campervan Archives - The Blog of Ian Robinson

From high school dropout in Germany, to a self-driving car engineer in Silicon Valley, Stefan’s journey to co-founder of Mobile Jazz is anything but expected.

I heard about Stefan’s innovative ‘happiness first’ business model from Johannes Voelkner of the Nomad Cruise, and knew I had to get Stefan on the show.

In this interview Stefan shares his philosophy on prioritizing happiness over a paycheck, his love for travel, living in a Fiat camper van and spending his days kiteboarding.

“Even today when I talk to people, I sometimes say, ‘If all my businesses went bankrupt, my bank account was set to zero, I wouldn’t be worried because I could leverage my network, leverage my skills and just start up again.'” – Stefan Klumpp

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Travel Topics:

How a high school dropout can become a successful entrepreneur [2:08]
Moving to Silicon Valley to race self-driving cars through the desert [6:29]
Getting hooked on kiteboarding [8:30]
Yes…. Island fever is real! [10:10]
What to do when you go broke in Spain [13:06]
How to become a self-taught mobile app developer [13:20]
Ha! Turns out, mobile was not just a fad! [13:49]
The simple principles of entrepreneurship [17:57]
How to create a unique office environment and pay model for your startup [21:52]
Organizational advice: First up – Start spreadsheets! [27:52]
Why Stefan took a personal financial hit to grow the business [29:00]
Low overhead = Personal freedom [29:46]
The simplicity of camper van life [31:11]
Security issues inherent with traveling in a camper van [34:32]
How Stefan measures happiness [38:06]
The nomad working on the beach myth dispelled! [40:13]
Clickbait vs Quality content [43:46]