Life and Work with Melanie Colón

Today we’d like to introduce you to Melanie Colón.

Melanie, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I am one of those people who can never decide what I want to be when I grow up! There are so many fun options, especially for someone like me who is filled with curiosity and determination to conquer different roles. For most of my adult life, it has actually been pretty frustrating for me that I have inevitably gotten bored or burnt out with each job I was doing. It made me feel like I could never find my purpose and I was in a constant internal struggle to find my way.

As I was trying to find my way, life went on and my husband and I would move to different towns and apartments as we transitioned with new jobs. And somehow, with each apartment that we moved in to, we always lucked out with a noisy neighbor. It was pretty annoying and no matter what tactic we tried to get them to quiet down, it always failed.

We thought, there is so much technology out there, that there has to be an app where we can anonymously & effectively notify our neighbor. But we searched high and low and there wasn’t. So, it started to become a joke between us that we should build a noisy neighbor app, despite the fact that neither one of us had a technical background of any sort. But as we started to joke more, the more it seemed like something we should do. Especially since everyone we ran the idea by basically jumped up with excitement when we told them about the idea.

So, one day, rather than continuing the ongoing joke, we decided to take the plunge and actually start on the process of making this app! In hindsight, it definitely paid off to be naïve and I still can’t believe that we actually made the decision. But both of us were committed to trying and giving it our all so we started on the entrepreneurial journey and started to create what is now known as Apt. App and the first and only technology that enables apartment residents to anonymously, respectfully & effectively notify a noisy neighbor and get immediate resolve.

I have now been in this entrepreneur role longer than any of my previous roles throughout my career and I can honestly say that I finally feel like I am where I am meant to be. I absolutely love that I am challenged every day, working on multiple things at a time and scared shitless through most of my tasks at hand. I have grown more than I ever imagined in this new role and to my amazement so has Apt. App. Being an entrepreneur has been the most exciting role of my life and I can’t wait to see where the journey goes from here.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Oh, the entrepreneur road has definitely NOT been an easy road what-so-ever. The up & down graphs that you see depicting entrepreneurship are all too real. The highs are high and the lows are low, that’s for sure. But you work through it as it comes and take things day-by-day or even minute-by-minute if it’s really hard.

But in all honesty, it is extremely hard to keep your mind right and that determination and drive to keep going when the times are tough. So, it is imperative to have a strong support system in place. People you know you can count on and for various things. For instance, someone who is the shoulder to cry on, someone who fires you up and reminds you that you are a fighter, someone to bounce business ideas off of, a mentor, etc. You’ll find your tribe as you go along through your journey. And the interesting thing about entrepreneurship is that it is such an all consuming journey that you will quickly find out who are the people in your life that truly and genuinely care about you.

It is important to find hobbies and some sort of healthy activity that can get your mind off of anything to allow your mind to reset. That is why for me personally it is so important for me to get to the gym or get a good sweat every day. It is crucial for me to stay grounded and to allow my thoughts to take a break.

I am also a big fan of podcasts and listen to “How I Built This” religiously, it’s my weekly motivation to hear super successful entrepreneurs tell their stories of how they got to where they are today. Some of my other favorites are “Boss Files”, “Unf*ck Your Brain”, “Problem Solvers” & “Master’s of Scale”.

Please tell us about Apt. App.
First and foremost, I am damn proud that I took the crazy leap into entrepreneurship. It has been the most intense ride of my life but I am holding on for dear life and loving it! Even more so, I am extremely proud of the technology my team and I have created in Apt. App and that it is resolving long-standing issues residents have been facing for all too long. There is nothing more exciting than to hear about a resident who was able to find quick resolution to a disruptive neighbor at 2 am by using the Apt. App Anonymous Neighbor Notification or that someone found a new friend right in their apartment community through the Apt. App Community Board. It is so cool to see the technology that my husband and I were once searching for ourselves is now something that we created and is positively changing the way neighbors communicate and get to know their community. And it’s also exciting to see how much Apt. App really resonates with people and that it is filling a need so many people didn’t realize they so desperately needed.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts or other resources that you’ve benefited from using?
Podcasts to Learn: How I Built This (#1 fav), Boss Files, Unf*ck Your Brain, Problem Solvers, Master’s of Scale, & Business Unusual
Podcasts for Entertainment: Girls Gone Wod, Oprah’s Master Class, Sword & Scale
Apps: Google Calendar is my life, Apple Watch Activity to ensure I get my steps in for the day, Drift to answer questions from our online visitors, Mighty Networks to keep up to date with my Women Who Startup community (You should join too!), all things social, & of course Apt. App.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.aptappmobile.com
• Email: hello@aptappmobile.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apt_app/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aptappmobile
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Apt_App
• Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/apt.-app

Image Credit:
Apt. App

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