Meet Suzanne Borders | CEO and Founder of BadVR, Inc.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Suzanne Borders and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Suzanne, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
A lot of people like to think of work / life balance as a balance that happens on a daily basis; however, I tend to think of it in a longer-term way. I’m the sort of person that’s either all in or all out; I’m either doing something 110% or not doing it at all. So, coming at work life balance, I think of it as a period of time (usually 5-10 years) in which I’m all in, working 10hr days, working weekends, followed by a period of time (a year or 2) in which I’m not working much at all. I prefer to think of, and practice work life balance this way, because if I’m ‘off’ I want to really be off, I want to have the ability to spend a month overseas, or to pursue hobbies and interests fully, without needing to worry about work. I’ve been very blessed in the sense that I am in an industry where I can function like this – nose to the grindstone, all in on a startup project for several years, followed by an exit or buy-out that gives me enough money to not work for a year or two. Of course, usually during those years off, I’m still pursuing part-time contracting work, or working on a hobby, but it gives me a mental break to pursue other passions outside of startup work. I think it’s pretty revolutionary to take a year off to pursue your passions – whether that be travel, or writing a screenplay, or just existing without deadlines for awhile. Most people never get to experience this because they prefer – or are taught by society – to view work life balance as a day to day, week to week balance, instead of looking at it from a longer-term viewpoint. I really do think that, if you have the opportunity to do so, it is worthwhile to give this longer-term idea of work life balance a try. The work part definitely is difficult – it is incredibly hard to work 10hr days for years at a time – however, the life part of it, where you can take a year off of work, more than makes up for the sacrifices necessary to achieve this. I honestly don’t feel that anyone can really truly get rested and centered with only weekends and a couple weeks of PTO per year; there’s certain sense of freedom and rest that you can only really achieve by being off work for months at a time. And the only way in America at least, to achieve something like this (apart from being born with a trust fund) is to do the longer-term work life balance approach. It’s not for everyone, but I definitely think it’s something to consider trying someday!

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
My company, BadVR, was founded in 2017 in Los Angeles, CA. We focus on building immersive data visualization products – which means, in laymen’s terms, that we build virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) applications that allow you to literally step inside your databases and see, filter, and better understand your data. BadVR is unique in that we use VR/AR technology to display data, vs other data visualization tools that simply use 2D screens and dashboards. Within the immersive data visualization space, we are unique in that our applications display data in an interactive format – we don’t just show static data models in 3D, as many other similar products do. Instead, we display data in a wholly new way, no static charts, graphs, or models. With our products, people put on a headset and enter into a new multi-dimensional world, where data is displayed in proprietary, fully interactive ‘data environments.’ Filtering or manipulating the data is as easy as reaching out your hand to touch, tap, or grip parts of your datasets, and, using natural gestures, move through it to discover previously hidden insights and correlations. I am very proud of the innovations we’ve made in the area and exceptionally proud of the patents we’ve filed successfully to protect the IP we’ve generated in this area. My grandfather was an inventor who had multiple patents; I always dreamed as a kid of growing up and having my own patents too! I am so proud of making this dream a reality.

Seeing my name on a patent always is such a great feeling! It was not easy getting to where I am today with my company – but all the struggles and sacrifices ended up being worthwhile. Without these (ultimately worthwhile) learning experiences, I wouldn’t have been able successful with my current company. We all learn more in failure than we do in success; so all my previous lowest moments ultimately gave me the knowledge I needed to eventually succeed. It’s a tough pill to swallow sometimes – but I always try to remember this anytime I find myself in failure. There’s always a lesson in that failure and instead of feeling sorry for myself, I train my thoughts toward discovering this lesson, and focusing on what I can learn from the experience and how I can avoid it in the future. I think a lot of people are afraid of failure; but ultimately, without previous failures, there’s would have been no future success for me. There needs to be a reframing of failure from wholly negative to, while difficult, situations ripe with information and opportunity. In my opinion, you can never find real success if you refuse to risk failure, so I think reframing your idea of failure is key. I know it was for me!

In terms of what I want the world to know about me and my company – I want everyone to know that what we do is based in, rooted in, decades of work, trials and errors. This has been the cumulation of my life’s work (and the same is true for my co-founder as well). So what you see today isn’t an overnight success – as much as it may sometimes appear to be. We are also very passionate about inclusion and accessibility – data is the most valuable resource in the world and it’s incredibly important to us that EVERYONE can both access and understand it. So while the company sounds complex and ‘techy’- at the heart of it all, we are really focused on building powerful – but ultimately simple, easy to use, real products, for real people, that solve real problems.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
This is such a difficult question! I love ALL parts of Los Angeles. I love the diversity of the city, I love the weather, the flora, the fauna – I love the mountains, the beach, the deserts. It’s so difficult to pick just a couple places to focus on over a single week! That being said, I would start with a game at Dodger’s stadium. The new remodel is so great, the new sound system is killer, and the food options at the stadium are fabulous! Nothing beats sitting in the home run seats on a warm summer evening and watching the Dodgers clinch a victory (and perhaps catching a home run ball)! Beyond that, Kings games are also fun, in the newly renamed Cypto.com arena (will always be Staples to me, but that’s another conversation, lol). Especially play-off Kings hockey games and sudden death overtime – so much fun! I also enjoy visiting the LA Zoo and seeing the bird shows; during COVID I spent a lot of time in the outdoor zoo, getting to know the animals. I love birds, and have a pet bird, so I’m especially partial to all winged creatures. It’s kinda cliched, but given the car culture of LA (and southern California in general), no real visit would be complete without a road trip! I recently drove the Ortega Highway and the waterfalls along the road are just gorgeous and fun little hikes; there’s even a cute little candy store part of the way through the drive! You end up at a breathtaking overview of Lake Elsinore – if you do this drive around sunset, the view is just life altering in the best possible way! In terms of where to grab a bite to eat in LA – I’m sure many people will mention some. nice restaurants, but I love Tommy’s. Their chilly burgers are definitely not everyday food but every once in a blue moon, you won’t find a better chili burger anywhere in America! I also am very fond of Gracias Madres, a vegan Mexican restaurant in West Hollywood. Their food is so next level good and I love their outdoor patio for a summer dinner.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d like to recognize and shoutout all the mentors I’ve had over the years – mainly, Jonathan Lemkin, who has spent the last decade of his life believing in me when I didn’t believe in myself, supporting me when I didn’t deserve support, and encouraging me endlessly to pursue my dreams. Thank you for your friendship and thank you for always being there for me, even when I don’t deserve it.

Website: www.badvr.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/badvr_inc

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/badvr

Twitter: https://twitter.com/badvr_inc

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCc2b4MC9tB2_QLbpzJReyHw

Image Credits
Credit to BadVR, Inc. Suzanne’s black and white headshot (on a sofa) – Credit to Sarah Fiske Photography