15: Domain Expertise with Jay Westerdal

Jay Westerdal is a CEO, founder, board member, and investor of a wide multitude of companies.

Jay first got interested in technology at an early age after witnessing early demonstrations of the internet in middle school. His first job out of college involved creating systems to help manage domain names, a field that Jay has stuck with ever since. Jay founded his own domain company, DomainTools, in 2001, which provided information about the history and ownership of internet domains. Jay also started the Domain RoundTable, a conference dedicated solely to the topic of domains. Jay later sold DomainTools in 2008 for an eight figure exit and continued to work with domains as well as technology ever since.

Today, Jay is CEO of 800.com, .Realty and Top Level Spectrum. 800.com is a company that provides companies with toll-free 800 numbers, .Realty is a domain registrar for real estate professionals, and Top level spectrum manages various top level domains like .feedback and .forum.

In today's episode, we talk about what domains are and why they matter, we talk about Jay's current day ventures and where he's going, and we talk about the systems Jay has put in place that lets him focus on so many different priorities.

Quote

I like to build a rocketship and ride it to the stratosphere but [exit] before it becomes a spaceship just sitting there doing nothing collecting whatever that status quo income is.
– Jay Westerdal

Notes

• Jay's initial interest in technology and the internet


• web domains and domain registration


• new top level domains and trends in the industry


• domaintools, what it was and how it was sold


• organizing a domain conference


• Jay's current businesses


• prioritizing tasks


• what Jay looks for as an investor


• investing in yourself


• how to recharge

Closing

• inspiration
  
  
  
  • travel and looking at other people's concepts and ideas
  
  
  
  


• surprising fact
  
  
  
  • take vacations seriously
  
  
  
  


• principle
  
  
  
  • body is a temple, trying to live healthier and healthier everyday
  
  
  
  


• closing notes
  
  
  
  • would love to do more philanthropic stuff in the future, especially addressing homelessness in Seattle
  
  
  
  

Links

• Blink Tag


• Jay's website


• Domaintools


• Top Level Domains


• Top Level Spectrum


• .Realty Registry


• 800.com

These shownotes are also available at http://folkstories.org/15

• folkstories.org
• @kevins8