Davon Bailey has what he calls “a nine to five and a five to nine,” although he works far more than twelve hours per day. In his nine-to-five role in compliance at Bank of America, he’s learning the communication skills necessary to ask the right questions and find the best solutions. In his five-to-nine role at Eat Work Play, he’s stretching his leadership capabilities and using his creative skills to build and grow something he feels has no limitations.
He officially launched Eat Work Play (EWP) a year ago through City Startup Labs, an incubator program focused on helping young African-American men become self-employed entrepreneurs. But the business is really an extension of something Bailey has done since high school—connect different social circles to one another and to worthwhile organizations in his community. It’s who he is, and now he’s turned it into a business with 20,000 users so far.
EWP’s vision is to serve as the professional’s playground, where like-minded individuals can connect and network beyond the typical cup of coffee. Seed funding so far has come strictly from Bailey, but with the help of a solid team of entrepreneurial and corporate advisors, the company is poised to seek venture capital.
Bailey sees his two roles as complementary: “What is creativity without structure? What is structure without creativity? I feel I have the perfect balance of both.” For now, he’s an energetic young bachelor with plenty of time to commit to both roles. Eventually, he hopes to grow EWP into his full-time role: “Working for others doesn’t help you find yourself. I want to do what I love and have complete control over that. And what I love is people.”
Melisa Graham is the communications director at SPARK Publications, editor of b2bTRIBE magazine, author of Used Cow for Sale (a collection of poetry, mom, and wife.
Leave a Reply