimates and portfolio quality to make his dream a reality. Finally settling on one, he chose a company in India that met all his needs. FollowMyCal was officially on its way.
But now, in order to go from concept to reality, Richard needed funding. This was by far the trickiest step on FollowMyCal’s journey. Despite having never raised money in this way, he began talking to investors in February 2016. He knew there was a need in the market his design could fulfill. He wasn’t the only one out there juggling multiple calendars and even missing important commitments. He just needed to find the right person who would back his vision. Richard decided persistency would be his method. He talked to as many people as would listen. He tapped into Angel Networks, Linkedin, and alumni that could point him in the direction of new people he could pitch. Each rejection refined his message and strengthened his determination, as he learned what investors were looking for. He was told no 56 times before finally getting a yes on his 57th attempt.
Once he had secured funding, Richard’s investor became a mentor to him and helped direct FollowMyCal towards future success. Out of faith in his dream, Richard quit his job at Merrill Lynch in order to pursue building and improving his app full-time. He raised additional funding, launched his product on iOS, Android, and desktop, and brought on his first employee. He learned as he went and was mentored and FollowMyCal has grown right along with him.
From the beginning, Richard’s vision for FollowMyCal included the need that it be very user friendly. A vision that was realized in the app’s ability to condense various calendars into one interface, and even allowing events to be shared flawlessly through a single platform. Next, Richard added incredible features making the app a reliable tool not just for individuals, but for non-profit organizations, school systems, and other such groups desiring to increase user engagement and attendance numbers at different events. That growth gives Richard much satisfaction as he’s seen his calendar program move from just increasing his own productivity and engagement to helping thousands.
From concept to reality, FollowMyCal has emerged as an invaluable app for limitless audience, while Richard himself has emerged as a successful entrepreneur. Get the app for free today for iOS, Android, and even desktop or laptop use.
***
About Richard Carthon
Richard Carthon received a dual-sport scholarship to Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. He played football and baseball as a D-I athlete with the university, earning him the title of the AAC Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2016. He was a Tulane Business School Ambassador, the Tulane SAAC Vice President, a member of the Black Student Union, and an active member of the Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity.
He graduated Cum Laude from Tulane University with a Bachelors of Science in Management with Legal Studies in Business and Business Management Major and specializations in Entrepreneurship and Energy. Richard was also accepted by the Tulane University School of Law.
While in school, Richard had many opportunities to dabble in entrepreneurship. With the creation of his first app, BragOn, he gained experience and confidence working with apps. In the fall of 2015, at a meeting for the Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity, a member came forward with the challenge of coming up with a new idea every day for an entire month. This was when Richard’s wheels began turning about the solution to a problem everyone has.
Like most Americans, Richard struggled with balancing the various obligations he had in his life. As a student athlete and an active member of 5 campus organizations, it was tough keeping track of every event and meeting.
Richard launched FollowMyCal, Inc. from his dorm room in 2016. Now, he is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of FollowMyCal.com, the social calendar platform that gives valuable time back to its users by centralizing personal, professional, and social events in one location.
His calendar platform solution increased his productivity and engagement with several organizations that he was a part of. FollowMyCal has become a viable solution for non-profits, organizations, schools, and other large groups that want to increase user engagement and attendance at various events. Through his work with FollowMyCal.com, Richard has emerged as a credible entrepreneur in the mobile application space.
