the Guppie Life

Moreso than Hollywood names like Anderson Cooper or Ellen DeGeneres, Tim Gill is a role model for gay millennials.

In 1981 with a $2,000 loan from his parents, Tim founded Quark, the company responsible for QuarkXPress, a piece of software that revolutionized the publishing industry. (Seriously, ask around. It’s a big deal.)

Though Tim parted ways with Quark in 2000, he’s still keeps himself plenty busy as a full-time philanthropist and activist. His charitable endeavors include the Gill Foundation, which has given over $120 million to GLBT-friendly nonprofits, and also the newer Gill Action Fund, which is dedicated to funding pro-GLBT political change.

It’s no wonder then that Tim was chosen by Out Magazine as the 5th most powerful gay person in North America.

Actually, Tim’s so powerful that he frightens conservative wing-nuts like Pat Robertson, who fear that he’s just too good at advancing GLBT causes.

A few weeks ago I got in touch with Tim and asked if he’d be willing to do an interview for the Guppie Life readers. He graciously agreed to share some of the secrets of his success.

AJ: You created Quark when you were only about 27 years old. Becoming an entrepreneur at any age takes a lot of guts. How did you find the courage?
TG: It wasn’t a matter of courage. I was let go from a job at a very small company. Basically they’d run out of money and it was either lay me off or one of the board of directors.

Two startup companies I’d worked for before that had also gone out of business. So I just decided that if I worked for myself then I’d never lay myself off. And it worked!

AJ: You also created Connexion.org, a free social networking site for LGBT people. Why do you think LGBT people need their own spaces on the internet? Do you foresee a time when there won’t be a need for LGBT niche networks?
TG: Niche spaces will always be around for the same reasons there are niche magazines, niche bars and even niche social clubs. Heck, I even founded a niche club for gay snowboarders! It’s just more efficient to congregate with a group of people that share a common interest - whether it’s how you choose to ride the mountain or whom you want to date!

The wonderful thing about the internet is that since it doesn’t have geographic limitations, you can make spaces for niches that are so small that they’d never survive in any other way.

AJ: Which do you think is the biggest issue facing young gays today? Marriage rights? The lack of federal protections for sexual orientation? Or is there another? How about Generation Y as a whole (straight & gay, etc)?
TG: The biggest issue for young gays is certainly not marriage! If you’re in a rural area, it’s more about how to meet people and how to come out - if you can even come out. If you’re out, single and live in an urban area, it’s probably more how to deal with the drama of the people you meet! :)

Discrimination is a potential issue for everyone. Relationship issues and family issues typically don’t become important until later.

AJ: If you could re-do your professional life, what would you do differently?
TG: Almost nothing. I’ve been very lucky and you never know what might change if you tinker with the past! I cherish both my successes and my failures. And, on balance I think I’ve learned more from my failures than from my successes.

Thanks Tim for your time and insight. Keep in touch!