Meet Lilian Chen | Chief Operating Officer & Co-Founder

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

Hi Lilian, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
I’m definitely a creature of habit and love building them! Especially since I work from home, forming habits has been instrumental in creating routine and structure in my day. I get up at the same time every morning which has helped me be productive early on in the day. Oftentimes, I will meditate (I use Headspace) for 10 minutes to help clear my head and set intentions for the day. As a team, our team has a daily meeting at 9am each morning, which has been useful for all of us to sync up together in the morning as well as catch up with each other. I also personally use my calendar and running To Do list to help me stay on track with my daily tasks. Once a quarter, our team has a quarterly summit to help us set bigger-picture goals to drive us towards our larger vision for the company.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Bar None Games is the go-to virtual platform for connecting friends, families, and co-workers through live-hosted, team-based competitions. Spencer Fertig, my co-founder, created Bar None Games in summer 2020 when our business school reunion went remote. As class president, he still wanted to find a way to connect people, so he created a virtual version of the bar-style trivia he loves. Our classmates said it was the highlight of quarantine and asked him to hold events for their friends and coworkers. The business took off from there. In fact, I was the first friend to book a game. After I played, I realized the company’s potential to bring people together, so I quit my former job and joined Spencer full-time as co-founder.

Since then, we’ve hosted over 1,000 events for 500+ companies and have brought joy to 20,000+ people. In a time when a lot of people are struggling, it has been tremendously fulfilling to bring laughter and happiness into people’s homes around the world. Furthermore, we’ve been able to provide part-time work in the form of hosting to a lot of people who’s typical day jobs were impacted by the pandemic. At our events, our hosts get to shine while they engage with the players and many have called this the best side gig they’ve ever had.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would recommend the Dekalb Farmers Market. Personally, I love farmers markets and love seeing what types of local produce are in season. Furthermore, you get to support a small local business! The Dekalb Farmers Market is huge (way bigger than other typical farmers markets) and has vendors from all over the area. When you go, be prepared to buy everything you’ll need – bread, produce, meat, dairy and more.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to dedicate this shout out to my co-founder Spencer Fertig. Even before we started working together, he’s been a big personal and professional supporter of mine. In various different times, when I felt lost, he was a light that helped guide me through. I feel very lucky every day to be working with and learning from him in on a daily basis.

Website: https://www.barnonegames.com/

Instagram: http://instagram.com/barnonegames

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bar-none-games/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/barnonegames

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/barnonegames