INFORMATION FOR
Give First.
It's a simple idea: before asking what someone can do for you, think about what you might be able to do for them.
That philosophy is one of the founding principles of Garden State Entrepreneurs (GSE), an emerging community with a statewide vision of connecting entrepreneurs, fostering ongoing engagement, and creating opportunities to help one another succeed.
GSE welcomes entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs of every background, in every kind of business, and at every stage, from neighborhood shop owners to founders of high-growth startups.
New Jersey has many organizations supporting entrepreneurship through networking events, workshops, mentoring, and business assistance. These resources play important roles, but GSE is exploring a complementary opportunity: What if entrepreneurs could remain meaningfully engaged with one another beyond organized events?
An event might introduce two people, but relationships and opportunities often develop through conversations that continue long afterward.
GSE seeks to foster an environment where entrepreneurs share experiences, exchange knowledge, make introductions, discover opportunities, and support one another on an ongoing basis. Entrepreneurship can also be a demanding and sometimes lonely journey. Connecting with fellow entrepreneurs who understand the challenges, appreciate the hustle and persistence it takes, and celebrate one another's successes can make that journey more rewarding.
The goal isn't simply to organize more events or keep people engaged with an organization. It is to help entrepreneurs engage meaningfully with one another.
Equally important, GSE is intended to be shaped by its members, rather than functioning primarily as an organization delivering activities for them. This philosophy is reflected in one of GSE's founding principles, Built Together: This is our community to shape. Together we decide and act to make it valuable.:
The idea for Garden State Entrepreneurs grew out of the Passaic County Entrepreneurs Meetup Series, a monthly gathering organized through a collaboration involving William Paterson University's Center for Socially Responsible Entrepreneurship & Innovation (CSREI), New Jersey Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at William Paterson, and Passaic County's Department of Economic Development.
The gatherings bring local entrepreneurs together on the last Tuesday of each month. As the meetings continued, Sarbjeet S. Rayat, CSREI Director and an entrepreneur, began asking: What happens between the events? How could entrepreneurs continue creating opportunities and value for one another without depending on the next organized event?
For Rayat, the question was not academic. It was personal. As an entrepreneur, he had experienced firsthand the value of belonging to an entrepreneurial community, not only for the knowledge, connections, and opportunities it offered, but also for the camaraderie and understanding that come from others who are navigating similar challenges. The question sparked a broader exploration of how entrepreneurs might stay connected, support one another, and create value together on an ongoing basis.
That exploration evolved into Garden State Entrepreneurs, a community-first initiative. On October 6, 2026, twelve participants attended GSE's kickoff meeting, hosted at William Paterson University's Cotsakos College of Business in Wayne, New Jersey.
The participants brought a remarkable diversity of businesses, challenges, perspectives, and life experiences to the table. Rather than arriving with a predetermined agenda, participants addressed the fundamental questions: Why are we here, and what would make us want to come back?
What followed was an open conversation that quickly became a working session. Participants explored what they wanted GSE to become, what would make it valuable, and what it should not be.
Together, they began drafting the community's founding principles, starting with Give First, and recognized the need for a code of conduct to guide how members engage with one another.
Larger questions, including governance and funding, were deliberately left for a later stage. By the end of the gathering, all twelve participants had committed to returning for the next meeting.
In many ways, the first gathering reflected the very community GSE hopes to build: diverse entrepreneurs coming together, sharing perspectives, and beginning to shape something of their own.
While GSE begins in Passaic County, its ambition extends across New Jersey, with the potential for locally rooted communities connected by shared values and a common identity.
Its activities, structure, and direction will evolve as more entrepreneurs become involved. Its success will be reflected not simply in the number of events or members, but in the relationships formed, knowledge shared, opportunities discovered, and ways entrepreneurs help one another move forward.
At its heart is a simple belief: when people approach one another with generosity, build genuine relationships, and help shape the community together, value emerges for individuals and the broader community.
Garden State Entrepreneurs welcomes entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs across New Jersey.
As GSE's first principle puts it: We think first about what we can do for one another before asking for anything ourselves.
