'THIS BILDA' is a series that features interviews with creatives and founders in Asia and beyond.
For Daniel O'Connor, music is the unifier of all his entrepreneurial pursuits. From Ice Cream Sundays, a pop-up party collective synonymous with good times, to Sunda Festival, a first-of-its-kind music and arts camping festival, and Offtrack, a space bringing vibes and vinyl to Singapore. He opens up about mistakes in his founder journey, how he became a better entrepreneur and practical ways to get over creative block.
-
No small talk, let’s dive in with a juicy question - what’s something you got in trouble for as a kid?
Sneaking out of the house! In my teenage years, when I still had a curfew, I used to come home then sneak back out to go and catch certain gigs or to just meet up with friends who didn’t have curfews like me. I got caught out eventually when my dad came to check up on me and I’d put a guitar under my covers to make it look like I was tucked in to bed, which he obviously didn’t fall for.
What does success look like to you?
For me success is simply about pursuing the things you’re passionate about and, in doing so, having a positive impact, no matter how big or small, on the community that you exist to serve. If you inspire others into some kind of action as a result, that’s always a nice bonus :)
What’s a dream collab you’d love to land for Offtrack and Ice Cream Sundays?
Ooo tough question. For Ice Cream Sundays, I’ve never looked too far from home for inspiration as we’re very much a Singapore-focussed collective that’s only just started to extend its roots into other parts of South-East Asia. There’s already so much going on in the region that we should feel really excited about. I guess I’ve always wanted us to curate a stage at a regional festival like Wonderfruit and really build those connections to the music and arts scenes outside of Singapore. That would be a lot of fun. For Offtrack, it would have to be takeovers of some of the music spots globally that we have taken some inspiration from, including the likes of Brilliant Corners in London, Bridge bar in Tokyo and Public Records in Brooklyn, New York.
What’s a mistake you’ve made in your entrepreneurial journey that you won’t be making again?
I used to attach a big part of my sense of self-worth to the success and failures of my ventures. It’s good to be passionate about what you do, ultimately that’s what drives you on to make a success of it. But, on the flip side, being too emotionally invested in something (I know all about this!) can cloud your judgment and lead to more reactive decision-making processes and behaviours that aren’t truly reflective of your personality and/or your vision. Of course, getting over that hurdle is easier said than done, it takes time and a lot of learning and unlearning certain behaviours. I found a good starting point was not responding immediately to messages and emails, or bad news in general. Give yourself time to take the emotions out of your decisions and act with greater clarity and conviction. I still get sucked into it at times, but for the most part I’ve found that even being conscious of it has helped me massively on my journey.
How do you get over creative blocks?
When I’m having mental blocks, I like to tap into the brains of other people, whether it’s someone involved in the business or just someone in my network who might have a different perspective, to see if anything sparks. I find that often the next idea or the solution to a problem I might be facing comes from having very informal chats with people in my support network, rather than always trying to work through it myself.
What’s one thing that’s helped you become a better entrepreneur?
Asking for help! A lot of people try to take on everything that’s required to start or run a business, whether it’s to save cost, not wanting to burden other people, or simply because they feel they’re capable of doing it all. But I think it’s important to play to your strengths, and leverage the strengths of those around you, ensuring you always leave yourself bandwidth to think about the bigger picture, no matter how capable you believe you are. As an entrepreneur, it’s important you don’t lose sight of the long-term vision by getting bogged down in the day-to-day. That’s the big difference between how I approached Offtrack from the outset vs how I approached Ice Cream Sundays for the first few years.
Favourite dish and drink at Offtrack.
My favourite dish changes regularly but currently it’s probably a recent addition to our menu - the Korean Gnocchi! Lots of umami goodness in that dish, though I definitely recommend sharing it with a group as it’s pretty filling. And favourite drink has to be the Tommy’s margarita. Can’t beat the classics, plus I’m a sucker for anything sour and/or spicy.
-
Learn more about Offtrack, Ice Cream Sundays, and Sunda Festival.