You learn to deal with ambivalence!

Company founded at the age of 23. Raised over 100 million US dollars. Honored by Forbes magazine. Constantin Schreiber is making a splash - and has learned important lessons at 42.

At the beginning of May 2022, we are connected to Constantin via video call. He has just been in New York with his co-founders Mike Mahlkow and David Nordhausen, mapping out the strategy for the coming months and getting to know new employees. With his start-up Blair, he wants to revolutionize student financing in the USA: Young people receive money from Blair and pay it back later - but those who are unemployed or on a low income have their outgoings deferred or even waived. Those who earn well or very well, on the other hand, pay back more than the amount paid out. The educational and socio-political need is enormous: over 43 million people in the US are repaying student loans worth a total of around 1.6 trillion US dollars. An incredible sum. More and more people are getting into payment difficulties.

“Game over” was imminent

The idea sounds convincing, but it is still extremely difficult to get started. For example, although Blair will not be granting any loans, the start-up must have a banking license. The legal fees for this are between 50,000 and 150,000 US dollars - for each of the 50 federal states. This would almost have meant the end of Blair. Constantin: “Which financier was going to hand us millions just so we could complete the formalities? That couldn't work, game over.” He describes how they had to fumble their way through, spent nights discussing alternative paths and then, together with a lawyer friend, actually found a solution. A process he knows only too well from the 42.

Why the 42 strengthens the entrepreneurial spirit

Review: 2018, Constantin is studying at CODE Berlin and, together with two other students, gets the chance to go to 42 Silicon Valley. He passes the four-week selection process - known as the piscine - and stays for a total of six months. Constantin describes the time as both intense and inspiring. For weeks on end, he only leaves the campus to sleep at most, codes for up to 14 hours at a time and experiences an enormous sense of community. Constantin: “We had really complex tasks to solve and no one to tell you how to do it. We recognized different options and had to learn how to deal productively with ambivalence. Ultimately, this is pure entrepreneurship.” He says that this experience later helped him to overcome the problem with the banking licenses. The app is now up and running, Blair supports students and also works directly with educational institutions.

Learning programming from scratch

Constantin does not limit the importance of 42 to such soft skills. On the contrary. At 42, he is learning basics such as the C programming language and the Bash scripting language, which is now benefiting him: “If you know the fundamentals, you are a better problem solver.” This is particularly true when it comes to debugging, where it is important to systematically remove errors from software.

42 Heilbronn - a nucleus for the entire region

He also expects all of this from 42 Heilbronn. He comes from the area, having grown up ten kilometers away in Schwaigern. “The guys who choose 42 and are then accepted are similar, no matter where they study. But of course, the environment here can't be compared to Silicon Valley.” Constantin talks about the entrepreneurial spirit that prevails in California. Of the digital ecosystem that helps to turn new ideas into reality. And of investors who are prepared to take significantly greater risks there than in Germany. But it doesn't have to stay that way: “With every successful start-up, the culture will change here too and money will flow into the start-up cycle.” 42 Heilbronn could play an important role in this, as it attracts exciting people from all over the world to Baden-Württemberg. According to Constantin, the tech scene and potential investors are now looking to the Neckar: “I'm sure that great projects will emerge from this environment.” Of course, he himself is also part of the 42 Heilbronn network - and inspires numerous students.